Pouilly-en-Auxois is a commune in the Côte-d'Or department in eastern France. It is the summit of the Canal of Burgundy, which passes in a tunnel under the town.

Geography

The town was originally sited on the St Pierre hilltop surrounding a (now vanished) castle and walls built by the Dukes of Burgundy and the 13th/14th century Chapelle de Notre Dame Trouvée (Chapel of Our Lady Found). Beginning in the 16th century the town was rebuilt further down in the valley and in 1868 the new St Pierre church was built in what is now the city center.

Climate

Pouilly-en-Auxois has an oceanic climate (Köppen climate classification Cfb). The average annual temperature in Pouilly-en-Auxois is 10.5 C. The average annual rainfall is 872.3 mm with November as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in July, at around 19.1 C, and lowest in January, at around 2.4 C. The highest temperature ever recorded in Pouilly-en-Auxois was 39.2 C on 12 August 2003; the coldest temperature ever recorded was -18.2 C on 20 December 2009.

Population

Economy

From the twelfth century, the town was a regional agricultural center, specializing in wheat and later hemp, oils, skins, wool and sheep.

Sights

The town features three dovecotes dating from the 15th century, the interior walls of which contain around 1,200 pigeonholes. Running beneath the town is la Voûte, a tunnel through which passes the Burgundy canal. It was built in the late 19th century to accommodate barge traffic in lieu of installing frequent locks on the canal; it is a subtle engineering masterpiece. The office of tourism located at the port offers a trip through this 3.3 km tunnel on a boat called the Billebaude. Above the town is a statue of the Madonna, from where the visitor can gain a bird's eye view of the town and canal. In addition, a 12th-century chapel near the cemetery at the edge of town is all that remains of the old town. It is closed for renovation.