Nevers ( , ; , later Nevirnum and Nebirnum) is a city and the prefecture of the Nièvre department in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region in central France. It was the principal city of the former province of Nivernais. It is south-southeast of Paris.

History

thumb|The [[Hôtel de Ville, Nevers|Hôtel de Ville]]

Nevers first enters written history as Noviodunum, a town held by the Aedui at Roman contact. The quantities of medals and other Roman antiquities found on the site indicate its importance. In 52 BCE, Julius Caesar made Noviodunum, which he describes as a convenient position on the banks of the Loire, a depot (B. G. vii. 55). There, he had his hostages, corn and military chest, with the money in it allowed him from home for the war, his own and his army's baggage and a great number of horses which had been bought for him in Spain and Italy.

After his failure before Gergovia, the Aedui at Noviodunum massacred those who were there to look after stores, the negotiators and the travellers who were in the place. They divided the money and the horses among themselves, carried off in boats all the corn that they could and burned the rest or threw it into the river.

Thinking they could not hold the town, they burned it. That was a great loss to Caesar, and it may seem that he was imprudent in leaving such great stores in the power of treacherous allies. However, he was in straits that year, and probably he could not have done other than he did.

Dio Cassius (xl. 38) tells the story of Caesar out of the affair of Noviodunum. He states incorrectly what Caesar did on the occasion, and he shows that he neither understood his original nor knew what he was writing about.

The city was later called Nevirnum, as the name appears in the Antonine Itinerary. In the Tabula Peutingeriana, it is corrupted into Ebrinum. In still other sources the name appears as Nebirnum or Nivernum.

It became the seat of a bishopric at the end of the 5th century. The county dates at least from the beginning of the 10th century. The citizens of Nevers obtained charters in 1194 and 1231. For a short time in the 14th century the town was the seat of a university, transferred from Orléans, to which it was restored.

Geography

Nevers is situated on the slope of a hill on the right bank of the river Loire.

|source 2 = Infoclimat.fr (humidity, 1961–1990)

==Main sights==<!--PLEASE LEAVE THIS TITLE. THERE's AN ATTEMPT TO STANDARDISE ON IT-->

thumb|left|250px|The [[Palais ducal de Nevers|Ducal Palace of Nevers, in France]]

thumb|left|250px|The incorrupt body of [[Bernadette Soubirous|Saint Bernadette, seer of Our Lady of Lourdes apparitions]]

Narrow winding streets lead from the quay through the town where there are numerous old houses dating from the 14th to the 17th century. The Loire is crossed by a modern stone bridge, and by an iron railway bridge. and an automotive and transports engineering school (Institut supérieur de l'automobile et des transports) being part of the University of Burgundy. The town manufactures porcelain, agricultural implements, chemical manures, glue, boilers and iron goods, boots and shoes and fur garments, and has distilleries, tanneries and dye works. Its trade is in iron and steel, wood, wine, grain, livestock, etc. hydraulic lime, kaolin and clay for the manufacture of faience are worked in the vicinity.

Transport

Nevers railway station offers connections to Paris, Dijon, Lyon, Clermont-Ferrand and several regional destinations. The A77 motorway connects Nevers with Paris. The nearest airports are Clermont-Ferrand Auvergne Airport, located south and Lyon–Saint-Exupéry Airport, located south east.

Population

Notable people

  • Marie Louise Gonzaga, Queen of Poland, born in Nevers in 1611
  • Marie Casimire Louise de La Grange d'Arquien, Queen of Poland, born in Nevers in 1641
  • Pierre Gaspard Chaumette, revolutionary, born in Nevers in 1763
  • Bernadette Soubirous, better known as Saint Bernadette of Lourdes, died in Nevers in 1879 (aged 35).
  • Anne Boutiaut, born in Nevers in 1851 and later known as La Mère Poulard in Mont St-Michel
  • Michel Vieuchange, Saharan explorer, adventurer and writer, born in Nevers in 1904, where there is a street named after him
  • Jean Vieuchange, editor of Michel Vieuchange's travel notebooks, born in Nevers in 1906
  • Pierre Bérégovoy, former Prime Minister of France, committed suicide in 1993 in Nevers
  • Parfait Mandanda, footballer, born in Nevers in 1989
  • Valérie Beauvais, politician, born in Nevers in 1963
  • Alexandre Oukidja, Algerian professional footballer, born in Nevers in 1988
  • Roselyne Bachelot, French politician and former Minister of Culture, born in Nevers in 1946
  • Guy Savoy, French chef, born in Nevers in 1953
  • Da Silva, singer-songwriter, born in Nevers in 1976
  • Félix Maritaud, actor, born in Nevers in 1992
  • Mamignan Touré, WNBA player, born in Nevers in 1994

Culture

Nevers has been known for several centuries for its Nevers faience.

The Formula One circuit of Magny-Cours is located near Nevers, as well as the museum Conservatoire de la monoplace française.

The anonymous French woman (played by Emmanuelle Riva) who is the main character in the film Hiroshima mon amour by Alain Resnais is from Nevers, and the film features many flashbacks to her youth there during World War II. In the final scene of the film, her Japanese lover tells her "You are Nevers". There is a lot of play on the English translation of the town's name throughout the film, with dialogue such as "Nevers ? Jamais !" ("Nevers? Never!")

Most of the scenes in the film Rosalie Blum were filmed in Nevers between March and April 2015, with the exception of the end scenes, which were filmed at Leffrinckoucke in the Nord.

Nevers is also the setting of most of the second half of Éric Rohmer's 1992 film, Conte d'Hiver.

International relations

Nevers is twinned with:

  • Koblenz, Germany
  • Erzsébetváros (Budapest), Hungary
  • Mantua, Italy
  • St Albans, England, United Kingdom
  • Lund, Sweden
  • Stavroupoli, Greece

<!--Siedlce - twinning ended-->

  • Curtea de Argeș, Romania
  • Taizhou, China
  • Charleville-Mézières, France
  • Hammamet, Tunisia
  • Neubrandenburg, Germany

See also

  • Wine barrels
  • Communes of the Nièvre department

References

  • Official website
  • Nevers page on the site Bourgogne Romane