Ambert

Ambert
Subprefecture and commune
Town hall (originally the grain market)
Ambert
Location within Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region
Ambert
Coordinates: 45°33′01″N 3°44′33″E / 45.5503°N 3.7425°E / 45.5503; 3.7425Coordinates: 45°33′01″N 3°44′33″E / 45.5503°N 3.7425°E / 45.5503; 3.7425
Country France
Region Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes
Department Puy-de-Dôme
Arrondissement Ambert
Canton Ambert
Intercommunality Ambert Livradois Forez
Government
  Mayor (2014–2020) Myriam Fougère[1]
Area1 60.48 km2 (23.35 sq mi)
Population (2014)2 6,794
  Density 110/km2 (290/sq mi)
Time zone UTC+1 (CET)
  Summer (DST) UTC+2 (CEST)
INSEE/Postal code 63003 /63600
Elevation 514–1,365 m (1,686–4,478 ft)
(avg. 527 m or 1,729 ft)

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.

Ambert (French pronunciation: [ɑ̃bɛʁ]; Auvergnat: Embèrt) is a commune in the Puy-de-Dôme department in Auvergne in central France.

Administration

Ambert is the seat of the canton of Ambert and the arrondissement of Ambert. It is a sub-prefecture of the department. The arrondissement consists of eight cantons (before March 2015).

Geography

Ambert lies on the Dore River, a tributary of the Allier River.

General view

Population

Historical population
YearPop.±%
19627,160    
19687,328+2.3%
19757,603+3.8%
19827,722+1.6%
19907,420−3.9%
19997,309−1.5%
20067,376+0.9%
20126,852−7.1%

Sights

Ambert is famous for its fourme d'Ambert cheese - "Fourme d'Ambert", its paper mills - "Le moulin Richard de Bas" - (the first edition of Diderot's Encyclopédie was printed on paper made in Ambert) and its circular town market hall - "La Mairie" - (popularized by Jules Romain in his novel Les copains).

The Agrivap Chemin de Fer Touristique operates out of Ambert.[2] There is a steam engine that makes a local run, but to see the line in full a ride on the Panoramique Autorail is not to be missed.

There is an industrial museum with an interesting collection of tractors and small steam engines.

In the town the Museum of Cheese is worth a visit, as is the old paper mill a few kilometres outside the main town.

Personalities

Ambert was the birthplace of the mathematician Michel Rolle (1652–1719), composer Emmanuel Chabrier (1841–1894), and anthropologist Henri Pourrat (1887-1959), who collected the oral traditions of the Auvergne. It is also the birthplace of actor and director Pierre-Loup Rajot (1958–).

International relations

Ambert is twinned with:

Touristic places near Ambert

Some semi-famous places to go when visiting Ambert, France are:

  • La Mairie (a round town hall, fun when the farmer's market is there)
  • Le Moulin Richard-de-Bas (a paper mill, with a great tour for all ages, workshops, activities and a nice little garden)

See also

References

  1. "List of Mayors of Puy-de-Dôme" (PDF). Prefecture of Puy-de-Dôme. 9 April 2014. Archived from the original (PDF) on 6 October 2014. Retrieved 1 May 2015.
  2. http://perso.orange.fr/..agrivap/version%20anglaise.htm


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