It is the most populous municipality of the department, with 15,212 inhabitants in 2014. The same year, theCommunauté d'agglomération de Vesoul, which covers 20 municipalities, together had 34,310 inhabitants, while itsurban area, comprising 78 municipalities, had 59,244 inhabitants. Its inhabitants are known in French asVésuliens.
Built on top of the hill of La Motte in the first millennium under the name ofCastrum Vesulium,[citation needed] the city gradually evolved into a European commercial and economic center. At the end of theMiddle Ages, the city experienced a challenging period beset with plagues, epidemics, and localized conflict.
Vesoul is first mentioned in a document dated 899. That document describes an elevation with afortified watchtower and speaks of "Castrum Vesulium". Castrum is afortification, and "Vesulium" has thesyllableves which meant hill or mountain in a language that was spoken before theCelts. Today, there is a castle that forms the centre of the city. The first houses were built inside the walls of the castle. Newcomers who found no place settled outside the city walls, on the flanks of the hill.Wine growing was popular.
The town was severely affected by the plague in 1586. It became part of France in 1678.[3]
Vesoul is located in eastern France, about 100 kilometers from the German and Swiss borders and between theJura andVosges mountain ranges. Vesoul is also situated in the center of theHaute-Saône department, which is in the north ofBourgogne-Franche-Comté. In this region, Vesoul is included in thePays de Vesoul et du Val de Saône, a geographic region composed the Vesoul area and the northern part of theSaône valley.
By road, Vesoul is 32 kilometres (20 mi) from the towns ofLuxeuil-les-Bains, 30 kilometres (19 mi) fromLure and 59 kilometres (37 mi) fromGray. Relative to the bigger cities in the French East region, Vesoul is located 50 kilometres (31 mi) fromBesançon, 64 kilometres (40 mi) fromBelfort, 105 kilometres (65 mi) fromDijon, and 156 kilometres (97 mi) fromNancy.[4] Equidistant fromDijon andMulhouse, Vesoul is 370 kilometres (230 mi) fromParis, at the intersection of national roadsN19 andN57.Vesoul station is on the SNCFParis–Mulhouse railway line, and has connections with Paris, Belfort, Mulhouse and Chaumont.
The Vesoul area is also included in thePôle métropolitain Centre Franche-Comté which is a government structure unifying the biggest areas of centralFranche-Comté. Nine communes border the town of Vesoul.
Vesoul is crossed by four watercourses: two rivers (Durgeon and Colombine) and two streams (Vaugine and Méline). All four are tributaries and sub-tributaries of theSaône, the fourth longest river in France at 473 km, and a tributary of theRhone,[5] which flows at about ten kilometers to the west of Vesoul.[6]
Vesoul is also the name of a song byJacques Brel from 1968, a fast-pacedwaltz during the recording of which Brel famously yelled "Chauffe, Marcel, chauffe!" ("heat up, Marcel, heat up!") at hisaccordionist,Marcel Azzola.
The town is also mentioned facetiously in the satirical rapFous ta cagoule byMichael Youn.[9]
Vesoul has schools of higher education. The city has 1,200 students divided between an IUT, an IUFM, an Institute of Nursing Training, a School of Management and Commerce and BTS. A Council of Student Life (CVE), led by the Officer in charge of Higher Education, was established in 2011. It offers activities to stimulate student life. In all, Vesoul has 10,000 students.
The first publiclibrary of Vesoul opened in 1771. Theabbé (abbot) Bardenet, superior of the Saint-Esprithospital inBesançon, gave his book collection to the town. There were 1772 books. The collections became a lot larger with theRevolution. At that time, the revolutionaries (people who led the French Revolution) took the books from themonasteries of the town (capucins) and even of theregion (Luxeuil andFaverney monasteries). Around 20,000 books were added to the library this way, including some 11th centurymanuscripts. TheMayor's office was responsible for keeping the books.
In 1981, themunicipality decided to build a new building to encourage the public to read. The library was recently equipped with computers. There are around 200 manuscripts and 150incunables.
