Château-Gontier

Château-Gontier
Château-Gontier
	Part of Château-Gontier-sur-Mayenne
	Château-Gontier seen from the Europe Bridge
	Coat of arms
	Location of Château-Gontier
	Château-Gontier Château-Gontier
	Coordinates: 47°49′43″N 0°42′10″W
Country	France
Region	Pays de la Loire
Department	Mayenne
Arrondissement	Château-Gontier
Canton	Château-Gontier
Commune	Château-Gontier-sur-Mayenne
Area 1	27.88 km2 (10.76 sq mi)
Population (2017)[1]	11,687
• Density	420/km2 (1,100/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+01:00 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00 (CEST)
Postal code	53200
Elevation	26–99 m (85–325 ft) ; (avg. 83 m or 272 ft)
	1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

Château-Gontier (French pronunciation: [ʃɑto ɡɔ̃tje]) is a former commune in the Mayenne department in north-western France. On 1 January 2019, it was merged into the new commune Château-Gontier-sur-Mayenne.[2]

Geography

It is about 30 km (19 mi) south of Laval,[3] the préfecture of the department of Mayenne. Château-Gontier is home to the Refuge de l'Arche, a refuge for abandoned or mistreated animals.

History

There are chalybeate springs close to the town. Château-Gontier owes its origin and its name to a castle erected in the first half of the 11th century by Gunther, the steward of Fulk Nerra of Anjou, on the site of a farm belonging to the monks of St Aubin d’Angers. On the extinction of the family, the lordship was assigned by Louis XI of France to Philippe de Comines. The town suffered severely during the wars of the League. In 1793 it was occupied by the Vendeans.[3]

Population and society

People

Conan II, Duke of Brittany was found dead here during the Breton Norman Wars, likely the victim of poisoning.
Claude Pompidou was born here.
General Emile-René Lemonnier was born and buried here.
Louis-François Allard (1735-1819), physician and politician.
Guy de Charnacé (1825–1909), agronomist, writer, musicologist was born here.
Alexis Roger, French composer (1814–1846), was born here.
Olivier Peslier, French horse racing jockey was born here.

References

INSEE commune file

Téléchargement du fichier d'ensemble des populations légales en 2017, INSEE
Arrêté préfectoral 14 November 2018 (in French)
Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Château-Gontier" . Encyclopædia Britannica. 5 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 963.

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[1] Téléchargement du fichier d'ensemble des populations légales en 2017, INSEE

[2] Arrêté préfectoral 14 November 2018 (in French)

[EB1911-3] Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Château-Gontier" . Encyclopædia Britannica. 5 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 963.