Ruffec, Charente

Ruffec (French pronunciation: [ʁyfɛk]) is a commune in the Charente department in southwestern France.

Ruffec
Commune
Town hall
Coat of arms
Location of Ruffec
Ruffec Show map of France Ruffec Show map of Nouvelle-Aquitaine
Coordinates: 46°01′46″N 0°12′00″E
Country	France
Region	Nouvelle-Aquitaine
Department	Charente
Arrondissement	Confolens
Canton	Charente-Nord
Government
• Mayor (2020–2026)	Thierry Bastier[1]
Area 1	13.37 km2 (5.16 sq mi)
Population  (2022)[2]	3,394
• Density	250/km2 (660/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+01:00 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00 (CEST)
INSEE/Postal code	16292 /16700
Elevation	83–145 m (272–476 ft)
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

It is a stopover town on the road from Paris to Spain (Route nationale 10), between Poitiers and Angoulême.

During the Second World War, Ruffec was at the centre of Resistance for the evacuation of the Allied airmen towards Spain.^[3]

Population

Its inhabitants are known as the Ruffécois or the Ruffécoises in French.^[4]

Historical population

Year Pop. ±% p.a. 1793 1,937 —     1800 2,110 +1.23% 1806 2,197 +0.68% 1821 2,526 +0.93% 1831 3,004 +1.75% 1841 2,977 −0.09% 1846 3,074 +0.64% 1851 3,654 +3.52% 1856 3,109 −3.18% 1861 3,235 +0.80% 1866 3,175 −0.37% 1872 3,233 +0.30% 1876 3,385 +1.16% 1881 3,642 +1.47% 1886 3,589 −0.29% 1891 3,527 −0.35% 1896 3,426 −0.58% 1901 3,474 +0.28%	Year Pop. ±% p.a. 1906 3,375 −0.58% 1911 3,483 +0.63% 1921 3,231 −0.75% 1926 3,194 −0.23% 1931 3,292 +0.61% 1936 3,467 +1.04% 1946 3,874 +1.12% 1954 3,724 −0.49% 1962 4,009 +0.93% 1968 4,157 +0.61% 1975 4,241 +0.29% 1982 4,193 −0.16% 1990 3,893 −0.92% 1999 3,630 −0.77% 2007 3,594 −0.12% 2012 3,494 −0.56% 2017 3,410 −0.49%
Source: EHESS[5] and INSEE (1968-2017)[6]

Twin towns – sister cities

Ruffec is twinned with:

• Waldsee, Germany
• Pásztó, Hungary

Climate

Climate data for Ruffec (1981–2010 normals, extremes 1959–2018)
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Record high °C (°F)	17.4 (63.3)	23.5 (74.3)	26.6 (79.9)	29.6 (85.3)	33.3 (91.9)	38.4 (101.1)	38.6 (101.5)	40.2 (104.4)	36.4 (97.5)	30.3 (86.5)	24.0 (75.2)	19.0 (66.2)	40.2 (104.4)
Mean daily maximum °C (°F)	8.3 (46.9)	9.9 (49.8)	13.6 (56.5)	16.3 (61.3)	20.3 (68.5)	24.0 (75.2)	26.8 (80.2)	26.7 (80.1)	23.1 (73.6)	18.2 (64.8)	12.0 (53.6)	8.7 (47.7)	17.4 (63.3)
Daily mean °C (°F)	5.0 (41.0)	5.7 (42.3)	8.5 (47.3)	10.7 (51.3)	14.6 (58.3)	17.9 (64.2)	20.1 (68.2)	19.9 (67.8)	16.8 (62.2)	13.2 (55.8)	8.1 (46.6)	5.5 (41.9)	12.2 (54.0)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F)	1.7 (35.1)	1.5 (34.7)	3.4 (38.1)	5.1 (41.2)	8.8 (47.8)	11.7 (53.1)	13.4 (56.1)	13.1 (55.6)	10.6 (51.1)	8.3 (46.9)	4.2 (39.6)	2.3 (36.1)	7.0 (44.6)
Record low °C (°F)	−19.0 (−2.2)	−14.9 (5.2)	−11.6 (11.1)	−4.4 (24.1)	−1.4 (29.5)	2.0 (35.6)	4.2 (39.6)	3.2 (37.8)	1.2 (34.2)	−3.3 (26.1)	−9.0 (15.8)	−11.4 (11.5)	−19.0 (−2.2)
Average precipitation mm (inches)	81.8 (3.22)	64.0 (2.52)	59.2 (2.33)	67.7 (2.67)	74.8 (2.94)	53.2 (2.09)	45.7 (1.80)	49.7 (1.96)	60.9 (2.40)	89.5 (3.52)	90.3 (3.56)	95.6 (3.76)	832.4 (32.77)
Average precipitation days (≥ 1.0 mm)	11.8	10.0	9.9	11.0	11.7	7.7	7.5	7.0	7.7	11.2	12.3	12.2	120.1
Source: Meteociel[7]

See also

• Communes of the Charente department