Posters Page 4 of 7 The Changing Face of Briancon Introduction At an altitude of 1,326 metres Briancon is the highest town in Europe. Five river valleys, including those of the Durance, Guisane and Cerveyette converge within the vicinity of Briancon itself and provide natural routeways through the high Alpine ranges. Close to the Italian border Briancon has been a strategically important town.(see map 1) Briancon has approximately 12,000 inhabitants making it the second largest town in the department of Haute-Alpes. This number is forever growing as Briancon grows in both prestige and stature. The whole town is shadowed by mountains and a historic fort in the old quarters, this area is known as 'Cite Vauban'. It was named after the general who refortified the town after a major fire in 1692. The fortified area helps to maintain a traditional feel to the town.(Picture 1 and sketch 1 show Briancon from the top around the fort to the developing town in the valley bottom.) Briancon has a wide variety of functional activities. these include commercial, and administrative activities. For neighbouring villages/ski resorts it serves as a service and retail centre. Signs of change Since the 1lth century the growth of Briancon has seen much modernisation of the town and its buildings. Picture 3 shows the old style housing if you compare this to picture 4 you notice that the houses have become decorative and very commercialised providing for tourists. This is the first bit of evidence which shows the impact of urban/tourist growth in the area. (NB. Briancon has maintained its narrow streets with its tall, traditionally constructed buildings while Commercial activity has taken place around in and around it.) Land Use in Briancon Briancon is nationally a well-known health centre (the high altitude and dry air being viewed as being beneficial to the treatment of a variety of medical conditions. Look at the transect map, map 2, there is a definite pattern to land use in Briancon as you move form top to bottom in Briancon. You move through the old traditional residential housing towards the medical zone. The medical zone shows signs of development and regeneration. The nearer you get to the centre of Briancon the more predominant the development. The most noticeable developments are around the new ski tourism area, brand new hotels and tourist centres have filled open space and replaced old industrial buildings such as mills and warehouses. The change from residential and industry to tourism and commercial is overwhelming as you proceed towards the town centre. This newer area of Briancon on the valley bottom has a high density of commercial activity, amazingly though tradition structures have been maintained. Briancon shows a battle between the old and the new, tourism has been carefully interwoven into an old structured town. It appears that tourism has the upper hand against tradition, illustrated in cartoon 1. As the transect moves south away from the centre along the river, an old silk mill ,open space and the railway link to Gap has been captured for sports centre and new industry, illustrated in cartoon 2, (also see transect). Summary Since 1945, there have been major changes in tourists demands in the Alps. The old settings that proved so valuable before world war two,, no longer attract visitors. Transport has changed from rail to road. Increasing urbanisation, higher income and increased investment has seen the French Alps take off. The way in which commercialisation has been sewn into Briancon provides a classic example of how tourism and urbanisation has created a new feel to an old town. Christian Dobbs Year 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | Page 4 of 7