Last interglacial-glacial climatic cycle in loess-palaeosol successions ofnorth-western France

The loess series at St. Pierre-les-Elbeuf and St. Sauflieu are key successi ons for the western European Quaternary stratigraphy. The present study pro poses a detailed record of the last interglacial-glacial climatic cycle at St. Pierre and its integration into the synthetic pedosedimentary record of north-western France using detailed correlations with the type sections of St. Sauflieu and Achenheim. Finally, comparisons with the marine isotope, Greenland GRIP chronologies and dust records are proposed. At St. Pierre, t he pedostratigraphic and sedimentological analyses (total iron, organic mat ter, carbonate, grain size), in association with low field magnetic suscept ibility measurements, demonstrate that this loess succession records the ma jor climatic events of the Upper Pleistocene. The basal soil complex at St. Pierre is similar to those from the main successions of North (St. Sauflie u) or Northeast France (Achenheim). It shows a Bt horizon of brown leached soil, a deeply reworked grey forest soil and two isohumic steppe soils sepa rated by a non-calcareous loess layer. This loess level corresponds to the first aeolian event clearly observed in the succession and can be correlate d with Marker II of the Central European stratigraphy located around the ma rine isotope stage (MIS) 5/4 boundary. The main aeolian sedimentation start s after the soil complex and ends with the top soil (brown leached soil). F inally, a good parallel is observed between the strongest peaks of the dust records of the ice cores and the main period of loess deposition in St Pie rre-les-Elbeuf occurring during MIS 2.