Royan, France - Our Twin City

On May 29, 2009, Annapolis Royal Mayor Phil Roberts signed an agreement twinning Annapolis Royal with the French city of Royan.

Royan is a popular resort town on France's Atlantic coast. In the early 17th century however, it was a hotbed for French colonization of New France and Acadia. The twinning ceremony officially acknowledges the special link connecting Royan and Annapolis Royal.

Royan is the birthplace of Pierre Dugua de Mons, a merchant-explorer who received exclusive colonization rights and a fur trade monopoly from Henry IV in 1603. Annapolis Royal is the present-day incarnation of Dugua's first successful settlement, Port Royal founded in 1605 by Dugua and his better-remembered cartographer Samuel de Champlain. (Incidentally, de Champlain was born just up the coast from Royan, near present-day La Rochelle).

The ceremony lasted about 45 minutes including an talk by a Royan resident about the early history of Port Royal-Royan link and the life of Dugua, followed by Royan's Mayor Didier Quentin who stressed his pleasure at the present-day blossoming of this historic connection and Mayor Roberts who expressed humble pride in joining his small community with such a vibrant city.

After signing the twinning documents, the Mayors and members of the public moved to Royan's public gardens, the 'Jardins du monde,' to mark the occasion with an evening apéritif .

Browsing council records on Royan's homepage reveals some description of the event's significance for the French city. The motion to twin the two municipalities is motivated by a desire to develop ties of friendship between peoples, to promote mutual understanding that supersedes linguistic and cultural boundaries and to increase contact between the two communities, particularly between professionals and youth.