The port city of Brest

Monday, 26 November 2012 - 01:05 pm (CET/MEZ) Berlin | Author/Destination:
Category/Kategorie: General
Reading Time:  5 minutes

Rue Saint-Malo maisons © Moreau.henri

Rue Saint-Malo maisons © Moreau.henri

Brest is a city in the Finistère department in Brittany in northwestern France. Located in a sheltered position not far from the western tip of the Breton peninsula, and the western extremity of metropolitan France, Brest is an important harbour and the second French military port after Toulon. The city is located at one of the occidental edges of continental Europe, hence the expression «Europe from Brest to Brest». Counting 142,722 inhabitants, Brestois and Brestoises (2007 sensur), Brest is the main metropolitan area (reaching 300,300 inhabitants) of Western Brittany, only third behind Nantes and Rennes in the whole Brittany, and the 22nd populous city of France; moreover, Brest provides services to the one million inhabitants of Western Brittany. Although Brest is by far the largest city in Finistère, the préfecture (regional capital) of the department, Quimper, is much smaller.

During the Middle Ages, the history of Brest was the history of its castle. Then Richelieu made it a military harbour. Brest grew around its arsenal, until the second part of the 20th century. Profoundly marked by the Allies bombing raids during World War II, the city centre was completely rebuilt after the war. At the end of the 20th century and the beginning of the 21st century, the deindustrialization of the city was followed by the development of the service sector. Nowadays, Brest is an important university town with 23,000 students. Besides a multidisciplinary university, the University of Western Brittany, Brest and its surrounding area possess several prestigious French elite schools such as École Navale (the French Naval Academy), Télécom Bretagne and the Superior National School of Advanced Techniques of Brittany (ENSTA Bretagne, formerly ENSIETA). Brest is also an important research centre, mainly focused on the sea, with among others the largest Ifremer (French Research Institute for Exploitation of the Sea) centre, le Cedre (Centre of Documentation, Research and Experimentation on Accidental Water Pollution) and the French Polar Institute.

Strait of Brest © Remi Jouan Strait of Brest © Louboutinj Russian tall ship Kruzenshtern during Brest 2008 © Fanny Schertzer Porsmilin Rade Beach at Brest © Rundvald Museum of the Defense of Brest Fortress - 6th room © Christian Ganzer Lighthouse du Portzic © Llorenzi Hotel Vauban © Gaëlle Fily Ecole Navale panorama © moi City Hall on Freedom Square © Antoine BRUNET Brest Port - Trimaran Banque Populaire V © DM Larvor Brest Harbour Fortress and Tanguy Tower © S DÉNIEL Rue Saint-Malo maisons © Moreau.henri
<
>
Museum of the Defense of Brest Fortress - 6th room © Christian Ganzer
Brest’s history has always been linked to the sea: the Académie de Marine (Naval Academy) was founded in 1752 in this city as well as the aircraft carrier Charles-de-Gaulle was built there. Every four years, Brest hosts the International Festival of the Sea 2012 (Fêtes maritimes internationales de Brest), boats and sailors: it is a meeting of old riggings from around the world. Brest is best known for its Pont de Recouvrance (Recouvrance Bridge, a massive drawbridge 64 m/210 ft high), the military arsenal and the rue de Siam (Siam Street). The castle and the Tanguy tower are the oldest monuments of Brest.

The Musée de la Tour Tanguy, in the Tanguy tower, houses a collection of dioramas that depict the city of Brest on the eve of World War II. The Musée national de la Marine de Brest, housed in the ancient castle, contains exhibits which outline Brest’s maritime tradition, as well as an aquarium, the Océanopolis marine centre. The city also has a notable botanical garden specializing in endangered species, the Conservatoire botanique national de Brest, as well as the Jardin botanique de l’Hôpital d’Instruction des Armées Clermont-Tonnerre. A few kilometres out of town, there are more impressive landscapes, from sandy beaches to grottos to tall granite cliffs. Sunbathing, windsurfing, yachting and fishing are enjoyed in the area.

Read more on City of Brest, Brest Tourism, Wikipedia University of Western Brittany and Wikipedia Brest. Learn more about the use of photos. To inform you about latest news most of the city, town or tourism websites offer a newsletter service and/or operate Facebook pages/Twitter accounts. In addition more and more destinations, tourist organizations and cultural institutions offer Apps for your Smart Phone or Tablet, to provide you with a mobile tourist guide (Smart Traveler App by U.S. Department of State - Weather report by weather.com - Johns Hopkins University & Medicine - Coronavirus Resource Center - Global Passport Power Rank - Democracy Index - GDP according to IMF, UN, and World Bank - Global Competitiveness Report - Corruption Perceptions Index - Press Freedom Index - World Justice Project - Rule of Law Index - UN Human Development Index - Global Peace Index - Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Index). If you have a suggestion, critique, review or comment to this blog entry, we are looking forward to receive your e-mail at comment@wingsch.net. Please name the headline of the blog post to which your e-mail refers to in the subject line.




Recommended posts:

Share this post: (Please note data protection regulations before using buttons)

Theme Week Crimea - Simferopol

Theme Week Crimea - Simferopol

[caption id="attachment_151707" align="aligncenter" width="590"] Chirakhov House © A.Savin/cc-by-sa-3.0[/caption][responsivevoice_button voice="UK English Female" buttontext="Listen to this Post"]Simferopol is a city on the Crimean peninsula. It is the administrative centre of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea. As the capital of Crimea, Simferopol is an important political, economic, and transport hub of the peninsula. Simferopol serves as the administrative center of Simferopol municipality, one of the regions Crimea is divided into, and of Simferopol Raion, although it does not belong to th...

[ read more ]

Germantown in Maryland

Germantown in Maryland

[caption id="attachment_231058" align="aligncenter" width="590"] Germantown Library © Carol M. Highsmith - Library of Congress[/caption][responsivevoice_button voice="UK English Female" buttontext="Listen to this Post"]Germantown is an urbanized census-designated place in Montgomery County, Maryland, United States. With a population of 91,249 as of 2020 U.S. Decennial Census, Germantown is the third most populous place in Maryland, after the city of Baltimore, and the census-designated place of Columbia. Germantown is located approximately 28 miles (45 km) outside the U.S. capital of Washingt...

[ read more ]

Spain's autonomous city of Ceuta

Spain's autonomous city of Ceuta

[caption id="attachment_153500" align="aligncenter" width="590"] Ceuta map © Omar-Toons[/caption][responsivevoice_button voice="UK English Female" buttontext="Listen to this Post"]Ceuta is a 18.5 square kilometres (7.1 sq mi) autonomous city of Spain and an exclave located on the north coast of North Africa surrounded by Morocco. Separated from the Iberian peninsula by the Strait of Gibraltar, Ceuta lies on the border of the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. Ceuta along with the other Spanish exclave Melilla are the only Spanish territories located in mainland Africa. It was regarded ...

[ read more ]

Canterbury in England

Canterbury in England

[caption id="attachment_149000" align="aligncenter" width="590"] Canterbury Cathedral © Hans Musil[/caption][responsivevoice_button voice="UK English Female" buttontext="Listen to this Post"]Canterbury is an English city which lies at the heart of the City of Canterbury, a district of Kent in South East England. It lies on the River Stour. Many historical structures remain in the city, including a city wall founded in Roman times and rebuilt in the 14th century, the ruins of St Augustine's Abbey and a Norman castle, and perhaps the oldest school in England, The King's School. Modern additions...

[ read more ]

PortMiami in the Biscayne Bay

PortMiami in the Biscayne Bay

[caption id="attachment_168586" align="aligncenter" width="590"] © Marc Averette/cc-by-sa-1.0[/caption][responsivevoice_button voice="UK English Female" buttontext="Listen to this Post"]PortMiami, formally the Dante B. Fascell Port of Miami, is a major seaport located in Biscayne Bay between Miami and Miami Beach in Florida. It is the largest passenger port in the world, and one of the largest cargo ports in the United States. It is connected to Downtown Miami by Port Boulevard—a causeway over the Intracoastal Waterway—and to the neighboring Watson Island via the Port of Miami Tunnel. The...

[ read more ]

Watergate complex in Washington, D.C.

Watergate complex in Washington, D.C.

[caption id="attachment_27029" align="aligncenter" width="590"] Watergate complex © Tim1965[/caption][responsivevoice_button voice="UK English Female" buttontext="Listen to this Post"]The Watergate complex is a group of five buildings next to the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in the Foggy Bottom neighborhood of Washington, D.C., in the United States. The Watergate superblock is bounded on the north by Virginia Avenue, on the east by New Hampshire Avenue, on the south by F Street, and on the west by the Rock Creek and Potomac Parkway. It is in the Foggy Bottom neighborhood ove...

[ read more ]

Notting Hill Carnival in London

Notting Hill Carnival in London

[caption id="attachment_165456" align="aligncenter" width="590"] © Romazur/cc-by-sa-4.0[/caption][responsivevoice_button voice="UK English Female" buttontext="Listen to this Post"]The Notting Hill Carnival is an annual event that has taken place since 1966 on the streets of Notting Hill, and the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in London, each August over two days (the August bank holiday Monday and the preceding Sunday). It is led by members of the British West Indian community, and attracts around one million people annually, making it one of the world's largest street festivals (oth...

[ read more ]

Theme Week Japan - Fukuoka

Theme Week Japan - Fukuoka

[caption id="attachment_192112" align="aligncenter" width="590"] Fukuoka Tower © mmry0241-cc-by-sa-3.0[/caption][responsivevoice_button voice="UK English Female" buttontext="Listen to this Post"]Fukuoka is the capital city of Fukuoka Prefecture, situated on the northern shore of Japanese island Kyushu. It is the most populous city on the island, followed by Kitakyushu. It is the largest city and metropolitan area west of Keihanshin. The city was designated on April 1, 1972, by government ordinance. Greater Fukuoka, with a population of 2.5 million people, is part of the heavily industrialized...

[ read more ]

Theme Week New England

Theme Week New England

[caption id="attachment_165755" align="aligncenter" width="590"] Massachusetts - Sunset on Cape Cod Bay © flickr.com - PapaDunes/cc-by-sa-2.0[/caption][responsivevoice_button voice="UK English Female" buttontext="Listen to this Post"]New England is a geographical region which comprises six states of the northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York to the west and south, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and north, respectively. The Atlantic Ocean is to the ...

[ read more ]

Castle Combe in England

Castle Combe in England

[caption id="attachment_208151" align="aligncenter" width="590"] The Manor House Hotel © Adrian Pingstone[/caption][responsivevoice_button voice="UK English Female" buttontext="Listen to this Post"]Castle Combe is a village and civil parish in Wiltshire, England, about 5 miles (8 km) northwest of the town of Chippenham. The village has two parts: one is in the narrow valley of the By Brook, while Upper Castle Combe is on higher ground to the east, on the B4039 road which links Chippenham with Chipping Sodbury. A motor racing circuit is to the south of the upper village. The village takes its ...

[ read more ]

Return to TopReturn to Top
Elias Beach © Squirmy2000
Mykonos in the South Aegean

Mykonos is a Greek island, part of the Cyclades, lying between Tinos, Syros, Paros and Naxos. The island spans an...

Abbey of Bath © Nikater
Bath on River Avon

Bath is a city in the ceremonial county of Somerset in South West England. It is situated 97 miles (156...

Bosphorus seen from the Bosphorus University © Mehmet Ergun
The Bosphorus, the link between Europe and Asia

The Bosphorus or Bosporus, also known as the Istanbul Strait, is a strait that forms part of the boundary between...

Schließen