Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region
Departments: Côte d'Or, Doubs, Jura, Nièvre, Haute-Saône, Saône-et-Loire, Yonne, Territoire de Belfort
Population: 2.8 million.
Prefecture: Dijon
Area: 47,784 km²
Specialities: Burgundy and Maconnais wines, Jura wines, cheeses (Comté, Mont d'Or, Morbier, Bleu de Gex, Cancoillotte), beef bourguignon, Bresse poultry, kir.
Sports clubs: FC Sochaux-Montbéliard, AJ Auxerre, FC Gueugnon (football), Elan Sportif Chalonnais, JDA Dijon (basketball), Jeanne d'Arc Dijon (handball).
Competitions: motor racing at the Dijon-Prenois circuit, Franck Pineau cyclosportive in Auxerre
Economy: automotive (Peugeot-Montbéliard), Alstom, General Electric (rail), steel, mining, parachemistry, pharmaceuticals, electronics, plastics, paper, mechanical and automotive industries, agriculture (cereals, beet, cattle farming, cheese). Forestry. Watchmaking. Tourism.
Festivals: Eurockéennes de Belfort, Beaune Hospices Charity Auction, Grandes Heures de Cluny, Rencontres Musicales in Vézelay, Ecrans de l'Aventure in Dijon, Dijon International and Gastronomic Fair, Fenêtres sur Courts in Dijon. Courbet Bicentennial. Besançon Early Music Festival.
Tourist attractions: Fontenay Abbey, Vézelay Basilica, Notre-Dame-du-Haut Chapel in Ronchamp, Burgundy vineyards, Besançon Citadel, Palace of the Dukes of Burgundy in Dijon, Royal Saltworks of Arc-et-Senans, Autun Cathedral, Guédelon Castle, Hospices de Beaune, Citadel and Lion of Belfort, Cluny Abbey, Ballon d'Alsace, Solutré Rock.
Websites and social media: www.bourgognefranchecomte.fr
Km 0.4
Saint-Parize-le-Châtel (Pop. 1,230)
A large part of the Magny-Cours circuit is located in the commune of Saint-Parize-le-Châtel, known for its listed Saint-Patrice church and picturesque châteaux, including Château de la Chasseigne (19th century), Château de Tâches (16th century) Château de Villars (14th century, listed as a historic monument in 2015) and Château de Lange (15th century). During the First World War, the village was home to a large American military hospital, of which a water tower, listed as a historic monument in 2016, remains.
Saint-Patrice Church
Construction: 12th century.
Style: Romanesque.
History: it was probably built to replace the oratory of the former abbey, which had been built 300 years earlier on the site where Saint Patrick had preached. The priory church of Saint-Parize was granted to its chapter by the Bishop of Nevers in 1113. Although built in the early 11th century, it was almost entirely rebuilt in the 19th century.
Characteristics: from an architectural point of view, the church consists of a single, rather modest nave. In the 19th century, a large transept supporting a massive bell tower was added. The choir, consisting of two short bays, ends in a completely restored semi-circular apse, under which is the crypt.
Special feature: the Romanesque crypt also dates from the 12th century, but it has remained intact in its original form and is therefore the most interesting feature. It is divided into three naves of three bays separated by two rows of columns and ends in a shallow semi-circular apse. The crypt is also decorated with funerary elements, steles and sarcophagi from the Middle Ages. It has six central columns with capitals whose baskets are particularly fanciful in their decoration.
Listed as: historic monument in 1862.
Km 11.8
Saint-Pierre-Le-Moûtier (Pop. 1,820)
The village is famous for having been liberated by Joan of Arc in 1429 during the Hundred Years' War. A statue of her stands in the central square of Saint-Pierre.
Saint-Pierre Church
Construction: 12th century.
Style: Romanesque.
History: it was originally the church of the Saint-Pierre priory, established in 740 and dependent on the Abbey of Saint-Martin d'Autun. In 1234, the church was elevated to parish church status. The cloister buildings were destroyed in 1910.
Characteristics: The general structure of the church corresponds to that built during the 12th century. It forms the framework of the nave, choir, apse and south aisle. The destroyed northern section was rebuilt in the early 13th century. The chapels were added later, during the 15th century. The square bell tower rests on the pillars of the transept. It houses the bell from the old belfry. The other openings were added after the monastic buildings disappeared.
Note: in November 1429, Joan of Arc, on her way to liberate La Charité, arrived in front of Saint-Pierre-le-Moûtier, which was held by the large army of Alain of Albret and his English allies. On 4 November, the assault threatened to end in defeat when Joan of Arc invoked the presence of angels at her side. The assault was carried out with such ease, given the disparity in the forces involved, that it was a miracle that the town was taken. Joan of Arc spared the town from pillaging and came to pray in Saint-Pierre Church for a few days before leaving for La Charité. This episode in the life of Joan of Arc is the theme of all the modern decoration in the church.
Listed as: historic monument in 1886.
Km 35.2
Saint-Germain-Chassenay (see stage 11)
Km 46.1
Decize (see stage 11)
Km 54.7
Verneuil (Pop. 270)
Verneuil is the birthplace of Abbé Lesage, a figure in the Tour de France, where he was race commissioner on three occasions. A cycling enthusiast and prominent member of VC Decize, he also served as an official on Paris-Nice. Close to Jacques Anquetil, Roger Rivière, and Jean Stablinski, he and his friend Pierre Chany formed a duo worthy of the Don Camillo-Peppone tandem. Abbé Lesage died in 1998 and is buried in Montigny-sur-Canne (Nièvre), where he was parish priest.
Château de Verneuil
Construction: 13th century.
Style: fortified castle.
History: the first mentions of the château date back to the early 14th century. It passed from hand to hand before finally coming into the possession of the Maumigny family through marriage. They kept it until the marriage in 1865 of Marie de Maumigny to the Count of Cordon, whose heirs still own it today.
Characteristics: it stands on a platform measuring thirty metres on each side. A tower was erected at each corner in the 15th century. The two south towers are connected by a three-storey main building. The largest tower (14th century), which is the best preserved, still has three battlements. Its windows were added during the Renaissance. The central section is flanked by a large round tower. The south-west corner has a round tower with a spiral staircase. The south-east corner has a small round tower with arrow slits. To the west are the remains of the curtain wall, with a round tower with a conical roof at its end. The castle has four floors and is covered with a hipped tile roof.
Listed as: historic monument in 1991.
Saint-Laurent Church
Construction: 12th century.
Style: Romanesque.
History and characteristics: this is a single-nave building opening onto a short transept via two side passages and a semi-circular apse. It also has a two-storey square bell tower.
Special feature: the building is best known for its frescoes, which were uncovered in the second half of the 20th century and painted in the 15th century. They depict the Tale of the Three Dead and the Three Living, the Annunciation and the Stoning of Saint Stephen.
Listed as: historic monument in 1895.
Km 59.3
Cercy-la-Tour (Pop. 1,650)
Construction: 11th-12th century.
Style: Romanesque.
History: this is one of the oldest churches in the Nièvre. In 1582, it was devastated and burned down by Protestants during the Wars of Religion. During the Revolution, it was used as a meeting hall, then as a fodder store. Work was carried out on it several times during the 19th century and the exterior has been recently restored.
Characteristics: cruciform in plan, it has a single nave, a transept and a semi-circular apse flanked by two apsidioles. With few windows, it is plunged into darkness. The square bell tower is squat and has twin windows. It has three bells dating from the 19th century: the smallest weighs 245 kg and is named Marie Désirée; the middle one weighs 441 kg and is named Berthe; and the largest, weighing 874 kg, is named Louise.
Listed as: historic monument in 1987.
SAÔNE-ET-LOIRE (71)
Population: 550,310, spread across 29 cantons and 565 municipalities.
Prefecture: Mâcon (Pop. 35,000).
Sub-prefectures: Chalon-sur-Saône, Charolles, Autun, Louhans
Specialities: Charolles beef AOP, Bresse poultry AOP (chicken, poularde, capon and Bresse turkey), Bresse cream and butter AOP, 2 goat's cheese AOPs (Charolais and Mâconnais), 30 AOC wines (including 5 UNESCO-listed appellations), Pôchouse, river fish stew, Corniottes (shortcrust pastry base covered with choux pastry), Burgundy snails, parsley ham, Gougères.
Sport: Élan Chalon basketball, Charnay Basket Bourgogne Sud, Montceau gym. Mâconnais regattas: Frédéric Perrier (selected for the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens), Paul Tixier (bronze medallist at the 2020 European Championships and world vice-champion). Chalon-sur-Saône Rowing Club, Adrien Hardy (Olympic champion in Athens in 2004, world champion in Milan in 2003 and Eton in 2006)
Economy: industrial development in the 19th century, notably with the Schneider et Cie company in Le Creusot and mining in the Montceau-les-Mines region. Activity is concentrated in the Chalonnais and the mining basin with companies such as Alstom in Le Creusot, Areva in Montchanin, Arcelor Mittal and Michelin in Montceau-les-Mines and Aperam in Gueugnon. Other industrial pillars include Dim in Autun and Fiat Powertrain in Gueugnon and Bourbon-Lancy.
Festivals: Chalon dans la rue (Chalon-sur-Saône), Musicaves (Givry), Les Montgolfiades (Chalon), Les Ligériades (Digoin), Festival Saint Rock (La Clayette), Nuits Bressanes (Louhans), Augustodunum (Autun), Musicales en Côte Chalonnaise, Jazz Campus en Clunisois, Jazz in Couches, Fête de la Vielle (Anost), Grandes Heures de Cluny, Beef Festival (Charolles), Les Glorieuses de Bresse (Louhans, medieval market), Tango Swing et Bretelles (Montceau).
Tourist attractions: Touroparc and Hameau Duboeuf (Romanèche-Thorins), Parc des Combes (Le Creusot), Diverti’Parc (Toulon-sur-Arroux), Celt’Ô and the thermal baths of Bourbon-Lancy.
Websites: www.saoneetloire71.fr, www.destination-saone-et-loire.fr,
Km 97.9
Issy-l’Évêque (Pop. 590)
Saint-Jacques-le-Majeur Church
Construction: 12th century.
Style: Romanesque.
History and characteristics: it is believed to have been built on the site of a pre-existing chapel, on the initiative of the bishops of Autun. The cemetery was not created until the 17th century. The church has undergone several renovations: in 1815 (north facade and bell tower), in 1853 (roof, nave), and in 1874 (porch).
Special features: built in dark sandstone, it has a nave with six bays and side aisles. Three apsidioles open onto the nave (there is no transept). The church is in the Burgundian Romanesque style of the late Romanesque period. The square bell tower rises above the first bay of the nave. The western porch dates from the late 19th century.
Listed as: historic monument in 1895.
Km 126.7
Montceau-les-Mines (Pop: 17,000)
Previously a simple hamlet, the commune was not officially created until 1856, after the development of the Canal du Centre at the end of the 18th century and, from the 1830s onwards, the exploitation of coal mines. Urbanisation was rapid, following the boom in the mining basin: workers' housing estates were developed and public buildings constructed. Montceau-les-Mines had a population of up to 29,000 in 1901. For a century and a half, the history of the town was intertwined with that of its mines (violent social unrest known as the "Montceau-les-Mines riots" between 1877 and 1885, firedamp explosions). The last mine closed in 2000, and since then the town has begun its transformation with the creation of green spaces, the enhancement of the canal and industrial tourism. The Tour de France has stopped twice in Montceau-les-Mines, each time for a time trial linking the town to its neighbour Le Creusot. In 1998, it served as the launch pad for a time trial won by Jan Ullrich. Eight years later, it was Ukrainian Serhiy Honchar who won in Montceau. The town has also hosted Paris-Nice and the Dauphiné the same number of times (7) and has seen riders of the calibre of André Darrigade (Paris-Nice 1961), Jan Janssen (Paris-Nice 1965), Eddy Merckx (Dauphiné 1971), Freddy Maertens (Dauphiné 1975) and Sean Kelly (Dauphiné 1981) raise their arms in victory. It is worth noting that Bernard Thévenet signed his first licence in 1965 with the Moto-Vélo-Club Montcellien before being recruited by ACBB. Among the natives of Montceau-les-Mines, we must mention journalist Bernard Giroux, who commentated on the Tour de France for TF1 for many years before being killed in a speedboat accident with Didier Pironi in 1987.
Km 132.6
Blanzy (Pop. 5,950)
The town is located in the heart of a major coal basin that has been mined since the Middle Ages, but on an industrial scale from the 19th century until 2000, enabling the growth of the steel and mechanical engineering industries in the region. Like its neighbour Montceau-les-Mines, Blanzy was marked by social unrest at the end of the 19th century, with a particular leaning towards anarchism within the "Bande Noire" (Black Band) which led the protests at that time. During the 20th century, the mining industries gave way to other activities, such as tyre manufacturing by the Michelin company. The town's economic activities have since diversified. A native of Blanzy, Louis Gauthier took part in the 1947 Tour de France, but his career was largely cut short by the war, as he turned professional in 1937. Nicknamed "the chain breaker", he came close to glory by finishing second in Paris-Tours in 1944 and Paris-Roubaix in 1946. He died in 2005. Another local rider, Lazare Venot (1902-1977), finished the 1931 and 1932 Tours de France.
Blanzy Mining Museum
Established: 1978
History: In the 1970s, the staff at the Blanzy site decided to find a pithead building in which to store everything that could be preserved, under the aegis of the newly founded Creusot-Montceau Ecomuseum. The choice fell on the Saint-Claude pit, which had been closed since 1882. The museum opened its doors to the public in 1978.
Characteristics: the museum tour is divided into two parts: the first invites visitors to discover the history of the Blanzy mines since the 18th century through photos and engravings in the exhibition hall, followed by a video explaining the coal formation process and mining techniques. The second part, a 75-minute guided tour led by a volunteer from the association, takes visitors on a tour of the buildings, machinery and facilities, both underground (galleries) and above ground (hanging room, lamp room, headframe, engine room, stables), necessary for mining activity.
Listed as: Musée de France.
Château du Plessis
Construction: 13th to 19th centuries.
History: the château was built in the 13th century and originally consisted of a fortified enclosure accessible via a drawbridge and a gate tower. It was restored in the 18th century and then rebuilt in the 19th century. It is a complex (47 m by 43 m) of several buildings surrounding a rectangular courtyard. The oldest tower (14th century) is the square Madeleine tower, to which an octagonal turret was added in the 19th century. The main building and the three terraces date from the work of Blaise Quarré around 1750. The château underwent extensive alterations at the end of the 19th century in a neo-Gothic style inspired by Viollet-le-Duc. After belonging to the Levis family for nearly three centuries, then to the Quarré family, the château has been owned by the Marquises of Barbentane since 1815.
Trivia: the parents of resistance fighter Lucie Aubrac worked at the château, hence the pseudonym Guillaine de Barbentane that she chose when she went underground. Filmmaker Louis Malle also stayed at the château during the war.
Listed as: historic monument in 1993
Km 141.7
Montchanin (Pop. 5,000)
Montchanin is located in the heart of a major coal basin that was mined between 1820 and 1912 by the Montchanin coal mines. The town, which is also home to one of the largest tile factories in France, is located halfway between Le Creusot, a metallurgical town, and Montceau-les-Mines, a mining town. Montchanin was founded in 1854 when Saint-Eusèbe was divided up and took its current name in the late 1950s. The site had been inhabited by monks from La Ferté since the 12th century. Pleasant and peaceful, the town charms visitors with its tranquil atmosphere and small-town feel in the countryside. Montchanin is also a rugby stronghold, as its club, Stade Montchaninois Bourgogne, played in the national elite league in 1991 and 1992. Given its recent foundation, the town's heritage is mainly industrial.
Km 142.8
Saint-Eusèbe (Pop. 1,150)
Singer Anne Sylvestre (whose real name was Anne-Marie Beugras, 1934-2020) is buried in the cemetery of Saint-Eusèbe, where her family originated. During her long career, from 1965 until her death, she won four Charles Cros Academy Awards and alternated between songs for children (Les Fabulettes) and adults (Les Gens qui doutent), enjoying both popular and critical success. More than 70 schools, nurseries and public places bear her name.
Km 160.5
Montagny-lès-Buxy (population 200)
This wine-growing village is known for its Côte Chalonnaise AOC (Montagny). It covers an area of 301 hectares, exclusively planted with white grapes (Chardonnay). This appellation is produced in the communes of Buxy, Saint-Vallerin, Jully-les-Buxy and Montagny-lès-Buxy.
Km 162.6
Buxy (Pop. 2,150)
The site of the Battle of Buxy in 1471 between the troops of King Louis XI of France and those of Charles the Bold, Buxy derives most of its income from winegrowing, with wines classified as Montagny (AOC), Burgundy and Côtes Chalonnaises. The village still has some traces of its fortifications, notably the surrounding towers such as Tour Rouge. Its only listed monument is the Church of Saint-Germain (12th to 16th century), which was listed as a historic monument in 1943. In 1986, Buxy was the starting point for a stage of Paris-Nice, which was won in Saint-Etienne by Bruno Wojtinek.
Km 176
Saint-Rémy (Pop. 6,410)
It was in this town on the outskirts of Chalon that Rachida Dati was born on 27 November 1965. A magistrate by profession, she was Minister of Justice between 2007 and 2009 under President Nicolas Sarkozy and is currently Minister of Culture and Mayor of the 7th arrondissement of Paris (as the moment of writing). Singer Florent Pagny also spent part of his childhood in Saint-Rémy.
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