Belley
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This article may be expanded with text translated from the corresponding article in the French Wikipedia. (December 2008) Click [show] on the right for instructions.
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Belley |
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| Place des Terreaux | |
 Belley
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| Administration | |
|---|---|
| Country | France |
| Region | Rhône-Alpes |
| Department | Ain |
| Arrondissement | Belley |
| Canton | Belley |
| Intercommunality | Belley Bas Bugey |
| Mayor | Jean-Marc Fognini (2008–2014) |
| Statistics | |
| Elevation | 220–392 m (720–1,286 ft) (avg. 277 m or 909 ft) |
| Land area1 | 22.42 km2 (8.66 sq mi) |
| Population2 | 8,750 (2008) |
| - Density | 390 /km2 (1,000 /sq mi) |
| INSEE/Postal code | 01034/ 01300 |
| 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. | |
Coordinates: 45°46′00″N 5°41′00″E / 45.7667°N 5.6833°E
Belley (Arpitan Bèlê) is a commune in the Ain department in eastern France.
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[edit] History
Belley is of Roman origin, and in the 5th century became an episcopal see. It was the capital of the province of Bugey, which was a dependency of Savoy till 1601, when it was ceded to France. In 1385 the town was almost entirely destroyed by an act of incendiarism, but was subsequently rebuilt by the dukes of Savoy, who surrounded it with ramparts of which little is left.
Belley was the birthplace of the epicure Jean-Anthelme Brillat-Savarin.
[edit] Ecclesiastical history
Belley was the seat of the Bishop of Belley and the location of Belley Cathedral. Belley is the home region of St. Peter Chanel, the famous 19th C. Marist missionary matryr and proto-martyr of Oceana.
[edit] Population
| Historical populations | ||
|---|---|---|
| Year | Pop. | ±% |
| 1793 | 4,197 | — |
| 1800 | 3,727 | −11.2% |
| 1806 | 3,775 | +1.3% |
| 1821 | 4,166 | +10.4% |
| 1831 | 4,286 | +2.9% |
| 1836 | 3,970 | −7.4% |
| 1841 | 3,821 | −3.8% |
| 1846 | 4,474 | +17.1% |
| 1851 | 4,867 | +8.8% |
| 1856 | 4,879 | +0.2% |
| 1861 | 4,792 | −1.8% |
| 1866 | 4,624 | −3.5% |
| 1872 | 4,684 | +1.3% |
| 1876 | 4,970 | +6.1% |
| 1881 | 5,622 | +13.1% |
| 1886 | 6,160 | +9.6% |
| 1891 | 6,295 | +2.2% |
| 1896 | 6,070 | −3.6% |
| 1901 | 6,467 | +6.5% |
| 1906 | 5,707 | −11.8% |
| 1911 | 6,182 | +8.3% |
| 1921 | 6,536 | +5.7% |
| 1926 | 4,739 | −27.5% |
| 1931 | 5,126 | +8.2% |
| 1936 | 5,815 | +13.4% |
| 1946 | 5,308 | −8.7% |
| 1954 | 5,470 | +3.1% |
| 1962 | 5,958 | +8.9% |
| 1968 | 7,049 | +18.3% |
| 1975 | 7,583 | +7.6% |
| 1982 | 7,981 | +5.2% |
| 1990 | 7,807 | −2.2% |
| 1999 | 8,004 | +2.5% |
| 2008 | 8,750 | +9.3% |
[edit] Economy
The town is famed for its cheese, la Tome de Belley, also known as Chevret or still "Le pave d'Affinois". It is also at the centre of the Bugey wine region. It is also home to a sizeable Volvo production unit producing compact excavators, Comatel and Ciat.
[edit] Personalities
Gertrude Stein and Alice B. Toklas lived in Belley.[1]
[edit] See also
[edit] References
This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed (1911). Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press.
[edit] External links
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