La Réole is located on the right bank of the Garonne, 38 miles (61 km) southeast of Bordeaux by rail.

During the War of Saint-Sardos in 1324, the most stubborn resistance against the repossession of Aquitaine was put up by the Earl of Kent in La Réole.

The town fortifications were dismantled in 1629 by order of Richelieu, but remains dating from the 12th and 14th centuries are to be seen, as well as a part of the Château de Quat'Sos, which was begun by Louis VIII of France and completed by Henry II of England.

Of more recent note is the suspension bridge that links the town centre to the southern bank of the Garonne river.

According to the Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition (1911): As the 20th century progressed, La Réole played the role of a regional economic centre, second to Bordeaux.