Dourdan

Dourdan is a commune with 10,036 inhabitants (as of January 1, 2011 ) in the department of Essonne and the Ile- de -France region. The village belongs to the district Etampes and is the administrative center of the canton of Dourdan. Dourdan is located in the extreme west of the department of Essonne on the banks of the Orge.

  • 4.1 The community forest ( Forêt domaniale )
  • 4.2 The Abbey Ouye

History

Its name is attributed to the Celtic word for water or river. The town developed in Gallo- Roman times, the most important center of ceramic production.

Dourdan was the residence of Robertiners Hugh the Great, father of Hugh Capet, the 956 also died here. As Hugh Capet King of France was 987, Dourdan was part of the Domaine royal.

1220, King Philip II Augustus build a new castle in Dourdan, which was then awarded in later years as an appanage. The most famous owners were Blanche of Castile, Louis of Evreux, Jean de Berry, François, 2nd Duke of Guise, Maximilien de Béthune, duc de Sully, Anne of Austria, and the family of the Dukes of Orléans.

Attractions

Church of Saint- Germain l'Auxerrois

With the construction of the church began in 1150, but was completed only in the 14th century. The building suffered severe damage in 1428 and was restored in the late 15th century. During the Wars of Religion, the church was damaged again. 1641 the spiers were built and in 1689 the Chapelle de la Vierge, which. , The length of the church by 14 meters, that is, from 36 to 50 meters, increased

Inside the church there are a number of attractions:

  • A grave stone with the image of Guillaume de Chatillonville who served during the French Revolution as a bridge over a ditch.
  • A reliquary of St. Félicien of glass and metal, a gift from the Grand Duchess of Tuscany from 1695.
  • Portraits of the local pastor since the French Revolution, in particular that of the Abbé Gautier ( see below).

Castle

See main article castle Dourdan

The halls

They date from 1836 and are located in the city center; they replaced the old buildings from the 13th century who had a first floor, took place in the civil, judicial, feudal negotiations, including the forest (see below) concerning: it was the auditoire royal, the royal hearing, which in 18. century was moved to the castle. The upper floor of the new hall, designed by architect Lucien- Tirte van Clemputte - should remember the old to the.

Personalities

  • Hugh the Great
  • Jean -François Regnard, French comedy writer, died in 1709 at castle Grillon in Dourdan.
  • Francisque Sarcey was born here on October 8, 1827
  • Roustam Raza, the " Mamluke Napoleon " († 1845), spent his twilight years
  • The Abbé Gautier, pastor of Napoleon III. , Was closely monitored by the police, since it could be assumed him to want to redistribute goods from top to bottom ( " vouloir prendre aux riches pour donner aux pauvres ") and in the pulpit, never for the Emperor to pray ( " ne jamais prier Dieu pour l' Empereur "); He died in office on 21 March 1867.
  • 1887 Émile Zola wrote here the novel La Terre (Vol. 15 of his cycle of novels The Rougon - Macquart ).
  • Michel Audiard died here on 25 July 1985
  • Mickael Carreira, Portuguese pop singer, was born here in 1986
  • David Carreira, Portuguese pop singer, was born here in 1991

Environment

The community forest ( Forêt domaniale )

The Forêt domaniale is a former royal hunting forest, which was shaped in community hand in 1870. It is 1683 hectares in size and consists of two forests, which are separated by the Orge:

  • The Forêt de Saint- Arnoult domaniale in the North
  • The Forêt de l' Ouye in the south, which owes its name to the same name, is located here ends Abbey (see below)

The forest is a deciduous forest, which consists of 80% of oak, moreover, chestnut, beech, hornbeam, birch and pine 6%.

The Abbey Ouye

The Abbey of Ouye ( Abbaye de l' Ouye ) was built in 1163 at the request of King Louis VII by Grammont Enser monks. The king wanted to thank God with this Abbey because he had allowed him to hear the voices of his companions ( Ouir ), after he had lost in the woods. The abbey is located south of the forest. Around 1220 sparked Philipp August, the gift, Louis VII had made the monks, again, as the abbey was an enclave in his favorite hunting grounds. A century later, St. Louis the previous states but restores. The monastery was destroyed several times, especially in 1567 during the Wars of Religion.

In 1771 the Order of Grandmont was dissolved, the Benedictines from Clairefontaine -en- Yvelines took over the monastery in 1773. In 1790, during the French Revolution, the monks were expelled and their property confiscated. The abbey was then largely destroyed. Since 1946, the convent of the Ursulines of Orléans is utilized.

Only a few relics of the past have been preserved: a chapel and a third building, which can not be visited. They belong to the municipality of Les Granges -le- Roi.

Twinning

  • Bad Wiessee in Germany since 1963
  • Troungoumbé in Mali since 1988
  • Lac- Mégantic in Quebec City since 1989
  • Great Dunmow in England since 1991
292824
de