This wheat-colored cow was for many years used for agricultural labor, milking and meat production, before World War II and the industrialization of cattle breeds led to its decline.

[2] For this reason, the Villard-de-Lans is frequently associated with animals from the Jurassic branch, that is, the ones related to the Jura Mountains.

[4] In the 19th century, cattle breeding was well established in the Vercors, particularly in the northern part of the mountain chain, in the Villard-de-Lans canton.

The high percentage of cows is linked to the importance of milk production in the canton, which is far less isolated than the southern part of the massif and therefore more suited to this type of activity.

[1] The breed was first mentioned in 1832, when a Grenoble veterinary surgeon observed several cattle with similar characteristics grouped together, notably in the former Villard-de-Lans canton.

Following consultation with experts from the National Veterinary School in Lyon, a positive response was received in 1863, but official recognition was not granted until 1864.

The ever-growing population of the city and its suburbs consumed meat and dairy products from neighboring rural cantons such as Villard-de-Lans.

As a result, cattle production took off in this canton, supplanting sheep and goats, which were reputed to be responsible for the erosion and disappearance of forests.

It is estimated that around 2,700 animals, or almost a quarter of the livestock in the region comprising the Villard-de-Lans canton and the Vercors-Drôme, disappeared at that time.

These animals were either slaughtered to feed the occupying troops, or exported to Germany to be bred as purebreds or crossbred with local breeds.

In addition to losses directly linked to German kidnappings, farmers were forced to reduce their herds as their stocks and crops were destroyed.

At the end of the war, the government tried to compensate for the losses by introducing new animals, notably French Simmentals, but these were little appreciated by local breeders and thus rejected.

[10] Although this marked the beginning of the breed's decline, losses during World War II were not the only reason for the drop in numbers.

The arrival of horses between the end of the war and the 1950s initially removed the villarde's function as a plough animal, but without threatening it.

[5] Despite the resistance of a few passionate breeders, the region gradually saw the arrival of highly productive Montbeliarde animals, which sealed the fate of the local breed.

However, the first crossbreeding campaign suggests a gradual integration of the villarde into the blonde d'Aquitaine, rather than a contribution to the creation of the new breed.

Thanks to this more advantageous context, public authorities once again took an interest in the breed in 1976, at a time when its situation was critical and there were only around 50 animals left.

[13] A core group of livestock breeders has preserved the variety, and its revival is sought through the AOC Bleu du Vercors-Sassenage cheese, which has listed it among the breeds suitable for its production.

Cows were used exclusively, to work in the fields and help with logging operations such as skidding, without milking or reproduction being compromised.

The station proved itself capable of applying severe selection to the animals, helping to refine the breed standard.

In return, the latter are relieved of the costs of artificial insemination and milk recording for these Villard-de-Lans cows under contract, and benefit from technical support in managing their mating plans and herds.

It was then taken over at regional level by other bodies such as the Fond interministériel de développement et d'aménagement rural (FIDAR), which granted 38,000 F in 1983.

Breeding systems are quite varied, although often traditional, with animals fed mainly on hay, and housed in stanchion barns.

It gradually spread to the Grenoble region, to the banks of the Bièvre in the valleys of Saint-Geoire-en-Valdaine and Pont-de-Beauvoisin, and to the plains of Lyon and sub-Vienna.

[15] It was even exported further afield, to Bresse to help improve local livestock, or to the Tarn and Haute-Garonne regions, but there was no real long-term follow-up.

Today, the Villard-de-Lans is an emblematic cow of the Vercors Regional Park and is also associated with Bleu du Vercors-Sassenage, a cheese promoted to AOC status.

[8] In January 2015, all the members of the Villard-de-Lans town council presided over by its mayor, Chantal Carlioz, asked sculptor Serge Lombard, to create a statutory set in honor of the "Villarde" to be installed on the Bréduire traffic circle at the entrance to Villard-de-Lans, from the road to Choranche and the Gorges de la Bourne.

Both sculptures were made from "local stone", Vercors Urgonian Limestone, brought down from the mountains high above Villard-de-Lans and dating from the end of the Ice Age.

A postage stamp celebrating and depicting Villard-de-Lans was issued on February 22, 2014, by La Poste, the French postal services operator on the occasion of the Paris Agricultural Show.

[24] The face value of this stamp on the date of issue was €0.61, corresponding to the national lettre verte tariff for a maximum weight of 20g.