Browse / France / Hauts-de-France / Villers-Cotterêts
Villers-Cotterêts
Hauts-de-Francetown
Villers-Cotterêts
Total population
10,454
Demographic figures from INSEE. Overview below cites Wikipedia and may reference a different year.
City facts
Facts from Wikidata (CC0).
Overview
Villers-Cotterêts is a commune in the Aisne department in Hauts-de-France, France. It is notable as the signing-place in 1539 of the Ordinance of Villers-Cotterêts discontinuing the use of Latin in official French documents, and as the birthplace in 1802 of French novelist Alexandre Dumas père.
Read more on WikipediaHistory & geography
History
Villers-Cotterêts is famous in French law because of the Ordinance of Villers-Cotterêts of 1539 signed by king Francis I of France ('François Ier'), which made French the official language in the kingdom instead of regional languages like Occitan or the elite European lingua franca of the time, Latin. In 1914, the British Expeditionary Force fought a rearguard action here during the Retreat from Mons. On 1 September, the British 4th (Guards) Brigade who were covering the withdrawal of 2nd Division, came into contact with the leading units of the German III Corps on the edge of woodland near Villers-Cotterêts. The brigade lost more than 300 men in the encounter, but were able to break away and continue the withdrawal. Many are buried at Guards' Grave, a military cemetery maintained by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission. An ancillary hospital to that of Royaumont was set up in the town and a silent documentary about it was made. La Plaine Saint-Rémy, Pisseleux, was an ancient commune that was merged with Villers-Cotterêts in 1971.
Geography
It is located NE of Paris via the RN2 heading towards Laon. Its nickname Petite ville sur la côte de Retz means Little town on the slopes of Retz, as it is situated next to the Forest of Retz, which covers of land.
Excerpted from the corresponding Wikipedia article (CC BY-SA).
Geography
Coordinates & boundaries from the US Census TIGER/Line shapefiles.
Climate
10-year averages from ERA5 reanalysis (Open-Meteo).
Air quality
Walkability
Amenities nearby
Wildlife & biodiversity
Earthquake history
Photos
Sights & places nearby
Notable people from here
Nearby places in Hauts-de-France
- Haramont2 mi away · pop. 560
- Vauciennes3 mi away · pop. 697
- Thury-en-Valois7.4 mi away · pop. 482
- Bargny8.1 mi away · pop. 336
- Macogny8.7 mi away · pop. 63
- Saint-Bandry8.8 mi away · pop. 247
- Monnes9.5 mi away · pop. 96
- Saconin-et-Breuil9.8 mi away · pop. 197
- Montigny-l'Allier9.9 mi away · pop. 268
- Chézy-en-Orxois10 mi away · pop. 380
- Vichel-Nanteuil10.1 mi away · pop. 90
- Rozet-Saint-Albin10.3 mi away · pop. 330
Geography & sun
Nearby airports
Public attention
Books about this place
Recent natural events nearby
Ground air-quality sensors
Recently spotted species
Events
Gallery
Official Identifiers
INSEE — French National Institute of Statistics
- INSEE code
- 02810
- Department
- 02
- Region
- 32
- Population (Wikidata)
- 10,489
geo.api.gouv.fr
Sources
- • Wikipedia
- • Open-Meteo (ERA5 reanalysis)
- • Wikidata
- • Wikidata SPARQL (CC0) — population, area, elevation, inception, head of government, Commons image
- • INSEE — French national statistics, via geo.api.gouv.fr (official commune code, population, surface, department, region)
- • INSEE — French National Institute of Statistics — geo.api.gouv.fr