Melun

Melun
Town Hall
Melun
Location within Île-de-France region  Melun
Administration
Country	France
Region	Île-de-France
Department	Seine-et-Marne
Arrondissement	Melun
Canton	Melun-Nord and Melun-Sud
Intercommunality	Melun – Val de Seine
Mayor	Gérard Millet (UMP) (2008–2014)
Statistics
Elevation	37–102 m (121–335 ft) (avg. 54 m/177 ft)
Land area1	8.04 km2 (3.10 sq mi)
Population2	37,835  (2007)
- Density	4,706 /km2 (12,190 /sq mi)
INSEE/Postal code	77288/ 77000
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.
2 Population without double counting: residents of multiple communes (e.g., students and military personnel) only counted once.

Coordinates: 48°32′26″N 2°39′36″E / 48.5405555556°N 2.66°E / 48.5405555556; 2.66

Melun is a commune in the Seine-et-Marne department in the Île-de-France region in north-central France. Located in the south-eastern suburbs of Paris, Melun is the capital of the department, as the seat of an arrondissement. Its inhabitants are called Melunais.

History

Meledunum began as a Gaulish town; Caesar noted Melun as "a town of the Senones, situated on an island in the Seine"; at the island there was a wooden bridge, which his men repaired.^[1] Roman Meledunum was a mutatio where fresh horses were kept available for official couriers on the Roman road south-southeast of Paris, where it forded the Seine.^[2]

The Normans sacked it in 845. The castle of Melun became a royal residence of the Capetian kings. Hugh Capet (See also: House of Capet) gave Melun to Bouchard, his favorite. In the reign of Hugh's son, Robert II of France, Eudes, the count of Champagne, bought the city, and the king took it back for the viscount in 999. Le Chatelain and his wife, who had sold the city, were hanged. Robert died there in July 1031.

Counts of Melun

• Donatus (?-834)
• Bouchard I (956/967–1005), also Count of Vendôme and Count of Paris

Vicounts of Melun

The early viscounts of Melun were listed by 17th and 18th century genealogists, notably Père Anselme. Based on closer reading of the original documents, Adolphe Duchalais constructed this list of viscounts in 1844:^[3]

• Salo (c. 993; possibly legendary)
• Joscelin I (c. 998)
• William (possibly c. 1000)
• Ursio (c. 1067–1085)
• William the Carpenter (c. 1094)
• Hilduin, Garin, Ursio II, Jean (unknown dates, possibly not viscounts)
• Adam (c. 1138–1141; married Mahaut, daughter of his predecessor)
• Joscelin II (c. 1156)

The title eventually became an honorary peerage. Such viscount include Honoré-Armand de Villars and Claude Louis Hector de Villars.

Melun water colored postcard showing Melun in the 1920s and circa 1095.

Transport

Melun Shield dating from the 15th century – "Melun (Seine-et-Marne): Azure on a semy-de-lys or a castle with three towers argent. Melun was one of the original strongholds of the royal domain. Motto: fida muris usque ad mures, recalling the siege of 1420 when inhabitants had to eat rats." http://www.heraldica.org/topics/france/frcitdep.htm

Melun is served by Melun station, which is an interchange station on Paris RER line D, on the Transilien R suburban rail line, and on several national rail lines.

Main sights

The Collegiate Church of Notre-Dame, Melun was the original home of the Melun Diptych.

The nearby chateau of Vaux-le-Vicomte is considered a smaller predecessor of Palace of Versailles.

The officers' school of the French Gendarmerie is located in Melun.

People

Melun was the birthplace of:

• Willy Boly footballer
• Pierre Certon (c.1510-1520-1572), composer of the Renaissance (probably born in Melun)
• Jacques Amyot (1513–1593), writer
• Chimène Badi (1982–), singer
• Samir Beloufa (1979–), professional footballer
• Raphael Desroses,basketball player
• Stephane Dondon,basketball player
• Yvan Kibundu, footballer
• Steven Mouyokolo footballer
• Granddi Ngoyi footballer
• Yretha Silete figure skater

Twin towns – sister cities

See also: List of twin towns and sister cities in France

Melun is twinned with:

• Ouidah, Benin
• Spelthorne, United Kingdom
• Crema, Italy
• Stuttgart-Vaihingen, Germany

See also

• Communes of the Seine-et-Marne department

References

1. ^ Gallic War vii. 58, 60.
2. ^ Meledunum appears in the Antonine Itinerary almost halfway between Lutetia (Paris) and Condate (Rennes) ('Meledunum").
3. ^ Adolphe Duchalais, "Charte inedité de l’an 1138, relative à l’histoire des viscomtes de Melun" (Bibliothèque de l’école des chartes vol. 6 no. 6, 1845).

Sources

• INSEE
• Initial text from the "Carpenters' Encyclopedia of Carpenters 2001" Compiled by John R. Carpenter.
• The Viscounts and Counts of Melun are listed in Detlev Schwennicke, Europäische Stammtafeln, Neue Folge, Volume VII, Tafels 55 & 56.

External links

• Paris Region Nobility - Vicomtes de Melun
• Official website (French)
• Tourist office website (French)
• 1999 Land Use, from IAURIF (Institute for Urban Planning and Development of the Paris-Île-de-France région (English)
• French Ministry of Culture list for Melun (French)
• Map of Melun on Michelin (English)