Beaune

Beaune
Hospices de Beaune
Beaune
Location within Burgundy region  Beaune
Administration
Country	France
Region	Burgundy
Department	Côte-d'Or
Arrondissement	Beaune
Mayor	Alain Suguenot (2008–2014)
Statistics
Elevation	193–407 m (633–1,335 ft) (avg. 219 m or 719 ft)
Land area1	31.30 km2 (12.08 sq mi)
Population2	22,218  (2008)
- Density	710 /km2 (1,800 /sq mi)
INSEE/Postal code	21054/ 21200
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.
2 Population without double counting: residents of multiple communes (e.g., students and military personnel) only counted once.

Beaune (French pronunciation: [bon]) is the wine capital of Burgundy in the Cote d'Or department in eastern France. It is located between Paris and Geneva.

Beaune is one of the key wine centers in France and the annual wine auction of the Hospices de Beaune is the primary wine auction in France. The town is surrounded by some of the world's most famous wine villages, while the facilities and cellars of many producers, large and small, are situated in Beaune itself.

It is an ancient and historic town on a plain by the hills of the Cote d'Or, with features remaining from the pre-Roman and Roman eras, through the medieval and renaissance periods and up to recent history and modern times.

Beaune is a walled city, with about half of the battlements, ramparts, and the moat, having survived and in good condition, and the central "old town" is extensive. Historically Beaune is intimately connected with the Dukes of Burgundy.

Landmarks in Beaune include the Halles, the Hospices, the Beffroi, and Notre Dame.

There is a comprehensive "traditional" shopping area clustered around the central square with a focus on gourmet food, fashion, and wine, while large supermarkets, business parks, etc., are situated on the outskirts of town.

Beaune is the center for wine industry services (such as tractors and equipment for vat-rooms) as well as a number of wine-related institutes and education facilities. The train station is served by TGV, through Dijon or Lyon.

Beaune has a major fine food market on Saturdays, where there are a large number of stall holders supplying a broad selection of products and specialties from Burgundy and the surrounding regions. For example, Bresse chickens, Jura cheeses, small goods, spices, produce of every variety as well as seasonal specialties such as truffles. There is a smaller market on Wednesday, and special-event markets and fetes are held throughout the year.

Although Beaune is not primarily a tourist town but one centred around the wine industry, it nevertheless attracts a large amount of tourism. About five traditional smaller hotels are located within the city walls with around five chain hotels on the outskirts.

Technically Beaune is a commune in eastern France, a sub-prefecture of department 21, the Côte-d'Or department, in the Bourgogne region.

Wine

Main article: Beaune wine

Vineyards on the outskirts of Beaune

Beaune is one of the wine communes of the Côte de Beaune subregion of the Burgundy wine region, which bears the name of this town. Although Beaune is lacking a Grand Cru vineyard in the commune, it is the hub of the region's wine business, as most of Burgundy's major négociants are here. Beaune is renowned for its annual charity wine auction on behalf of the Hospices de Beaune.

It is on the route des Grands Crus tourist trail among the vineyards. The road runs north from Beaune to Gevrey Chambertin and Nuits-Saint-Georges and south to Nolay, Saisy and Autun.

Population

Historical population of Beaune

Year	1793	1800	1806	1821	1831	1836	1841	1846	1851	1856	1861
Population	10,114	8344	9298	9947	9908	10,678	10,585	11,362	10,969	10,453	10,715

Year	1866	1872	1876	1881	1886	1891	1896	1901	1906	1911
Population	10,907	11,176	11,421	12,038	12,146	12,470	13,726	13,887	13,540	13,049

Year	1921	1926	1931	1936	1946	1954	1962	1968	1975	1982
Population	11,661	11,990	11,862	12,161	11,990	13,175	15,367	16,874	19,060	20,207

Year	1990	1999	2008
Population	21,289	21,923	22,218

Hospices de Beaune

Founded in 1442 by Nicolas Rolin, chancellor of the Duke of Burgundy, and his wife, the Hospices are a charity running hospitals and other services for the needy. Following from past donations, they own vineyards in Burgundy.

Beaune, France

Personalities

• Louis Chevrolet (1878–1941), race car driver, co-founder of the Chevrolet Motor Car Company, co-founder of the Frontenac Motor Corporation with brothers Gaston and Arthur.
• Arthur Chevrolet (1884–1946), race car driver and co-founder of the Frontenac Motor Corporation with brothers Louis and Gaston.
• Gaston Chevrolet (1892–1920), 1920 Indianapolis 500 winner and 1920 AAA National Champion race car driver, co-founder of the Frontenac Motor Corporation with brothers Louis and Arthur.
• Bruno Latour (born 1947), anthropologist and an influential theorist in the field of science and technology studies.
• Étienne-Jules Marey (1830–1904), scientist and chronophotographer, widely considered to be a pioneer of photography and an influential pioneer of the history of cinema.
• Gaspard Monge (1746–1818), mathematician and inventor of descriptive geometry.
• Félix Ziem (1821–1911), painter in the style of the Barbizon School.

International relations

See also: List of twin towns and sister cities in France

Twin towns — sister cities

Beaune is twinned with:

Nantucket, Massachusetts, United States - since October 21, 2006 Bensheim, Germany - since June 12, 1960 Malmedy, Belgium - since June 11, 1962

Krems, Austria - since March 23, 1976 Katsunuma, Japan - since September 18, 1976 Berkhamsted, United Kingdom Missoula, Montana

See also

• Burgundy wine
• Communes of the Côte-d'Or department
• French wine

References

• INSEE

External links

• (French) Official website
• (French) Beaune tourism office
• Châteaux in and around the town of Beaune
• (English) Hospices de Beaune
• Hospices de Beaune Fuller version in French
• Pictures of Beaune Basilica

• 

  The Last Judgment (Rogier van der Weyden), Hôtel-Dieu, Beaune

• 

  Nicolas Rolin, founder of the Hôtel-Dieu, Beaune

• 

  Beaune City Hall