Chalon-sur-Saône

Though the site (ancient Cabillonum)[3] was a capital of the Aedui and objects of La Tène culture have been retrieved from the bed of the river here, the first mention of Cavillonum is found in Commentarii de Bello Gallico (VII, chs. 42 and 90). The Roman city already served as a river port and hub of road communications, of the Via Agrippa and side routes.[4] In 354 AD the Roman Emperor Constantius II stationed the Roman 7th Army in Chalon (then called Cabyllona) for an invasion against the brother kings, Gundomadus and Vadomarius of the Alamanni. However, not having received supplies, the Roman troops revolted, and were pacified by the grand chamberlain Eusebius with money. In Late Antiquity the city had dwindled so much that a wall round it encircled fifteen hectares.[5]

Saint Marcellus of Chalons (Saint Marcel) is said to have been martyred here in 179 AD. Chalon became one of the de facto capitals of the kingdom of Burgundy under Guntram, king from 561 to 592, who died here.[6] Guntram also promoted the cult of Saint Marcellus.[7] It continued to pay for its importance by being frequently attacked until the 10th century.[3] The bishopric of Chalon-sur-Saône, a suffragan of the Archdiocese of Lyon, was also established here in the 6th century, and a Church Council was held here from 644–655.[8] After the French Revolution, in accordance with the Concordat of 1801, the diocese of Chalon was amalgamated with the diocese of Autun, which gave the name to the new entity.

Chalon in the 19th century is best known as the birthplace of photography. Its most famous resident, Nicéphore Niépce, also has a lycée (secondary school) named after him. There is a museum which contains some early photography relics, located on the Quai des Messageries in the town, containing more than two million photographs and many old artefacts such as cameras and other equipment for old and modern photography. Also on display are Niépce's 1807 Pyréolophore, which is probably the world's first internal combustion engine, plus his 1818 implementation of a dandy horse, for which he coined the word vélocipède.[9]

Nicéphore Niépce

Another famous resident is Dominique Vivant Denon (1747–1825), who was involved in the creation of the Louvre museum, converting the former royal palace into a museum after the French Revolution.

In the late 19th century, copper and iron works were the town's main industry. The large engineering works of Petit-Creusot, a branch of those of Le Creusot, manufactured heavy industrial items.[3]

The Gare de Chalon-sur-Saône railway station offers connections with Paris, Dijon, Lyon and several regional destinations.

The station is located along the PLM mainline from Paris Gare de Lyon to Marseille-Saint-Charles, at kilometre post 382.150 from Paris.

The primary national roads serving Chalon are the A6 autoroute from Paris to Lyon, the route nationale 73, from Chalon to Besançon and the route nationale 80, from Chalon to Montchanin.

The city is also located on the pan-European bicycle route the EuroVelo 6, which stretches from Saint-Nazaire on the Atlantic Ocean near Nantes to Constanta on the Black Sea.

The closest major commercial airport is Lyon-Saint-Exupéry, located about 120 kilometres away.

The public transportation company STAC offers a bus network ZOOM, including a free bus in the center, lines to surrounding communities, and services for disabled riders. There also exists a bike sharing scheme Réflex.

An institute of research of the engineering school Arts et Métiers ParisTech was established in Chalon in 1997. This institute offers graduate and doctoral programs in the domain of virtual reality and image engineering.

It includes a municipal library.[13]

The Élan Chalon basketball club is a member of the LNB Pro A, and plays its home matches at the Le Colisée. Other sports clubes include FC Chalon, HBC Chalon-sur-Saône, Volley-Ball Chalon-sur-Saône and the former RC Chalon.