Firminy (; oc, Frominiu) is a

commune A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to: Administrative-territorial entities * Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township ** Communes of ...

in the

Loire The Loire (, also ; ; oc, Léger, ; la, Liger) is the longest river in France and the 171st longest in the world. With a length of , it drains , more than a fifth of France's land, while its average discharge is only half that of the Rhône ...

department Department may refer to: * Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility Government and military *Department (administrative division), a geographical and administrative division within a country, ...

in central

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

. It lies on the river

Ondaine The Ondaine or Ondenon is a river in the Loire (department), Loire department of France. It is a right tributary of the Loire. Geography The Ondaine has its source in the woods of Neyranche in the commune of Planfoy at an elevation of , where it ...

, 13 km southwest of

Saint-Étienne Saint-Étienne (; frp, Sant-Etiève; oc, Sant Estève, ) is a city and the prefecture of the Loire department in eastern-central France, in the Massif Central, southwest of Lyon in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region. Saint-Étienne is the t ...

by rail.

History

The ancient name of the town was ''Firminiaco'' or ''Firminiacus'' (lit. "place of Firmin"). The name was first recorded in a 971 charter by the

King of Burgundy The following is a list of the kings of the two kingdoms of Burgundy, and a number of related political entities devolving from Carolingian machinations over family relations. Kings of the Burgundians * Gebicca (late 4th century – c. 407 ...

. Firminy had historically important

coalmine Coal mining is the process of resource extraction, extracting coal from the ground. Coal is valued for its Energy value of coal, energy content and since the 1880s has been widely used to generate electricity. Steel and cement industries use c ...

s known since the 14th century and extensive manufactures of

iron Iron () is a chemical element with symbol Fe (from la, ferrum) and atomic number 26. It is a metal that belongs to the first transition series and group 8 of the periodic table. It is, by mass, the most common element on Earth, right in f ...

steel Steel is an alloy made up of iron with added carbon to improve its strength and fracture resistance compared to other forms of iron. Many other elements may be present or added. Stainless steels that are corrosion- and oxidation-resistant ty ...

, and

aluminum Aluminium (aluminum in American and Canadian English) is a chemical element with the symbol Al and atomic number 13. Aluminium has a density lower than those of other common metals, at approximately one third that of steel. It has ...

goods, including

railway Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...

material, machinery and cannon. Fancy woolen hosiery was also manufactured.

Population

Sights

Two historic churches from the 12th and 16th centuries are located here. The architect

Le Corbusier Charles-Édouard Jeanneret (6 October 188727 August 1965), known as Le Corbusier ( , , ), was a Swiss-French architect, designer, painter, urban planner, writer, and one of the pioneers of what is now regarded as modern architecture. He was ...

designed a group of modern buildings, called "

Firminy Vert Firminy Vert (lit. "Green Firminy") is group of modern buildings designed by architect Le Corbusier located in Firminy, France in 1964–1969. It includes the Saint-Pierre Church, a stadium, a cultural center, and an '' Unité d'Habitation''. It wa ...

", which includes the Saint-Pierre Church, a stadium, a cultural center, and an ''

Unité d'Habitation {{Infobox company , name = Moldtelecom , logo = , type = JSC , foundation = 1 April 1993 , location = Chişinău, Moldova , key_people = Alexandru Ciubuc CEO interim , num_employees = 2,750 employees As of 2019 , industry = Telecommunica ...

''.

References

External links

Official website
Communes of Loire (department) Forez {{Loire-geo-stub

History

Population

Sights

See also

References

External links