Vitry-le-François

Vitry-le-François (French pronunciation: ​[vitʁi lə frɑ̃swa]) is a commune in the Marne department in north-eastern France. It is located on the Marne River and is the western terminus of the Marne–Rhine Canal.

Vitry-le-François
Subprefecture and commune
The town hall in Vitry-le-François
Coat of arms
Location of Vitry-le-François
Vitry-le-François
Vitry-le-François
Coordinates: 48°43′32″N 4°35′07″E
CountryFrance
RegionGrand Est
DepartmentMarne
ArrondissementVitry-le-François
CantonVitry-le-François-Champagne et Der
IntercommunalityVitry, Champagne et Der
Government
 • Mayor (2014-2020) Jean-Pierre Bouquet
Area
1
6.45 km2 (2.49 sq mi)
Population
 (2017-01-01)[1]
12,133
 • Density1,900/km2 (4,900/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+01:00 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+02:00 (CEST)
INSEE/Postal code
51649 /51300
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

History

In 1142, Louis VII invaded Champagne and seized Vitry-le-François. Over a thousand residents were killed when the town's church was set ablaze.

The present town is a relatively recent construction, having been built in 1545 at the behest of King Francis who wished to replace, on a new site, Vitry-en-Perthois, which in 1544 had been entirely destroyed as part of the backwash from the king's Italian War of 1542–46.[2] The new Vitry was to be a modern city, constructed according to a plan produced by Girolamo Marini. The king's role in its creation resulted in Vitry-le-François receiving the king's name as part of its own name.

Demography

Features
  • Its church of Notre-Dame is a 17th-century building with fine 18th-century monuments.
  • A convent of the Récollets was later converted to contain the town hall, the court-house, a library and a small museum.
  • There is a bronze statue of Pierre Paul Royer-Collard (1763–1845), the politician and philosopher, a native of the district.[3]

Twin towns

Vitry-le-François is twinned with:

Personalities

See also

References
  1. "Populations légales 2017". INSEE. Retrieved 6 January 2020.
  2. Chisholm 1911.
  3.  One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Vitry-le-François". Encyclopædia Britannica. 28 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 151.
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