Belley

Belley, France

Place des Terreaux

Coat of arms

Belley, France

Location within Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region

Belley, France

Coordinates: 45°46′00″N 5°41′00″E / 45.7667°N 5.6833°ECoordinates: 45°46′00″N 5°41′00″E / 45.7667°N 5.6833°E

Country

Belley Bas Bugey

Government

• Mayor (2015-2020)

Pierre Berthet (divers droite)

Area¹

22.42 km² (8.66 sq mi)

Population (2008)²

8,750

• Density

390/km² (1,000/sq mi)

Time zone

CET (UTC+1)

• Summer (DST)

CEST (UTC+2)

INSEE/Postal code

01034 /01300

Elevation

220–392 m (722–1,286 ft)
(avg. 277 m or 909 ft)

¹ French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

²Population without double counting: residents of multiple communes (e.g., students and military personnel) only counted once.

¹ French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

Belley (French pronunciation: [bɛlɛ], Arpitan: Bèlê) is a commune in the Ain department in eastern France.

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.

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-century Marist missionary matryr and proto-martyr of Oceania.

The town is famed for its cheese, la Tome de Belley, also known as Chevret or still "Le pavé 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.

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Wikipedia