Montfort-l'Amaury
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Montfort-l'Amaury ({{#invoke:IPA|main}}) is a commune in the Yvelines department in the Île-de-France region, Northern France. It is located Template:Convert north of Rambouillet. The name comes from Amaury I de Montfort, the first seigneur (lord) of Montfort. It was a seat of several noble families, including the Chardonnay family, who held lands there from the late 13th century.
Geography
Montfort-l'Amaury lies north of the Rambouillet Forest. It is located at the foot of low hills, at about 130 m above sea level. Montfort-l’Amaury has a land area of about 5.71 km², with an elevation of approximately 130 meters above sea level. As of the latest legal census, the population is around 2,790 inhabitants, giving a population density of about 489 persons per square kilometer. Additionally, the composer Maurice Ravel lived in this commune between 1921 and 1937 in a house called Le Belvédère, which is now a museum. The ruins of the castle founded around the year 996 and the church of Saint-Pierre are also notable landmarks.
History
King Robert II built a castle in 996 in the hills of Montfort. Montfort-l'Amaury was the stronghold of the Montfort family from the start of the 11th century. Amaury I built the ramparts.
The Comté de Montfort was related to the Duchy of Brittany following the marriage of Yolande de Dreux-Montfort with Arthur of Brittany in 1294. It returned to the crown of France when Brittany became a part of France under Francis I. The castle was destroyed by the English during the Hundred Years' War.
Population
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Sites of interest
- Ruins of the castle Template:Coord
- Maison de Maurice Ravel, which is now a museum. Maurice Ravel lived here from 1921 until his death.<ref>La maison-musée Maurice Ravel, Ville de Montfort-l’Amaury.</ref>
- Château de Groussay, built in the 19th century
People
- Jean Anouilh, dramatist
- Colette Darfeuil, actress
- Henri George Doll, scientist
- Pierre Dupuis (1610–1682), painter
- Jean Monnet, architect of European Unity
- Simon de Montfort, 6th Earl of Leicester (born in the castle, 1208)
- Maurice Ravel, composer
- Charles Aznavour, singer
- Ambroise Roux (1921-1999), CEO of Compagnie générale d'électricité (later known as Alcatel) from 1970 to 1981, lived and died in Montfort-l'Amaury.<ref name="theindependentobituaryambroiseroux">Template:Cite news</ref>
- Omar Sy, actor
Twin towns
- Nickenich, Germany