Anthon () is a commune in the

Isère Isère ( , ; ; , ) is a landlocked Departments of France, department in the southeastern French Regions of France, region of Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes. Named after the river Isère (river), Isère, it had a population of 1,271,166 in 2019.

department in southeastern

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

Geography

Anthon stands on the left bank of the river

Rhône The Rhône ( , ; Occitan language, Occitan: ''Ròse''; Franco-Provençal, Arpitan: ''Rôno'') is a major river in France and Switzerland, rising in the Alps and flowing west and south through Lake Geneva and Southeastern France before dischargi ...

opposite its confluence with the

Ain Ain (, ; ) is a French department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, Eastern France. Named after the Ain river, it is bordered by the Saône and Rhône rivers. Ain is located on the country's eastern edge, on the Swiss border, where it ...

, about 30 kilometres upstream from the centre of Lyon. Its inhabitants are Anthonois.

History

The place was originally established as a town by one Antonius Nepos. The only one we have named in

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of Roman civilization *Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...

history was the fellow consul of

Cicero Marcus Tullius Cicero ( ; ; 3 January 106 BC – 7 December 43 BC) was a Roman statesman, lawyer, scholar, philosopher, orator, writer and Academic skeptic, who tried to uphold optimate principles during the political crises tha ...

in 62 BCE. He was Caius

Antonius Antonius is a masculine given name, as well as a surname. Antonius is a Danish language, Danish, Dutch language, Dutch, Finnish language, Finnish, Latin language, Latin, Norwegian language, Norwegian, and Swedish language, Swedish name used in Gre ...

Nepos, uncle of the

triumvir In the Roman Republic, or were commissions of three men appointed for specific tasks. There were many tasks that commissions could be established to conduct, such as administer justice, mint coins, support religious tasks, or found colonies. M ...

Marcus Antonius Marcus Antonius (14 January 1 August 30 BC), commonly known in English as Mark Antony, was a Roman politician and general who played a critical role in the transformation of the Roman Republic from a constitutional republic into the ...

and second son of

Marcus Antonius Orator Marcus Antonius (143–87 BC) was a Roman politician of the Antonius family and one of the most distinguished Roman orators of his time. He was also the grandfather of the famous general and triumvir, Mark Antony. Career His ''cursus honorum' ...

. Caius Antonius Nepos was condemned for misappropriation of public funds and

exile Exile or banishment is primarily penal expulsion from one's native country, and secondarily expatriation or prolonged absence from one's homeland under either the compulsion of circumstance or the rigors of some high purpose. Usually persons ...

d in 59 BCE. He found refuge in Cephellenia according to some and in

Gaul Gaul () was a region of Western Europe first clearly described by the Roman people, Romans, encompassing present-day France, Belgium, Luxembourg, and parts of Switzerland, the Netherlands, Germany, and Northern Italy. It covered an area of . Ac ...

according to others. We might assume therefore that Anthon was the place. A poem of about 450 CE, by

Sidonius Apollinaris Gaius Sollius Modestus Apollinaris Sidonius, better known as Sidonius Apollinaris (5 November, 430 – 481/490 AD), was a poet, diplomat, and bishop. Born into the Gallo-Roman aristocracy, he was son-in-law to Emperor Avitus and was appointed Urb ...

celebrates the

wine Wine is an alcoholic drink made from Fermentation in winemaking, fermented fruit. Yeast in winemaking, Yeast consumes the sugar in the fruit and converts it to ethanol and carbon dioxide, releasing heat in the process. Wine is most often made f ...

s of Anthon. The Lords of Anthon have been from time immemorial, the tenants of this land. Nowhere in the period of

Charlemagne Charlemagne ( ; 2 April 748 – 28 January 814) was List of Frankish kings, King of the Franks from 768, List of kings of the Lombards, King of the Lombards from 774, and Holy Roman Emperor, Emperor of what is now known as the Carolingian ...

empire An empire is a political unit made up of several territories, military outpost (military), outposts, and peoples, "usually created by conquest, and divided between a hegemony, dominant center and subordinate peripheries". The center of the ...

, nor in those around that period is there an indication of their having obtained it. We are therefore left to conclude that they have held the land since Antiquity. Guichard I brought fame on himself during the

First Crusade The First Crusade (1096–1099) was the first of a series of religious wars, or Crusades, initiated, supported and at times directed by the Latin Church in the Middle Ages. The objective was the recovery of the Holy Land from Muslim conquest ...

in 1096. His distant descendant, Louis d'Anthon disappeared in 1326; the manor was awarded to his younger sister, who ceded it to her aunt, spouse of Hugues de Genève. It passed next to the Saluces. The d'Anthons had as a coat of arms (blazon): "gules, dragon or with human head." The d'Anthon family survived some time through a cadet branch, the Varaxs which died out in the fifteenth century. The descent of Louis d'Anthon is not known. Several branches of the d'Anthons or Dantons claim descent from him. There was also the "Battle of Anthon" which took place on 11 June 1430. Louis de Chalon, strengthened by his impressive numerical superiority with his 4 000 men, calmly advanced to the aid of the château de Colombier but he did not know that it had already been captured. He set out on the way from Anton to Colombier which winds through the

wood Wood is a structural tissue/material found as xylem in the stems and roots of trees and other woody plants. It is an organic materiala natural composite of cellulosic fibers that are strong in tension and embedded in a matrix of lignin t ...

s but there were 1,600 soldiers from the Dauphiné (that is to say his enemies) lying in ambush in the thickets near the village of Janneyrias. The Orangist (supporting the

House of Orange The House of Orange-Nassau (, ), also known as the House of Orange because of the prestige of the princely title of Orange, also referred to as the Fourth House of Orange in comparison with the other noble houses that held the Principality of O ...

), strung out along the narrow path, was sorely surprised throughout. The powerful Orangist cavalry was caught in a trap. Soon, there was general confusion and they were heading for Anthon; every man for himself. The

fugitive A fugitive or runaway is a person who is fleeing from custody, whether it be from jail, a government arrest, government or non-government questioning, vigilante violence, or outraged private individuals. A fugitive from justice, also known ...

s abandoned

arms Arms or ARMS may refer to: *Arm or arms, the upper limbs of the body Arm, Arms, or ARMS may also refer to: People * Ida A. T. Arms (1856–1931), American missionary-educator, temperance leader Coat of arms or weapons *Armaments or weapons **Fi ...

and baggage and ran away through the wood. More than 200 men

drowned Drowning is a type of Asphyxia, suffocation induced by the submersion of the mouth and nose in a liquid. Submersion injury refers to both drowning and near-miss incidents. Most instances of fatal drowning occur alone or in situations where othe ...

themselves in trying to cross the tumultuous Rhône. That is how the 'Battle of Anthon' ended, with the

Dauphiné The Dauphiné ( , , ; or ; or ), formerly known in English as Dauphiny, is a former province in southeastern France, whose area roughly corresponded to that of the present departments of Isère, Drôme and Hautes-Alpes. The Dauphiné was ...

saved.

Administration

Population

Sights

*Ancient tower *19th century church

Personalities

* Caius

Nepos

References

External links

Anthon on the Quid site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Anthon, Isere Communes of Isère Dauphiné