Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The lighthouse of the Pointe de Grave, located at the mouth of the Gironde on the commune of Verdon-sur-Mer, was built in 1860 after several unsuccessful attempts due to marine erosion. This third lighthouse, built in just 9 months, replaces temporary structures in structure or masonry destroyed by the sea between 1823 and 1860. Its architecture consists of a 28-metre square tower, painted in white and black, adjacent to U-shaped guard housing.

The history of the lighthouse is marked by technical and natural challenges. As early as 1823, a first temporary lantern was installed, followed by masonry or frame towers, systematically carried away by the advance of the sea. In 1830, a demountable tower was erected to adapt to erosion, but was replaced in 1837 by a fanal on Grave Fort. Successive constructions, such as that of 1838 destroyed in 1839, illustrate the difficulty of stabilizing the work on this exposed site.

The current lighthouse, lit on August 15, 1860, is equipped with a white/red/green occult light with a range of 17 miles. Electrified in 1937 and automated in 1955, it houses a 1860 optic and a copper lantern. Its administrative history revealed conflicts, such as the dispute between entrepreneur Dufour and the state, solved only in 1874 after 14 years of proceedings. Ranked a historic monument in 2009, it now houses a museum and is mainly visited in summer.

The construction of the 1860 lighthouse was a technical feat, completed in less than a year despite initial delays and criticism of the quality of the materials. The engineer of the time accused the entrepreneur Bouzac (for the lighthouse of 1839) of negligence, but the latter proved his good faith. The Dufour lighthouse, awarded in 1859, cost 69,700 francs, plus 31,500 francs for optics. Its robust architecture, with stone corner chains, resisted erosion, unlike its predecessors.

The Pointe de Grave site, the most exposed site at the mouth of the Gironde, saw seven buildings in less than 50 years before 1860. The current lighthouse, 27 metres high (34.60 m above the sea), symbolizes perseverance against the elements. His fire, initially with vegetable oil (1823), passed to mineral oil around 1875, then to oil (1911), before his electrification. The lantern, made of copper with volutes, and the 107 steps stairway, are original.

Today, the lighthouse of the Pointe de Grave remains an active navigation tool and a testimony of 19th century maritime engineering. Its museum, housed in the former guard houses, traces this turbulent history. The national archives preserve 23 plans of the lighthouse (1830–96), and its Mérimée notice (IA3301225) documents its architectural and technical evolution.

External links