Grenoble

General information :

Population : 158.198 inhab.

Coordinates : 45°11′16″N 05°43′37″E

Altitude : 204 Min. m - Max. 600 m

Airport : Grenoble-Alpes-Isère International Airport - LFLS

Description :

Grenoble is a municipality in south-eastern France, located in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, capital of the Isère department and former capital of the Dauphiné.

Grenoble is the centre of the second largest urban area in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, after Lyon, and the third largest in the region, after Lyon and Saint-Étienne. Its agglomeration of 450,000 inhabitants is also the largest metropolis in the Alps, ahead of Innsbruck, whose agglomeration has 300,000 inhabitants, and Bolzano, which has earned it the nickname "capital of the Alps" in France.

The history of Grenoble covers a period of more than two thousand years. During the Gallo-Roman period, the Gallic town was called Cularo, and later Gratianopolis. Its importance increased during the 11th century when the Counts of Albon chose the city as the capital of their province, the Dauphiné. This status, consolidated by the annexation to France, allowed it to develop its economy. Grenoble then became a parliamentary and military town, in the immediate vicinity of the border with Savoy.

In 1788, the population mobilised to defend its parliamentarians during the Day of the Tiles by attacking the royal troops. Antoine Barnave and Jean-Joseph Mounier, representatives of the Third Estate, who took the famous Jeu de Paume oath, were illustrious Grenoble actors of the French Revolution.

Grenoble's industrial development really began in the 18th century with the glove industry and became more pronounced in the second half of the 19th century with the discovery of "white coal" and hydroelectric power. But Grenoble experienced its strongest growth during the Trente Glorieuses.

The organisation of the Winter Olympics (1968) symbolises this period of great change for the city. As its development continues, Grenoble is now a major European scientific centre. In terms of population, Grenoble was France's 16th largest commune in 2018 with 157,650 inhabitants, its urban unit France's 16th largest in 2018 with 451,096 inhabitants, and its catchment area France's 11th largest with 713,291 inhabitants. Its inhabitants are known as Grenoblois.