Carsac-Aillac

Carsac-Aillac
Commune
The church in Carsac
Coat of arms
Location of Carsac-Aillac
Carsac-Aillac Location within France Show map of France Carsac-Aillac Location within Nouvelle-Aquitaine Show map of Nouvelle-Aquitaine
Coordinates: 44°50′27″N 1°16′37″E / 44.8408°N 1.2769°E / 44.8408; 1.2769
Country	France
Region	Nouvelle-Aquitaine
Department	Dordogne
Arrondissement	Sarlat-la-Canéda
Canton	Terrasson-Lavilledieu
Government
• Mayor (2020–2026)	Patrick Bonnefon[1]
Area ^1	17.31 km^2 (6.68 sq mi)
Population  (2023)[2]	1,586
• Density	91.62/km^2 (237.3/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+01:00 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00 (CEST)
INSEE/Postal code	24082 /24200
Elevation	60–269 m (197–883 ft) (avg. 99 m or 325 ft)
^1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km^2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

Carsac-Aillac (French pronunciation: [kaʁsak‿ajak]; Occitan: Carsac e Alhac) is a commune in the Dordogne department in Nouvelle-Aquitaine in southwestern France.

History

Prehistory

The Pech-de-l'Azé caves are an archaeological site dating back to the Mousterian^[3]

It yielded a fossil skull of a young child from this period.^[4] It is a reference site for the regional Middle Paleolithic.

Another prehistoric site, the Pech de la Boissière site, located east of La Borderie, to the right of the road leading from Carsac to Sarlat, was classified as a Historic monument on March 16, 1927.^[5] This archaeological site has revealed deposits dating from the Upper Paleolithic period (from 45,000 to 12,000 BC).

Antiquity

While some traces of Iron Age occupation (polished stones, pottery shards) have been found on the spur of the Saint-Augustin rock, it is primarily the Gallo-Roman period that has left the most significant evidence.

The Saint-Rome site revealed a strong human presence dating from the late 1st century AD to the 4th century AD, notably with two buildings measuring 150 m². A burial ground from the Early Middle Ages located within these ruins revealed eleven graves dating from the mid-7th to the late 10th century.^[6]

20th century

In June 1944, the town suffered repression at the hands of the SS Regiment Der Führer 4th regiment, belonging to the Division Das Reich, en route to the Normandy.^[7]

Map of Carsac-Aillac and its former constituent towns.

In 1961, the communes of Carsac-de-Carlux and Aillac merged under the name Carsac-Aillac.

Population

Historical population

Year	Pop.	±% p.a.
1968	770	—
1975	782	+0.22%
1982	950	+2.82%
1990	1,219	+3.17%
1999	1,217	−0.02%
2007	1,466	+2.35%
2012	1,540	+0.99%
2017	1,578	+0.49%
2023	1,586	+0.08%
Source: INSEE[8]

Notable people

• Marius Rossillon, aka O'Galop (1867-1946), creator of the Bibendum Michelin, died in Carsac-Aillac.
• Solange Sanfourche, (1922–2013), alias Marie-Claude, was a French resistance fighter born in Carsac-Aillac.

Sights

• Jardins d'Eau

See also

• Communes of the Dordogne department

References

1. "Répertoire national des élus: les maires" (in French). data.gouv.fr, Plateforme ouverte des données publiques françaises. 13 September 2022.
2. "Populations de référence 2023" (in French). National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies. 18 December 2025.
3. Marie Soressi (2002). "The Acheulean-tradition Mousterian of Southwestern France - Discussion on the significance of the facies based on the comparative study of four sites: Pech-de-l'Azé I, Le Moustier, La Rochette and Grotte XVI" (pdf) (in French). Retrieved 6 May 2018.
4. Bruno Maureille; Marie Soressi (2000). "On the chronostratigraphic position of the child from Pech-de-l'Azé I (Carsac, Dordogne): the resurrection of the ghost". Paléo (in French). pp. 339–352.
5. Base Mérimée: Pech de la Boissière prehistoric site, French Ministry of Culture (in French), consulted on May 22, 2021.
6. Ibid Anne Bécheau, p. 26.
7. Atlas-Libération-France, p 43
8. Population municipale entre 1968 et 2023, INSEE