Montélimar
| Montélimar | ||
|---|---|---|
| Commune | ||
 A view over Montélimar | ||
| ||
  Montélimar Location within Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region  Montélimar | ||
| Coordinates: 44°33′29″N 4°45′03″E / 44.5581°N 4.7508°ECoordinates: 44°33′29″N 4°45′03″E / 44.5581°N 4.7508°E | ||
| Country | France | |
| Region | Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes | |
| Department | Drôme | |
| Arrondissement | Nyons | |
| Canton | Montélimar-1 and 2 | |
| Intercommunality | Montélimar-Sésame | |
| Government | ||
| • Mayor (2014–2020) | Franck Reynier (PR) | |
| Area1 | 46.81 km2 (18.07 sq mi) | |
| Population (2012)2 | 35,704 | |
| • Density | 760/km2 (2,000/sq mi) | |
| • Urban (2007) | 61,861 | |
| Time zone | UTC+1 (CET) | |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+2 (CEST) | |
| INSEE/Postal code | 26198 /26200 | |
| Elevation |
56–213 m (184–699 ft) (avg. 81 m or 266 ft) | |
|
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. | ||
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Montélimar (French pronunciation: [mɔ̃.te.li.maʁ]; Occitan: Montelaimar pronounced [muntelajˈma]; Latin: Acumum) is a commune in the Drôme department in southeastern France. It is the second-largest town in the department after Valence.
History
The site where the city of Montélimar stands today has been inhabited since the Celtic era. It was reconstructed during the Roman reign, including a basilica, aqueducts, thermae and a forum. The Adhémar family reigned over the city in the Middle Ages and built a castle (Château des Adhémar) which dominates the city silhouette even today.
Population
| Historical population | ||
|---|---|---|
| Year | Pop. | ±% |
| 1800 | 6,320 | — |
| 1821 | 7,161 | +13.3% |
| 1836 | 7,966 | +11.2% |
| 1851 | 9,362 | +17.5% |
| 1866 | 11,100 | +18.6% |
| 1881 | 12,894 | +16.2% |
| 1896 | 13,741 | +6.6% |
| 1911 | 13,281 | −3.3% |
| 1926 | 11,210 | −15.6% |
| 1936 | 15,187 | +35.5% |
| 1954 | 16,639 | +9.6% |
| 1968 | 26,748 | +60.8% |
| 1982 | 29,161 | +9.0% |
| 1999 | 31,344 | +7.5% |
| 2012 | 35,704 | +13.9% |
Personalities
- French navigator Louis de Freycinet and Émile Loubet, President of France from 1899 till 1906, who served also as mayor of Montélimar.
- Formula One racing driver Charles Pic, brother and fellow racing driver Arthur Pic and motorcycle racer Sylvain Guintoli.
- Encyclopédiste Antoine Penchenier (died in 1761) at an unknown date.
- Physician and Encyclopédiste Jean-Joseph Menuret (1739–1815) was born in Montélimar
Economy
Montélimar is widely regarded as the world capital of nougat. The local nougat is one of the 13 desserts of Provence and highly appreciated throughout the country. Montelimar nougat is mentioned in the opening lines of the Beatles' Savoy Truffle from The White Album. Travellers used to buy nougat de Montélimar on their way to the south of France (or when returning) as the city is next to the Rhône and to the primary route N7. Since the construction of the A7 autoroute, many nougat factories have been forced to close as tourists no longer stop in Montélimar but bypass it instead.
Climate
| Climate data for Montélimar (1981–2010 averages) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 19.3 (66.7) |
22.4 (72.3) |
26.4 (79.5) |
30.6 (87.1) |
33.8 (92.8) |
38.1 (100.6) |
40.0 (104) |
41.1 (106) |
36.2 (97.2) |
30.4 (86.7) |
26.4 (79.5) |
19.9 (67.8) |
41.1 (106) |
| Average high °C (°F) | 8.2 (46.8) |
10.2 (50.4) |
14.5 (58.1) |
17.5 (63.5) |
22.1 (71.8) |
26.2 (79.2) |
29.6 (85.3) |
29.1 (84.4) |
24.2 (75.6) |
18.7 (65.7) |
12.4 (54.3) |
8.6 (47.5) |
18.5 (65.3) |
| Average low °C (°F) | 1.9 (35.4) |
2.5 (36.5) |
4.9 (40.8) |
7.3 (45.1) |
11.1 (52) |
14.7 (58.5) |
17.3 (63.1) |
17.0 (62.6) |
13.7 (56.7) |
10.4 (50.7) |
5.8 (42.4) |
3.0 (37.4) |
9.2 (48.6) |
| Record low °C (°F) | −14.4 (6.1) |
−17.0 (1.4) |
−7.4 (18.7) |
−3.1 (26.4) |
−1.8 (28.8) |
3.5 (38.3) |
7.5 (45.5) |
5.6 (42.1) |
0.5 (32.9) |
−1.6 (29.1) |
−10.0 (14) |
−17.2 (1) |
−17.2 (1) |
| Average precipitation mm (inches) | 64.0 (2.52) |
45.2 (1.78) |
47.1 (1.854) |
81.3 (3.201) |
83.1 (3.272) |
55.2 (2.173) |
48.7 (1.917) |
57.7 (2.272) |
116.2 (4.575) |
135.8 (5.346) |
100.5 (3.957) |
70.5 (2.776) |
905.3 (35.642) |
| Average precipitation days | 6.6 | 5.4 | 5.6 | 7.9 | 7.8 | 5.4 | 4.2 | 4.9 | 6.4 | 8.8 | 7.3 | 7.2 | 77.4 |
| Average snowy days | 2.3 | 2.1 | 0.9 | 0.1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.8 | 2.4 | 8.6 |
| Average relative humidity (%) | 80 | 76 | 70 | 68 | 70 | 67 | 62 | 65 | 72 | 80 | 81 | 81 | 72.7 |
| Mean monthly sunshine hours | 104.9 | 134.5 | 200.0 | 214.6 | 255.3 | 295.5 | 327.3 | 293.6 | 224.5 | 152.3 | 110.3 | 92.1 | 2,404.8 |
| Source #1: Météo France[1][2] | |||||||||||||
| Source #2: Infoclimat.fr (humidity and snowy days, 1961–1990)[3] | |||||||||||||
International relations
Montélimar has several twin towns:
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See also
References
- ↑ "Données climatiques de la station de Montélimar" (in French). Meteo France. Retrieved December 26, 2015.
- ↑ "Climat Rhône-Alpes" (in French). Meteo France. Retrieved December 26, 2015.
- ↑ "Normes et records 1961-1990: Montélimar - Ancone (26) - altitude 73m" (in French). Infoclimat. Retrieved December 26, 2015.
- ↑ "British towns twinned with French towns". Archant Community Media Ltd. Retrieved 2013-07-11.
External links
 |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Montélimar. |
- Official website
