Prefecture: Ain (01)
Population: 41,700, 133,000 in the conurbation
Specialities: Bresse PDO poultry, Bresse PDO butter and cream, Giraudet quenelles, Bleu de Bresse cheese, Comté PDO, Gaudriolles, Bugey PDO wines
Personalities: Marguerite of Austria, Edgar Quinet (writer), Daniel Morelon (cyclist), Gilles Bouvard (cyclist), Julien Benneteau (tennis), Laurent Gerra (comedian), Luc Jacquet (film director), Lionel Nallet (rugby), Georges Blanc (chef), Geoffrey Soupe (cyclist), Antoine Diot (basketball)
Sport: JL Bourg Basket, US Bressane (rugby), FC Bourg-Péronnas (football), TC Bourg (tennis), VC Bressan (cycling). Events: Jumping international, half-marathon, Tour de l'Ain cycliste
Economy: food industry (poultry), HGV industry, university (3,400 students), tourism
Festivals: A la folie...pas du tout (Monastère Royal de Brou, summer), Festival d'Ambronay (September), Les Estivales de Brou (July), Les Ain'pertinentes (city folk art biennial)
Labels: child-friendly town (UNICEF) / ville fleurie *** / Qualiville / Ville à vélo du Tour de France (3 bikes)
Websites: www.bourgenbresse.fr / www.grandbourg.fr / www.bourgenbressedestinations.fr / www.ain.fr / www.ain-tourisme.com / www.la-belle-rencontre.fr
BOURG-EN-BRESSE AND CYCLING
The last time the men's Tour de France passed through Bourg-en-Bresse in 2023, Kasper Asgreen was able to shake off certainties. The finish in the prefecture of Ain almost always ends in a bunch sprint, and it was to disprove this probability that the Dane set off with Victor Campenaerts, Jonas Abrahamsen and then Pascal Ennkhoorn in a breakaway that seemed doomed to failure. But the Dane managed to outmanoeuvre his breakaway companions in the final stages while maintaining a minimal lead over the peloton. The following day, Asgreen just missed out on a repeat victory before being beaten by Matej Mohoric at the photo finish.
As for the rest, Thor Hushovd in 2002, Tom Boonen in 2007: Bourg-en-Bresse has often been a good place for sprinters in the Tour de France. In 2014, Alexander Kristoff confirmed the trend with the start of a stage to Saint-Étienne. In 2020, it was Soren Kragh Andersen who won the penultimate stage of the Tour de France in Champagnole, where Primoz Roglic was still the leader before being dethroned by Tadej Pogacar.
This predilection for sprinting is the least we can do for the hometown of Daniel Morelon, who was for a long time the most successful French male sportsman in history before being overtaken by judoka Teddy Riner. Olympic sprint champion in 1968 and 1972, the former VC Bressan member won seven world titles between 1966 and 1975, making him the most successful sprinter at individual world championships before the arrival of Japan's Koïchi Nakano (10 titles). After retiring from the sport at the end of 1980, Daniel Morelon continued his collection of laurels, taking charge of the careers of Félicia Ballanger and Laurent Gané. Since then, he has brought his expertise to the Chinese track teams before stepping back, although he remains a benchmark.
SIGHTS
Royal Monastery of Brou
Construction: 1513 to 1532
Style: Flamboyant Gothic
History: this masterpiece was built at the dawn of the Renaissance by Marguerite of Austria to perpetuate her love for her late husband, Philibert le Beau, Duke of Savoy. Returning to Belgium to take over the Regency until her nephew came of age, Charles V, Margaret of Austria herself chose the builders, as well as the painters and sculptors, notably architect Louis van Bodeghem, sculptor Conrad Meit and painter Jehan Perréal. The monastery, entrusted to the Augustinians, had three cloisters, the situation of which remained unchanged. Marguerite of Austria had planned to complete her widowhood here but died too soon. Two years after her death, she was buried there alongside her husband and mother-in-law. Threatened with destruction during the Revolution, it was finally declared a "national monument" and preserved
Today: its monastic buildings house the Bourg-en-Bresse municipal museum
Listed as: Historic Monument since 1862. Voted France's favourite monument in 2014
The old town
From the half-timbered houses to the elegant facades of the town centre, from the Gothic porch of the former Dominican convent to the co-cathedral of Notre-Dame and its legend of the Black Madonna, a stroll through Bourg-en-Bresse is also a journey back in time. Numerous parks, gardens and fountains add a breath of fresh air to this historic and architectural discovery
Heritage
Bourg-en-Bresse has one of the only apothecaries in France with a perfectly preserved laboratory. In Courtes, the Ferme-Musée de la Forêt, a model of Bresse architecture, has been listed as a historic monument since 1930. In the heart of the village of Cuisiat, the Musée du Revermont presents the social and cultural characteristics of the Revermont region, between Bresse and the River Ain
Leisure centres
Bouvent in Bourg-en-Bresse: beach, fishing, water sports centre, playground, walking trails, golf, etc.
La Plaine Tonique at Montrevel-en-bresse: lake, beaches, playgrounds, mini-golf, water sports activities, camping and restaurants
La Grande du Pin at Treffort-Cuisiat: lake (fishing, games, sports fields, adventure course, etc.), campsite and restaurant
Couleurs d'Amour
Initiated by the town of Bourg-en-Bresse in 2015, "Couleurs d'Amour", an artistic heritage lighting show created by Gilbert Coudène (winner of the City of Lyon's lighting trophy), attracts tens of thousands of spectators every summer. In July and August, the lightshow illuminates three major façades in the city centre: the Royal Monastery of Brou, the Theatre and the Hôtel de Ville
TO EAT
The history of Bresse poultry
The history of Bresse poultry goes back to Roman times, 400 years BC. The invaders had the bright idea of moving around with their flocks. The local breeds - the Noire de Louhans, the Grise de Bourg-en-Bresse and the Blanche de Bény - assimilated the best of their contributions. It wasn't until 1591 that Bresse poultry was first mentioned. In the Bourg-en-Bresse register, the town's inhabitants offered two dozen fat poultry to the Marquis de Treffort, who had driven off the Savoyard troops. Bresse poultry was already an offering, a refined gift. In 1825, in his book The Physiology of Taste, Brillat-Savarin ranked Bresse poultry in first place and gave it the nickname of "queen of poultry, poultry of kings". Anxious to protect their terroir, producers delimited a territory and came together within the Bresse Poultry Interprofessional Committee (CIVB). On 1 August 1957, the National Assembly voted to award the AOC (Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée) label to Bresse poultry and in 1976 to Bresse turkey.
