This retired English couple said “farewell” to this small village in Lot-et-Garonne

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Sandra and Anthony, a retired English couple said “goodbye” to Cocumonta small village in Lot-et-Garonne located about fifteen minutes from Marmande.

Sandra was a teacher in medieval history at the University of Cambridge. A passionate author, she has written in-depth works on the Middle Ages. Anthony (Tony for the Cocumontais), for his part, was director of the professional integration service of this prestigious English university.

Full-fledged Cocumontais

Living part-time in Cocumont since their retirement, this endearing and very integrated couple in the life of his adopted village has just made the wise decision to return to England permanently, “for security, because this double life becomes difficult with age; life will be easier in Cambridge than in the countryside here, and then it’s more complicated since Brexit,” Tony explains to us with regret.

Since 2002, Sandra and Tony lived six months of the year on the small farm which they had acquired in the middle of the vineyards. Speaking French with ease, the two academics had no difficulty integrating when they arrived. Integration is the term frequently used in such situations, but this couple will have been marked by the numerous acquaintances and friendships that they have built over the years. 22 years spent in Cocumont.

Like migratory birds but following a journey in reverse, the Rabans arrived in April and left for England in Octoberto enjoy the beautiful season in Aquitaine.

Kindness, simplicity, generosity… so many terms underlined by the many people present during the very beautiful evening that Sandra and Tony offered before their departure.

They were very integrated into village life

« Present and active at citizen daysvery generous supporters of the local heritage, inducted by the Confrérie des Côtes du Marmandais during a Festivino, we saw them participate or get involved in so many events of village life that they were cocumontais in their own right, with a remarkable network of friends who really appreciated them.”

From the time of English Aquitaine

Scholars, enthusiasts of the Middle Agesit is not surprising that these two academics had the idea of ​​looking for traces of Cocumont in the archives of the very old and famous university.

Successfully, because Tony actually found manuscripts mentioning the name of this little piece of Aquitaine from the time it was English!

These are 22 years that we loved enormously

»We will miss it, we thank everyone for the friendshipbut it is difficult to express what is in our hearts, and rather than saying goodbye, we prefer to say adishatz. »

Integrated to the point of using the old Gascon languagethe one already used by the Gascons at the time of English Aquitaine, Sandra and Tony leave with memorable memories for them: the Old medieval church of Cocumont and their house reproduced in two paintings painted by Evelyne Larrue.

The municipality for its part offered them the symbolic key to this Old Churchas a thank you for their generosity in favor of the restoration of this monument.

With Bernard Lataste

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