Montbard

Montbard (French pronunciation: [mɔ̃baʁ] ^ⓘ) is a commune and subprefecture of the Côte-d'Or department in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region in eastern France.

Montbard
Subprefecture and commune
Brenne river
Flag Coat of arms
Location of Montbard
Montbard Show map of France Montbard Show map of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté
Coordinates: 47°37′25″N 4°20′16″E
Country	France
Region	Bourgogne-Franche-Comté
Department	Côte-d'Or
Arrondissement	Montbard
Canton	Montbard
Government
• Mayor (2020–2026)	Laurence Porte[1]
Area 1	46.37 km2 (17.90 sq mi)
Population  (2022)[2]	4,751
• Density	100/km2 (270/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+01:00 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00 (CEST)
INSEE/Postal code	21425 /21500
Elevation	202–366 m (663–1,201 ft) (avg. 221 m or 725 ft)
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

Montbard is a small industrial town on the river Brenne. The Forges de Buffon, ironworks established by Buffon, are located in the nearby village of Buffon. There has been a cricket team in the town since 1993.

History

Montbard is near the site of the Cistercian Abbey of Fontenay, which became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1981.

The chateau was the scene of the marriage of Anne de Bourgogne and John of Lancaster, Duke of Bedford in 1423. It was acquired by the naturalist Georges-Louis Leclerc, Comte de Buffon, who was born in Montbard in 1707.

Geography

Climate

Montbard has an oceanic climate (Köppen climate classification Cfb). The average annual temperature in Montbard is 11.2 °C (52.2 °F). The average annual rainfall is 836.7 mm (32.94 in) with May as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in July, at around 19.6 °C (67.3 °F), and lowest in January, at around 3.6 °C (38.5 °F). The highest temperature ever recorded in Montbard was 40.7 °C (105.3 °F) on 25 July 2019; the coldest temperature ever recorded was −16.7 °C (1.9 °F) on 20 December 2009.

Climate data for Montbard (1992–2020 normals, extremes 1992–present)
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Record high °C (°F)	17.9 (64.2)	23.5 (74.3)	26.4 (79.5)	29.1 (84.4)	32.4 (90.3)	38.5 (101.3)	40.7 (105.3)	40.5 (104.9)	35.9 (96.6)	32.4 (90.3)	24.0 (75.2)	18.6 (65.5)	40.7 (105.3)
Mean daily maximum °C (°F)	7.2 (45.0)	8.6 (47.5)	12.7 (54.9)	16.5 (61.7)	20.2 (68.4)	24.2 (75.6)	26.3 (79.3)	26.1 (79.0)	21.7 (71.1)	16.9 (62.4)	11.1 (52.0)	7.7 (45.9)	16.6 (61.9)
Daily mean °C (°F)	3.8 (38.8)	4.5 (40.1)	7.3 (45.1)	10.4 (50.7)	14.3 (57.7)	17.9 (64.2)	19.9 (67.8)	19.6 (67.3)	15.7 (60.3)	12.1 (53.8)	7.3 (45.1)	4.5 (40.1)	11.4 (52.5)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F)	0.5 (32.9)	0.4 (32.7)	1.9 (35.4)	4.3 (39.7)	8.3 (46.9)	11.7 (53.1)	13.4 (56.1)	13.1 (55.6)	9.7 (49.5)	7.2 (45.0)	3.4 (38.1)	1.2 (34.2)	6.3 (43.3)
Record low °C (°F)	−15.7 (3.7)	−14.5 (5.9)	−14.6 (5.7)	−6.7 (19.9)	−1.3 (29.7)	1.8 (35.2)	5.9 (42.6)	3.7 (38.7)	0.3 (32.5)	−6.9 (19.6)	−10.6 (12.9)	−16.7 (1.9)	−16.7 (1.9)
Average precipitation mm (inches)	71.8 (2.83)	62.6 (2.46)	64.8 (2.55)	68.2 (2.69)	79.1 (3.11)	64.9 (2.56)	70.2 (2.76)	58.4 (2.30)	70.2 (2.76)	81.0 (3.19)	80.8 (3.18)	81.5 (3.21)	853.5 (33.60)
Average precipitation days (≥ 1.0 mm)	12.4	11.3	10.8	10.4	11.4	9.6	8.9	8.5	9.4	11.4	12.7	13.5	130.3
Source: Meteociel[3]

Population

Historical population

Year Pop. ±% p.a. 1793 2,316 —     1800 2,118 −1.27% 1806 2,061 −0.45% 1821 1,875 −0.63% 1836 2,123 +0.83% 1841 2,215 +0.85% 1846 2,315 +0.89% 1851 2,697 +3.10% 1856 2,428 −2.08% 1861 2,617 +1.51% 1866 2,713 +0.72% 1872 2,628 −0.53% 1876 2,653 +0.24% 1881 2,607 −0.35% 1886 2,571 −0.28% 1891 2,509 −0.49% 1896 2,653 +1.12% 1901 3,632 +6.48%	Year Pop. ±% p.a. 1906 3,824 +1.04% 1911 3,957 +0.69% 1921 4,863 +2.08% 1926 4,193 −2.92% 1931 4,423 +1.07% 1936 4,097 −1.52% 1946 4,455 +0.84% 1954 4,871 +1.12% 1962 6,386 +3.44% 1968 7,050 +1.66% 1975 7,513 +0.91% 1982 7,707 +0.36% 1990 7,108 −1.01% 1999 6,300 −1.33% 2007 5,582 −1.50% 2012 5,437 −0.53% 2017 5,160 −1.04% 2021 4,788 −1.85%
Source: EHESS[4] and INSEE (1968-2017)[5]

Attractions

• Abbey of Fontenay

Transportation

Some TGV express trains between Paris and Dijon and several regional trains stop at Montbard station.

The Burgundy Canal also passes through the town.

Personalities

Births

Montbard was the birthplace of:

• Jean Bardin (1732–1809), historical painter
• Pierre Daubenton (1703–1776), lawyer, politician, author and Encyclopédiste
• Georges-Louis Leclerc, Comte de Buffon (1707–1788), naturalist and mathematician
• Louis-Jean-Marie Daubenton, (1716–1800), naturalist and collaborator of Buffon
• Benjamin Guérard (1797–1854), historian and librarian
• Eugène Guillaume (1822–1905), sculptor
• George Montbard (1841–1905), caricaturist and author

Deaths

• Jean-Andoche Junot (1771–1813), general during the First French Empire, committed suicide in Montbard
• Pierre Daubenton (see births)

See also

• Communes of the Côte-d'Or department