Circuit des Remparts
Each September, the ramparts of Angoulême's upper town are transformed into an urban motor circuit: pre-war cars, classic racing cars and a concours d'élégance take over the cobbled streets in a spectacle unique in France.
A history that begins in 1939
The Circuit des Remparts is one of the oldest urban motor racing events still held in France. Its first edition took place on 10 September 1939, just days after the declaration of war — the timing was tragically unfortunate and the race long remained in memory as the ultimate pre-war celebration. The layout, designed around the medieval ramparts of the upper town, winds over approximately 1.3 km of closed streets, with tight bends, fast straights along the city walls and the spectacular hairpin in front of the town hall.
Interrupted by the Second World War, the circuit was revived after the Liberation and enjoyed its golden years in the 1950s, drawing drivers and cars of international renown. After a long interruption, the event was restored in a spirit of preserving automotive heritage: today only period cars — mainly pre-1939 and classics up to the 1970s — take part in the timed races. This decision transformed the event into an exceptional gathering for collectors, restoration craftsmen and automotive history enthusiasts.
The event programme
The event runs over a weekend in September. It combines several types of competition and entertainment that make it far more than a simple motor race.
The races
Timed races on the closed urban circuit separate several categories of period vehicles: single-seaters, sports-prototypes and classic touring cars follow each other on track after track to the roar of vintage engines.
Concours d'élégance
A jury of connoisseurs rewards the finest cars, coachwork and period attire. Elegance takes precedence over speed: Bugatti, Delage, Hispano-Suiza and other jewels of classic coachwork compete for prizes and distinctions.
Rallies & parades
Regularity rallies and grand parades allow hundreds of classic vehicles to drive through the upper town streets, offering the tens of thousands of spectators a spectacle accessible to all.
The circuit within the city
What makes the Circuit des Remparts unique is its setting: the medieval upper town, perched on its limestone promontory more than a hundred metres above the Charente plain. Period cars roar down from the Champ de Mars (Place New York), run along the Rempart Beaulieu with its panorama over the Charente and Anguienne valleys, take the Rempart du Midi before negotiating the tight hairpin in front of the town hall — the Lusignan and Valois towers as backdrop — and then return to the start line.
The ticketed grandstands offer the best views over the key points of the circuit, but much of the rampart walk is freely accessible, allowing tens of thousands of spectators to line the walls to watch the cars of another era. The atmosphere is at once festive and nostalgic: the sound of supercharged engines, the smell of castor oil and period costumes mingle with the beauty of the medieval architecture.
Around the event
The Circuit weekend extends well beyond the track. Exhibitions of exceptional vehicles fill the squares of the upper town, specialist craftsmen and restorers present their expertise, and the restaurants and cafés of the medieval setting fill with visitors from across France and Europe. It is one of the rare occasions when the city's population multiplies several times over a weekend, almost rivalling the attendance at the January comics festival. Accommodation in the city and its surroundings books out weeks in advance: advance reservation is essential.
The circuit layout
The four key points of the Circuit des Remparts around Angoulême's upper town.