Eure-et-Loir
Eure-et-Loir (, locally: ) is a French department, named after the Eure and Loir rivers. It is located in the region of Centre-Val de Loire. In 2019, Eure-et-Loir had a population of 431,575.department in northern
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 is a
sub-prefecture
A subprefecture is an administrative division of a country that is below prefecture or province.
Albania
There are twelve Albanian counties or prefectures, each of which is divided into several districts, sometimes translated as subprefectures. ...
of the department. It was the site of the
Battle of Châteaudun
The Battle of Châteaudun was a battle in northwestern France during the Franco-Prussian War, which took place on October 18, 1870. In this battle, the Imperial German Army led by General Friedrich Wilhelm Ludwig von Wittich attacked the city ...
Orléans
Orléans (;"Orleans" (US) and Chartres. It lies on the river Loir, a tributary of the Sarthe.
History
Châteaudun (Latin ), which dates from the Gallo-Roman period, was in the middle ages the capital of the
County of Dunois
The County of Dunois comprised the old ''pagus Dunensis'', the area surrounding Châteaudun in central France. A county had taken form around Châteaudun (''Castrum Dunense'') in the tenth century. It passed to the counts of Blois, who appointed ...
.
The streets, which radiate from a central square, have a uniformity due to the reconstruction of the town after fires in 1723 and 1870.
Employment
The area is rich agricultural land, but a major local employer is the
Châteaudun Air Base
Châteaudun Air Base (french: Base aérienne 279 Châteaudun) was a French Air Force (french: Armée de l'Air base, between 1934 and 2014. The base was located approximately southeast of Châteaudun and about southwest of Paris. It is currently ...
just to the east of the town, and much larger than the town itself.
Population
Main sights
The town has a
château
A château (; plural: châteaux) is a manor house or residence of the lord of the manor, or a fine country house of nobility or gentry, with or without fortifications, originally, and still most frequently, in French-speaking regions.
No ...
, founded in the 10th century, known for being the first on the road to Loire Valley from Paris.
Châteaundun also has a museum, the . The museum is diverse, the most popular exhibition being the big collection of stuffed birds. In addition, there are often temporary exhibitions, recent examples including the war of Asia, ancient Egypt and insects.
Churches
File:Chateaudun - Église Saint-Valérien (1).jpg, Saint-Valérien
File:Chateaudun - Eglise Madeleine (1).jpg, La Madeleine
File:Chateaudun - Eglise St Jean de la Chaine (1).jpg, Saint-Jean-de-la-Chaîne
File:Chateaudun - Eglise Saint-Lubin (1).jpg, Saint-Lubin ruins
File:SaintLubain.jpg, Saint-Lubin ruins
File:Chateaudun - Champde 05.jpg, Notre-Dame-du-Champdé chapel (now cemetery entrance)
File:Chateaudun - Chapelle de la Boissiere (1).jpg, La Boissière chapel
Medieval houses
File:Chateaudun - Maison angle Cuirasserie Huileries (1).jpg, Cuirasserie street and Huileries street angle
File:Chateaudun - Maison angle Cuirasserie Huileries (2).jpg, Cuirasserie street and Huileries street angle
File:Chateaudun - Maison St Lubin (1).jpg, Louis Esnault house
File:Chateaudun - Maison des architectes (1).jpg, Château's architects' house
File:Chateaudun - Maison de la Vierge (2).jpg, Virgin's house
File:Chateaudun - Maison de la Vierge (3).jpg, Virgin's house (detail)
Nicolas Chaperon
Nicolas Chaperon (bapt. 19 October 1612, in Châteaudun – 1656 in Lyon) was a French painter, draughtsman and engraver, a student in Paris of Simon Vouet whose style he adopted before he was further matured by his stay in Rome (1642–51) in ...
Edmond Modeste Lescarbault
Edmond Modeste Lescarbault (1814, Châteaudun - 1894), was a French doctor and an amateur astronomer, best remembered for his 1859 supposed observation of the non-existent planet Vulcan.
He graduated and obtained his diploma in 1848. He then start ...
astronomer
An astronomer is a scientist in the field of astronomy who focuses their studies on a specific question or field outside the scope of Earth. They observe astronomical objects such as stars, planets, moons, comets and galaxies – in either ...
*
Romain Feillu
Romain Feillu (born 16 April 1984) is a French former road racing cyclist, who rode professionally between 2006 and 2019. He is the older brother of Brice Feillu, who also competed professionally as a cyclist.
Career
Feillu was born in Château ...
Brice Feillu
Brice Feillu (born 26 July 1985) is a French former road racing cyclist, who rode professionally between 2009 and 2019 for the , , , and teams.
Career
Born in Châteaudun, Eure-et-Loir, he is the younger brother of Romain Feillu, who was also ...
Marchena
''Marchena'' is a genus of jumping spiders only found in the United States. Its only described species, ''M. minuta'', dwells on the barks of conifers along the west coast, especially California, Washington and Nevada.Maddison, Wayne. 1995. ...
Image:Chateaudun Chateau 03.jpg, Châteaudun (Eure-et-Loir) Donjon and chapel of the château
Image:France Eure-et-Loir Chateaudun Place de la mairie.JPG, Fountain and façade of the town hall of Châteaudun
Image:Member of the FFI.jpg, A member of the FFI poses with his
Bren gun
The Bren gun was a series of light machine guns (LMG) made by Britain in the 1930s and used in various roles until 1992. While best known for its role as the British and Commonwealth forces' primary infantry LMG in World War II, it was also use ...