- A new stage town
- Sub-prefecture of Corrèze (19)
- Population: 9,200 (Ussellois and Usselloises)
A new town on the Tour route, Ussel will become the sixth to host the race in the department of Corrèze, alongside the likes of Sarran, Brive and Tulle. The town is, however, already used to welcoming the professional peloton, for Paris-Corrèze, for example, which finished here in 2003 when Nicolas Fritsch was first across the line. Ussel has also seen Tour de France stage-winners celebrating victory: Francis Campaner was the victor here in 1975, followed by Mariano Martinez in 1978, Jean-François Bernard in 1985 and, most recently, David Moncoutié in 2001. Turning to the women, Marianne Vos was the victor the last time the Tour Féminin en Limousin paused in Ussel in 2012.
USSEL
Hôtel de Ventadour
Construction: 16th century.
Style: Renaissance.
History and characteristics: the Ducal House of Ussel was built at the end of the 16th century by the Dukes of Ventadour, who used it as a holiday residence. The distinctive features and charm of this residence lie in the shape of its turrets, the fluted pilasters and the triangular pediment that adorn the door.
Listed as: historic monument in 1932.
Château de la Mothe
Construction: 14th and 15th centuries.
Style: Medieval and Neo-Gothic.
History and characteristics: 14th and 15th century castle, remodelled in the 18th and especially the 19th century. It is surrounded by the remains of moats and a circular enclosure. A three-storey rectangular tower is embedded in a rectangular main building, flanked by a round tower and a square tower. A semi-circular staircase precedes the square stair tower, which is attached to the south façade of the former keep. The oldest part is the former rectangular tower, which has retained its 15th-century moulded windows on the outside and two bretèches on the north side. The interior features a wooden spiral staircase and a fireplace on the first floor. Neo-Gothic wood panelling. Neo-Gothic fireplace on the ground floor of the main building. Louis XIII wood panelling, Louis XVI fireplace and ceiling on the first floor.
Listed as: historic monument in 1980
Saint-Martin Church
Construction: 13th century.
Style: Gothic.
History: the building consists of a nave with a transept and a flat-ended choir. Originally, it had a nave with two square bays vaulted with ribbed vaults, a transept, a choir and two small chapels on the arms of the transept. After a fire in 1472, two aisles were added, as well as a small chapel at the north end of the transept. In 1862, Viollet-le-Duc restored the church and built a bell tower porch.
Listed as: historic monument in 1926.
Saint-Julien Church
Construction: 12th century.
Style: Romanesque and Gothic.
History: little remains of the Romanesque church, as the building was completely rebuilt during the Gothic period, which is rare in Auvergne. It consists of a nave (14th century), two bays, the second of which is flanked by side chapels (15th century), and a pentagonal choir (late Romanesque period). A double-roll pointed arch separates the nave from the choir. It rests on columns engaged on dosserets via Romanesque capitals, with Visigothic influences. The bell tower was rebuilt in the early 19th century.
Listed as: historic monument in 1968.
Musée du Pays d'Ussel
Established: 1976
History: the museum is dedicated to the history, arts and traditions of the Pays d'Ussel, between the Millevaches plateau, the Triouzoune valley and the upper Dordogne valley. The museum is divided into several sections: the Hôtel Bonnot de Bay is dedicated to trades that have disappeared or are dying out (blacksmithing, weaving, clog making, straw and wood working) and to domestic life. Tapestries from 17th and 18th-century workshops in the Marchois region and works by 20th-century "peintres-cartonniers" (cartoonists) are displayed throughout the rooms. Printing, dedicated to lithographic and typographic printing, with equipment from the Dumond lithographic printing works, which specialised in printing musical scores. Introductory courses in lithography are organised there every summer.
Label: Musée de France.
