La Garenne-Colombes () 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 northwestern suburbs of

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

, France. It is located from

Notre Dame de Paris Notre-Dame de Paris (; meaning "Our Lady of Paris"), referred to simply as Notre-Dame, is a medieval Catholic cathedral on the Île de la Cité (an island in the Seine River), in the 4th arrondissement of Paris. The cathedral, dedicated to the ...

which is the center of Paris. It is one of the most densely populated municipalities in Europe.

Name

The city used to be part of the neighbouring city of Colombes. At this time, before 1910, it was called "La Garenne de Colombes," which means "Colombes' Garenne." "Garenne" is French for "warren." So the English for "La Garenne-Colombes" could be "Colombes' warren" or "Warren of Colombes"; yet to speakers of all languages the name of the city is officially "La Garenne-Colombes." The explanation for the city being called "warren" is that it used to be a warren where people would hunt. But this dates back to the French monarchy, in the 18th century and before.

Geography

La Garenne-Colombes is usually simply called "La Garenne", and nicknamed "petit

Neuilly Neuilly (, ) is a common place name in France, deriving from the male given name A given name (also known as a forename or first name) is the part of a personal name quoted in that identifies a person, potentially with a middle name as we ...

Surroundings

Four towns surround La Garenne-Colombes:

Colombes Colombes () is a commune in the northwestern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the centre of Paris. In 2019, Colombes was the 53rd largest city in France. Name The name Colombes comes from Latin ''columna'' (Old French ''colombe'') ...

(North),

Bois-Colombes Bois-Colombes () is a commune in the northwestern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the centre of Paris. In 2017, it had a population of 28,239. International companies such as Colgate-Palmolive, IBM and Aviva have their French hea ...

(East),

Courbevoie Courbevoie () is a commune located in the Hauts-de-Seine Department of the Île-de-France region of France. It is in the suburbs of the city of Paris, from the center of Paris. The centre of Courbevoie is situated from the city limits of Par ...

(South) and

Nanterre Nanterre (, ) is the prefecture of the Hauts-de-Seine department in the western suburbs of Paris. It is located some northwest of the centre of Paris. In 2018, the commune had a population of 96,807. The eastern part of Nanterre, bordering t ...

(West). The city is quite small compared with the other cities in the

Hauts-de-Seine Hauts-de-Seine (; ) is a Departments of France, département in the Île-de-France Regions of France, region, Northern France. It covers Paris's western inner Banlieue, suburbs. It is bordered by Paris, Seine-Saint-Denis and Val-de-Marne to the e ...

, it is more or less as small as the first arrondissement of

. Very close to La Garenne-Colombes are La Défense and the

Île de la Jatte The Île de la Jatte or Île de la Grande Jatte is an island in the river Seine, located in the department of Hauts-de-Seine, and shared between the two communes of Neuilly-sur-Seine and Levallois. It is situated at the very gates of Paris, being ...

island (Bowl Island).

Transportation

La Garenne-Colombes is served by two stations on the

Transilien Paris – Saint-Lazare Transilien Paris-Saint-Lazare is one of the sectors in the Paris Transilien suburban rail network. The trains on this sector depart from Gare Saint-Lazare in central Paris and serve the north and north-west of Île-de-France region with Transilien ...

suburban rail line:

La Garenne-Colombes La Garenne-Colombes () is a commune in the northwestern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from Notre Dame de Paris which is the center of Paris. It is one of the most densely populated municipalities in Europe. Name The city used to be p ...

and Les Vallées (this last station is located at the border between the commune of La Garenne-Colombes and the commune of

, with a postal address in La Garenne-Colombes). The train has been used there since 1837. The two stations directly join Paris's most important urban station (

Gare Saint-Lazare The Gare Saint-Lazare (English: St Lazarus station), officially Paris-Saint-Lazare, is one of the six large mainline railway station termini in Paris, France. It serves train services toward Normandy, northwest of Paris, along the Paris–Le Hav ...

) in 10 minutes and the largest university in Paris (Paris Ouest La Défense University, Western Paris University La Défense) in 2 minutes. In 1935, five Tramway lines crossed La Garenne-Colombes. Many RATP Bus lines also cross the city: lines 73, 161, 163, 164, 176, 178, 262, 272, 278, 358 and 378. Two RATP

Noctilien Noctilien is the night bus service in Paris and its agglomeration. It is managed by the Île-de-France Mobilités (formerly the STIF), the Île-de-France regional public transit authority, and operated by RATP (with 32 lines) and Transilien SNC ...

night Bus lines cross the city: N24 and N152. In 2012, the line 2 of the Parisian Tramway will cross La Garenne-Colombes, with two stations: Les Fauvelles (French for Wildcats) and Charlebourg. To join the center of the CBD, 2 to 4 minutes will be required by tramway.

History

It was named in 1240 as "La Garenne dépendant de Colombes" ("La Garenne depending on

"). After the Bourbon Restoration in 1815, the estate was bought by Peter Urban Sartoris, a Genevois banker who had lived in London for many years. On his death in 1833 it was inherited by his 6 children, who urbanised it and named the rue Sartoris. They sold the last of their interests in 1865. The commune of La Garenne-Colombes was created on 2 May 1910 by detaching its territory from the commune of

Demography

As the commune's territory is entirely built up, population can only grow if buildings are demolished and replaced by bigger buildings for more people (higher, less gardens). Thereby the population will grow certainly over the 30,000 after many reconstructions in the "Champs-Philippe" neighbourhood, with a density over 17,000 inhabitants per square kilometres (43,855 inhabitants per square miles). According to statistics, La Garenne-Colombes is an average city of the

department (

region), which is one of the richest places in Europe.

Economy

The landscape looks like an American CBD (Central Business District). But this is in the suburbs of

, which do not look like the downtown Paris districts surrounding the Eiffel Tower or the Champs-Elysées. Paradoxically, the most advanced part of the city of Paris, geographically speaking, is on the outskirts of the city itself. There used to be many workshops in La Garenne-Colombes, as in a large part of the

department. Today, it is mainly a residential city. However, some 1200 business units are there.

Tertiary activity

The service industry is paramount in the economy of La Garenne-Colombes. The proximity of La Défense increases this phenomenon. There is : *

Peugeot Peugeot (, , ) is a French brand of automobiles owned by Stellantis. The family business that preceded the current Peugeot companies was founded in 1810, with a steel foundry that soon started making hand tools and kitchen equipment, and the ...

study offices *

Boston Scientific Boston Scientific Corporation ("BSC"), incorporated in Delaware, is a biomedical/biotechnology engineering firm and multinational manufacturer of medical devices used in interventional medical specialties, including interventional radiology, in ...

International * RATP's Charlebourg center The arrival of the Tramway in 2012 resulted in a redevelopment of a part of the city, and should bring a new breath of life to the local economy.

Urbanism

The city

In spite of the proximity of La Défense and

which has applied a strong pressure, no big buildings were built in La Garenne. Residential buildings (detached homes and apartment buildings) account for the majority of the building stock in La Garenne-Colombes. Many of these buildings were constructed in the early 1900s. In a large part of the town, new construction is limited to 4 floors. The neighbourhood of the place de Belgique and National boulevard, which is the entry of La Défense, is being redeveloped.

Green ways

Eight green ways are in La Garenne-Colombes, exactly: * two public squares * two gardens * four parks

Commonly known places

* Place de la Liberté (Freedom square), known under the name of place du marché (market) or place de l'Eglise (church) * Place du Général Leclerc, known under the name of place de la Fontaine (Fountain plaza) * Place de Belgique (Belgium square) * Rond-point du Souvenir français, known under the name of place Jean Baillet * Rond-point de l'Europe (Europe's plaza)

Politics and administration

List of mayors

* 1910-1933: Jean Bonal * 1934-1943: Docteur Charles Jubert * 1944: Maurice Godaux * 1944-1945: André Crimet * 1945-1947: Gaston Sourrisseau * 1947-1955: Louis Jean * 1955-1971: René Guest * 1971-1975: Albert Fabbi * 1975-2001: Max Catrin * 2001–2022: Philippe Juvin * since 2022: Monique Raimbault

Twin towns - sister cities

La Garenne-Colombes is twinned with: *

Wangen im Allgäu Wangen im Allgäu ( Low Alemannic: ''Wãnge'') is a historic city in southeast Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It lies north-east of Lake Constance in the Westallgäu. It is the second-largest city (Population: 26,927 in 2020) in the Ravensburg dist ...

, Germany *

Yokneam Illit Yokneam Illit ( he, יָקְנְעָם עילית), also ''Yoqne'am Illit'' and ''Jokneam Illit'', is a city in northern Israel. It is located in a hilly region of the lower Galilee at the base of the Carmel Mountains, and overlooks the Jezreel V ...

, Israel *

Harissa-Daraoun Harissa-Daraoun ( ar, حريصا–درعون) is a municipality that consists of two villages, Harissa and Daraoun, in the Keserwan District of the Keserwan-Jbeil Governorate of Lebanon. The municipality mayor from 2016 until 2022 is Mr. Nizar ...

, Lebanon *

Valpaços Valpaços () is a municipality in northern Portugal. The population in 2011 was 16,882, in an area of 548.74 km2. History The first documents that cite Valpaços date back to the 12th century. Its toponymy evolved from pre-national settlem ...

, Portugal

Education

The commune has four public preschools and five public elementary schoolsLes écoles communales
" La Garenne-Colombes. Retrieved on September 7, 2016. * Primary schools: René Guest, André Marsault, Ernest Renan (built in 1905), Sainte Geneviève, Sagot Voltaire * Junior high school: Les Vallées * Junior high school: Champs-Philippe (previously named Kleber Haedens, the name was revoked by the Hauts-de-Seine general council due to Haedens having been a nazi collaborationist) * Vocational senior high school: Lycée La Tournelle Students wishing to attend a general high school may go to Lycée Albert-Camus in

or Lycée Paul-Lapie in

.Lycées
" La Garenne-Colombes. Retrieved on September 7, 2016. "Les jeunes Garennois sont rattachés à deux lycées d'enseignement général, situés l'un à Courbevoie (Lycée Paul-Lapie), l'autre à Bois-Colombes (Lycée Albert-Camus)." The city owns a castle in Normandy where students are sometimes sent for class-holidays.

Life in La Garenne-Colombes

According to statistics published by the Figaro newspaper, La Garenne-Colombes is the

's city with the lowest crime rate, without forgetting that the

is a very quiet part of the

region.

Personalities

Born in La Garenne-Colombes

* Guy-Elphege Anouman (1994), athlete *

Patrick Chesnais Patrick Chesnais (born 18 March 1947) is a French actor, film director and screenwriter. Life and career Patrick Chesnais was born in La Garenne-Colombes, Hauts-de-Seine. He was educated at the '' Lycée Pierre Corneille'' in Rouen. In 198 ...

(1947), French actor *

Émilie Lepennec Émilie () is a French female given name. It is the feminine form of the male name Émile. Spelled Emilie, it is used internationally. People named Émilie *Émilie Bigottini (1784–1858), French dancer of Italian ancestry * Émilie Bonnivard ...

(1987), French gymnast * Fernand Oury (1920), French

pedagogue Pedagogy (), most commonly understood as the approach to teaching, is the theory and practice of learning, and how this process influences, and is influenced by, the social, political and psychological development of learners. Pedagogy, taken as ...

and creator of modern French schooling *

Catherine Picard Catherine Picard (born 14 August 1952) is a French politician and anti-cultist from the French Socialist Party. She was a member of the French National Assembly from 1997 to 2002. Career Picard was elected on 1 June 1997 for the French Sociali ...

(1952), French politician * Steven Nzonzi (1988), French

soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...

player

Lived in La Garenne-Colombes

* William Klein, American painter, film-maker and photographer *

Cédric Mongongu Cédric Mongongu (born 22 June 1989) is a Congolese professional footballer who plays as a centre back for the DR Congo national team. Club career Mongongu began playing for his local club in La Garenne-Colombes before joining RCF Paris in 2002 ...

, Footballer *

Deng Xiaoping Deng Xiaoping (22 August 1904 – 19 February 1997) was a Chinese revolutionary leader, military commander and statesman who served as the paramount leader of the People's Republic of China (PRC) from December 1978 to November 1989. After CC ...

, Chinese political leader

Died in La Garenne-Colombes

Jean Mitry Jean-René Pierre Goetgheluck Le Rouge Tillard des Acres de Presfontaines, whose pseudonym was Jean Mitry (; 7 November 1904 – 18 January 1988), was a French film theorist, critic and filmmaker, a co-founder of France's first film society, and, ...

(1907–1988), French

film theorist Film theory is a set of scholarly approaches within the academic discipline of film or cinema studies that began in the 1920s by questioning the formal essential attributes of motion pictures; and that now provides conceptual frameworks for unde ...

critic A critic is a person who communicates an assessment and an opinion of various forms of creative works such as art, literature, music, cinema, theater, fashion, architecture, and food. Critics may also take as their subject social or governmen ...

and

filmmaker Filmmaking (film production) is the process by which a motion picture is produced. Filmmaking involves a number of complex and discrete stages, starting with an initial story, idea, or commission. It then continues through screenwriting, castin ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Garennecolombes Communes of Hauts-de-Seine