Sarthe
Sarthe () is a department of the French region of Pays de la Loire, and the province of Maine, situated in the '' Grand-Ouest'' of the country. It is named after the river Sarthe, which flows from east of Le Mans to just north of Angers. It ha ...
, in the
Pays de la Loire
Pays de la Loire (; but can also mean 'Lower Loire') is one of the eighteen administrative regions of France, located on the country's Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic coast. It was created in the 1950s to serve as a zone of influence for its capital an ...
region in the
Loire
The Loire ( , , ; ; ; ; ) 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.
It rises in the so ...
Loir
The Loir is a long river in western France. It is a left tributary of the Sarthe. Its source is in the Eure-et-Loir department, north of Illiers-Combray. It joins the river Sarthe in Briollay, north of the city of Angers.
It is indirectly ...
River and is also on the Greenwich Meridian. It is located halfway between
Le Mans
Le Mans (; ) is a Communes of France, city in Northwestern France on the Sarthe (river), Sarthe River where it meets the Huisne. Traditionally the capital of the Provinces of France, province of Maine (province), Maine, it is now the capital of ...
(45 km) and
Angers
Angers (, , ;) is a city in western France, about southwest of Paris. It is the Prefectures of France, prefecture of the Maine-et-Loire department and was the capital of the province of Duchy of Anjou, Anjou until the French Revolution. The i ...
The origin of the name ''La Flèche'' is uncertain; the word ''flèche'' means "arrow" in French. Historian Jacques Termeau, in ''La Flèche Book No. 9, p. 5-11'', has documented several hypotheses which most likely are related to the ancient Latin name ''Fixa'' meaning ''"stuck"'', that is to say ''"rock stuck in the ground"''. In fact La Flèche was a city situated on the border of Maine and Anjou. An ancient megalith boundary would have given this the name ''Fixa'' that can be found in early manuscripts in full as ''Fixa andegavorum'', often translated later as ''La Flèche in Anjou'', but more precisely meaning the boundary of Anjou.
In the Middle Ages, La Flèche was a parish of the Diocese of Angers and as such formed an integral part of the province of Anjou and more specifically the Upper Anjou, also called Maine Angevine.
Jean de la Flèche (c.1030 – c.1097) also known as Jean de Beaugency, succeeded his father as the second
Seigneur
A seigneur () or lord is an originally feudal title in France before the Revolution, in New France and British North America until 1854, and in the Channel Islands to this day. The seigneur owned a seigneurie, seigneury, or lordship—a form of ...
(lord) of la Flèche, where he held the original castle. He was a younger son of Lancelin I de Beaugency lord of
Yorkshire
Yorkshire ( ) is an area of Northern England which was History of Yorkshire, historically a county. Despite no longer being used for administration, Yorkshire retains a strong regional identity. The county was named after its county town, the ...
,
England
England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
by
William the Conqueror
William the Conqueror (Bates ''William the Conqueror'' p. 33– 9 September 1087), sometimes called William the Bastard, was the first Norman king of England (as William I), reigning from 1066 until his death. A descendant of Rollo, he was D ...
. He is the progenitor of the Fletcher family. He was succeeded by his son,
, a grandfather of King Henry II of England.
In 1343, salt became a state monopoly by order of King Philip VI of Valois, who established the ''Gabelle'', the tax on salt. The Anjou was among the regions of "high salt tax" and contained sixteen special tribunals or "salt warehouses", including La Fleche.
La Flèche was at the head of Angevine
seneschal
The word ''seneschal'' () can have several different meanings, all of which reflect certain types of supervising or administering in a historic context. Most commonly, a seneschal was a senior position filled by a court appointment within a royal, ...
ship under the Old Regime: the Seneschal of La Flèche was dependent on the principal Seneschal of Angers.
In 1603, Guillaume Fouquet de la Varenne, lord of La Flèche and then Sainte-Suzanne (Mayenne) and Angers, and a friend of
Henry IV of France
Henry IV (; 13 December 1553 – 14 May 1610), also known by the epithets Good King Henry (''le Bon Roi Henri'') or Henry the Great (''Henri le Grand''), was King of Navarre (as Henry III) from 1572 and King of France from 1589 to 16 ...
Montreal
Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...
,
Quebec
Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...
.
In 1790, during the creation of the French departments, the entire northeastern part of the Anjou region, including La Flèche, Le Lude and Château-du-Loir, was attached to the new department of
Sarthe
Sarthe () is a department of the French region of Pays de la Loire, and the province of Maine, situated in the '' Grand-Ouest'' of the country. It is named after the river Sarthe, which flows from east of Le Mans to just north of Angers. It ha ...
Araucaria
''Araucaria'' (; original pronunciation: .ɾawˈka. ɾja is a genus of evergreen coniferous trees in the family Araucariaceae. While today they are largely confined to the Southern Hemisphere, during the Jurassic and Cretaceous they were glo ...
and a young
Ginkgo biloba
''Ginkgo biloba'', commonly known as ginkgo or gingko ( ), also known as the maidenhair tree, is a species of gymnosperm tree native to East Asia. It is the last living species in the order Ginkgoales, which first appeared over 290 million year ...
("the thousand crowns tree"). There is also a path from the park to the lakes of Monnerie, along the Loir, under the shade of the trees.
Economy
The La Flèche economy is organized as follows:
* 65% commercial,
* 22% in industry,
* 7% in construction,
* 6% in agriculture.
The print tradition is still alive in La Flèche with the factory ''Brodard and Taupin (group CPI)'', a leading European manufacturer of paperback books.
Demographics
With 14,956 inhabitants (as of 2017), La Flèche is the 617th most populous commune in
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 ...
(of which there are over ).
Local
Gastronomy
Gastronomy is the study of the relationship between Human food, food and culture, the art of preparing and serving rich or delicate and appetizing food, the cooking styles of particular regions, and the science of good eating. One who is well ver ...
The
La Flèche
La Flèche () is a town and commune in the French department of Sarthe, in the Pays de la Loire region in the Loire Valley. It is the sub-prefecture of the South-Sarthe, the chief district and the chief city of a canton, and the second most p ...
breed of chicken from the towns of La Flèche and Malicorne-sur-Sarthe is known for its fine flesh, and once made the reputation of La Flèche.
Other regional specialties include
macaron
A macaron ( , )
or French macaroon ( )
is a sweet meringue-based confection made with egg white, icing sugar, granulated sugar, almond meal, and often food colouring.
Since the 19th century, a typical Parisian-style macaron has been a ...
Chenin blanc
Chenin blanc (, ; known also as Pineau de la Loire among #Synonyms, other names) is a white wine grape variety from the Loire Valley (wine), Loire Valley of France (wine), France. Its high acidity (wine), acidity means it can be used to make var ...
grown on the slopes of the Loire and Anjou and accompanies the tasting of potted meat or refined goat.
Jean Picard
Jean Picard (21 July 1620 – 12 July 1682) was a French astronomer and priest born in La Flèche, where he studied at the Jesuit Collège Royal Henry-Le-Grand.
He is principally notable for his accurate measure of the size of the Earth, ...
or "Father Picard" (21 July 1620 - 12 July 1682): astronomer and priest.
*
Lazare de Baïf
Lazare de Baïf (1496–1547) was a French diplomat and humanist. His natural son, Jean-Antoine de Baïf, was born in Venice, while Lazare was French ambassador there.
He published a translation of the ''Electra'' of Sophocles in 1537, and afterw ...
(1596–1650): philosopher, mathematician, and scientist. He attended the Royal College Henri IV.
* Jean-Baptiste-Louis Gresset (1709–1777): poet and satirist, professor at the College Henri IV. He left the Jesuits later.
* Louis-Adrien Lusson (1788-1864): architect, designer, born in La Flèche. He created and managed the paintings in the dome of the Little Theatre, which he entrusted to the artists of the Royal Academy of Music.
* Pierre-Claude Fontenai (1683–1742): a historian, he died in La Flèche.
*
David Hume
David Hume (; born David Home; – 25 August 1776) was a Scottish philosopher, historian, economist, and essayist who was best known for his highly influential system of empiricism, philosophical scepticism and metaphysical naturalism. Beg ...
(1711–1776): British philosopher. He wrote ''
A Treatise of Human Nature
'' A Treatise of Human Nature: Being an Attempt to Introduce the Experimental Method of Reasoning into Moral Subjects'' (1739–40) is a book by Scottish philosopher David Hume, considered by many to be Hume's most important work and one of the ...
'' in La Flèche in 1737.
* Marie Pape-Carpantier (1815–1878): organizer of the first kindergartens.
*
Joseph Gallieni
Joseph Simon Gallieni (24 April 1849 – 27 May 1916) was a French military officer, active for most of his career as a military commander and administrator in the French colonies where he wrote several books on colonial affairs.
He was rec ...
Paul-Henri-Benjamin d'Estournelles de Constant
Paul Henri Benjamin Balluet d'Estournelles de Constant, Baron de Constant de Rebecque (22 November 1852 – 15 May 1924), was a French diplomat and politician, advocate of international arbitration and winner of the 1909 Nobel Peace Prize.
...
(1852–1924): diplomat, MP, senator, and winner of the Nobel Peace Prize in 1909.
* Paul Gauthier (1914–2002): theologian and humanist.
* Balinec Yan (1928–2009): writer and poet.
* Alain Pellegrini (1946 -): Major General.
* Marquis de Turbilly (1717-1776): agronomist.
* Guillaume Fouquet de la Varenne (1560-1616): Officer and friend of Henry IV.
* Anne-Marie Chassaigne, also known as
Liane de Pougy
Liane de Pougy (born Anne-Marie Chassaigne, 2 July 1869 – 26 December 1950) was a French dancer, courtesan and novelist. She was a Folies Bergère vedette, and was known as one of the most beautiful and notorious courtesans in Paris. Later in ...
(1869-1950): dancer and courtesan of the Belle Époque.
* Francis Theodore Latouche: former mayor, died in 1861. A mausoleum funded by public subscription was erected in 1862, representing the city of La Flèche mourning the disappeared. This monument by the sculptor Eugène-Louis Lequesne is in the cemetery of St. Thomas.
* Joseph-Étienne Richard (1761-1834), deputy at the time of the French Revolution
*
Joseph Sauveur
Joseph Sauveur (; 24 March 1653 – 9 July 1716) was a French mathematician and physicist. He was a professor of mathematics and in 1696 became a member of the French Academy of Sciences.
Life
Joseph Sauveur was born in La Flèche, the son of a ...
(born in La Flèche in 1653 - died in Paris in 1716): French scientist, inventor of physical acoustics and professor at the College de France.
*
Obernkirchen
Obernkirchen () is a town in the district of Schaumburg, in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is situated approximately 8 km southwest of Stadthagen, and 15 km east of Minden
Minden () is a middle-sized town in the very north-east of Nort ...
(Germany),: Obernkirchen (9,744 inhabitants) Since 1968.
*
Chippenham
Chippenham is a market town in north-west Wiltshire, England. It lies north-east of Bath, Somerset, Bath, west of London and is near the Cotswolds Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The town was established on a crossing of the River Avon, ...
(England) (approximately 45,620 inhabitants) Since 1982.
*
Złotów
Złotów is a town in northwestern Poland, with a population of 18,303 inhabitants (2011), seat of the Złotów County in the Greater Poland Voivodeship.
The town is located on the river Głomia and is surrounded by five lakes. It is part of the ...
(Poland) (approximately 18,468 inhabitants).
* St. Lambert (Canada) (21,772 inhabitants).
Alençon
Alençon (, , ; ) is a commune in Normandy, France, and the capital of the Orne department. It is situated between Paris and Rennes (about west of Paris) and a little over north of Le Mans. Alençon belongs to the intercommunality of Alen� ...
, and grandmother to the future Henry IV established a castle in La Flèche, where Antoine de Bourbon, king of Navarre, and his wife
Jeanne d'Albret
Jeanne d'Albret (, Basque language, Basque: ''Joana Albretekoa''; Occitan language, Occitan: ''Joana de Labrit''; 16 November 1528 – 9 June 1572), also known as Jeanne III, was Queen of Navarre from 1555 to 1572.
Jeanne was the daughter of He ...
, future parents of Henry IV, resided in 1552. The castle was given to the
Jesuit
The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...
s by Henri IV in 1604 to found the "Collège Royal Henry-Le-Grand", in order "to select and train the best minds of the time".
In 1764 following the expulsion of the Jesuits the school was transformed by Louis XV and Choiseul into a military institution designed to train young
cadet
A cadet is a student or trainee within various organisations, primarily in military contexts where individuals undergo training to become commissioned officers. However, several civilian organisations, including civil aviation groups, maritime ...
. The buildings now accommodate one of six military schools in France. The buildings are arranged around three courtyards which are dominated by the imposing stature of the Church of St. Louis (1607). The work followed a plan developed by
with a row of courtyards roughly the same size. The architect was
Étienne Martellange
Étienne Martellange (22 December 1569 – 3 October 1641) was a French Jesuit architect and draftsman. He travelled widely in France as an architect for the Jesuit order and designed more than 25 buildings, mostly schools and their associated ...
. The work was completed in 1655 with the construction of the gate of honour with the pediment and the bust of Henri IV.
Created in 1946 by Jacques Bouillault, a naturalist, it is the oldest private park in France. It includes 1,200 animals of 150 species on . This is the premiere tourist destination of the department of Sarthe, with over 300,000 entries per year. The zoo has participated in the
European Endangered Species Programme The EAZA Ex-situ Programme (EEP) is a population management and Ex situ conservation, conservation programme by European Association of Zoos and Aquaria, European Association of Zoos and Aquaria (EAZA) for wild animals living in European zoos. The p ...
(EEP) since 1989. Many new exhibits are added every year. In 2008 the zoo showed the extremely rare white lions of Kruger, of which there are only 200 specimens in the world.
The Pavilion Fouquet de la Varenne
Fouquet de la Varenne Pavilion is in downtown La Flèche. The Pavilion was built in the early seventeenth century. The exterior of the Pavilion may be seen throughout the year; however it is open to visitors only on certain occasions. This pavilion is the only building remaining of the ancient castle of La Flèche.
The Bruere mill
Nestled in the hollow of the Loir, the mill of the Bruere allows visitors to discover how the force of the river powers a mechanism via a large wheel, producing flour, electricity and refreshing ice blocks. This is the last mill in France to produce ice.
Lakes of La Monnerie
These vast bodies of water of some fifty hectares are equipped with a bathing area that combines water recreation, fitness and nature discovery. The site of the Monnerie is a mosaic of lakes and meadows situated in a bend of the Loire with a rich biodiversity. Many animal and plant species coexist in these places: herons, reed warbler, coot, hare, ermine, green frog, frog, dragonfly, snail, reed, iris, water crowfoot, and water-plantain make this site a popular place for walkers and naturalists. The preservation of these wetlands helps maintain biodiversity. The lakes are the result of the operation of a gravel pit, and
wet meadow
A wet meadow is a type of wetland with soils that are Solubility, saturated for part or all of the growing season which prevents the growth of trees and brush. Debate exists whether a wet meadow is a type of marsh or a completely separate type of ...
s. Each winter, over thirty migratory species (e.g. greylag goose, pochard, teal) find shelter here.
Discovery of the personal effects of Françoise Jamin, founder in the early nineteenth century of the Institute of the Daughters of Saint-Cœur de Marie, told the story of Providence. The chancel and chapel are a unique in the region, with murals of the nineteenth century.
The manor of Blottière
Dates from the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. It is a former hunting manor of William Fouquet de la Varenne. It can be visited only during the summer.
The location of La Flèche-(Distances in kilometers by road and
Great circle route
Great-circle navigation or orthodromic navigation (related to orthodromic course; ) is the practice of navigation, navigating a vessel (a ship or aircraft) along a great circle. Such routes yield the shortest distance between two points on the ...