Suresnes () is a
commune in the western inner suburbs of
Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
, France. Located in
Hauts-de-Seine, from the centre of Paris, it had a population of 49,482 as of 2020.
Suresnes borders the
Bois de Boulogne in the
16th arrondissement of Paris, across the
Seine
The Seine ( , ) is a river in northern France. Its drainage basin is in the Paris Basin (a geological relative lowland) covering most of northern France. It rises at Source-Seine, northwest of Dijon in northeastern France in the Langres plat ...
. Its neighbouring communes are
Nanterre
Nanterre (; ) is the prefecture of the Hauts-de-Seine department in the western suburbs of Paris, France. 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, b ...
,
Puteaux,
Rueil-Malmaison and
Saint-Cloud. Suresnes's landmarks include the
Mémorial de la France combattante, where an annual ceremony is held on 18 June, as well as
Suresnes American Cemetery and Memorial nearby, below
Fort Mont-Valérien, in addition to
Foch Hospital in the town centre.
The commune is served by
Suresnes–Mont-Valérien station on the
Transilien network and by two stops on
ÃŽle-de-France tramway Line 2, all three giving access to the
La Défense business district and its
RER A,
RER E
RER E is one of the five lines in the Réseau Express Régional (English: Regional Express Network), a hybrid commuter rail and rapid transit system serving Paris and its suburbs. The line travels between western and eastern suburbs, with all ...
and
Paris Métro Line 1 services.
History
Fort Mont-Valérien (along with its
Mémorial de la France combattante) is situated in the commune, as is
Suresnes American Cemetery and Memorial. Suresnes has an elegant view of Paris and the
Eiffel Tower
The Eiffel Tower ( ; ) is a wrought-iron lattice tower on the Champ de Mars in Paris, France. It is named after the engineer Gustave Eiffel, whose company designed and built the tower from 1887 to 1889.
Locally nicknamed "''La dame de fe ...
, as does neighbouring
Saint-Cloud.
Robert Ormond Maugham, the father of
W. Somerset Maugham, built a "country house" in Suresnes around 1883. The house, which still exists at 5 Rue Worth, was described by R.O. Maugham's grandson,
Robin Maugham, as being, "very odd indeed – half Swiss chalet and half Japanese, with a projecting roof, stucco walls, and wooden supports for the little balconies." The
Hôtel de Ville was completed in 1889.
In 1974 the
Spanish Socialist Workers Party held its 26th Congress in Suresnes (it was illegal in
Spain under Franco).
Felipe González was elected Secretary General, replacing
Rodolfo Llopis Ferrándiz. González was from the "reform" wing of the party, and his victory signaled a defeat for the historic and veteran wing of the Party. The direction of the party shifted from the exiles to the young people in Spain who had not fought in the
Spanish Civil War
The Spanish Civil War () was a military conflict fought from 1936 to 1939 between the Republican faction (Spanish Civil War), Republicans and the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalists. Republicans were loyal to the Left-wing p ...
.
File:Salle des fêtes Suresnes 1.jpg, ''Salle des fêtes''
File:Résidence rue Gardenat-Lapostol Suresnes 1.jpg, Town centre
File:Le Mont Valérien en contre plongée.jpg, Mémorial de la France combattante, featuring a Cross of Lorraine
File:Mairie de Suresnes, tour Eiffel 2.jpg, A view of Paris from Lower Suresnes (Bas de Suresnes)
File:Maison de la vigne - panoramio.jpg, A view of Paris from Upper Suresnes (Hauts de Suresnes)
Demographics
Transport
Suresnes is served by
Suresnes–Mont-Valérien station on the
Transilien La Défense and
Transilien Paris – Saint-Lazare suburban rail lines. It is also served by
Île-de-France tramway Line 2, which stops twice in the commune, at Belvédère and
Suresnes Longchamp.
The Pont de Suresnes carries the Allée de Longchamp, one of the main traffic arteries, from the
Bois de Boulogne over the
Seine
The Seine ( , ) is a river in northern France. Its drainage basin is in the Paris Basin (a geological relative lowland) covering most of northern France. It rises at Source-Seine, northwest of Dijon in northeastern France in the Langres plat ...
into the western suburbs of Paris.
Museums
Suresnes has the
Musée d'histoire urbaine et sociale de Suresnes dedicated to
social urban. In 2027 the Terrorism Memorial Museum will open.
People from Suresnes
:''See:
:People from Suresnes''
The following people have been associated with Suresnes:
*
Shapour Bakhtiar (1914-1991), 45th Prime Minister of Iran, fought in the
French Resistance
The French Resistance ( ) was a collection of groups that fought the German military administration in occupied France during World War II, Nazi occupation and the Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy#France, collaborationist Vic ...
, lived in Suresnes.
*
Karine Ferri (1982), French model and television presenter, born in Suresnes.
*
Blanche Gardin (1977), French comedian and actress, born in Suresnes.
*
Julie Gayet (1972), French actress and film producer, partner of former President
François Hollande
François Gérard Georges Nicolas Hollande (; born 12 August 1954) is a French politician who served as President of France from 2012 to 2017. Before his presidency, he was First Secretary of the Socialist Party (France), First Secretary of th ...
, born in Suresnes.
*
Kenny Kadji (born 1988), Cameroonian basketball player in the
Israeli Basketball Premier League
*
Noor Inayat Khan (1914–1944) lived in Suresnes with her family in a large estate known as Fazal Manzil from 1920 to 1940 during which time she studied at the Sorbonne. Noor Inayat Khan later returned to France as an agent of the
Special Operations Executive
Special Operations Executive (SOE) was a British organisation formed in 1940 to conduct espionage, sabotage and reconnaissance in German-occupied Europe and to aid local Resistance during World War II, resistance movements during World War II. ...
, spying for the Allied cause in occupied France. She was executed by the Germans and posthumously awarded the
Croix de Guerre and
George Cross
The George Cross (GC) is the highest award bestowed by the British government for non-operational Courage, gallantry or gallantry not in the presence of an enemy. In the British honours system, the George Cross, since its introduction in 1940, ...
.
*
Luc Lang (1956), French writer, born in Suresnes.
*
Virginie Lemoine (born 1961), French actress and comedian, born in Suresnes.
*
Marguerite Naseau (1594–1633), French nun and the first member of
Daughters of Charity
*
Vincent Peillon (1960), French politician, born in Suresnes.
*
Stéphane Plaza (1970), French television presenter and real estate agent, born in Suresnes.
*
Jérôme Rivière (1964), French politician, born in Suresnes.
*
Alexis Salatko (1959), French writer, born in Suresnes.
*
Michaël Youn (1973), French comedian and singer, born in Suresnes.
*
Nathalie Stutzmann (1965), French contralto and conductor, born in Suresnes.
*
Irène Marie Jacob (1966), French-Swiss actress, born in Suresnes.
*
Andrew Prine, American actor, died (2022) in Suresnes aged of years old.
Universities
Technician degrees are available at the
Lycée Paul-Langevin. Suresnes also hosts the headquarters of the
Institut national supérieur de formation et de recherche pour l'éducation des jeunes handicapés et les enseignements adaptés (INS HEA), a public college in the fields of disability. A campus of
Skema Business School is located in the city.
Twin towns – sister cities
Suresnes is
twinned with:
*
Colmenar Viejo, Spain
*
Göttingen
Göttingen (, ; ; ) is a college town, university city in Lower Saxony, central Germany, the Capital (political), capital of Göttingen (district), the eponymous district. The River Leine runs through it. According to the 2022 German census, t ...
, Germany
*
Hackney, England
*
Hannoversch Münden, Germany
*
Holon, Israel
*
Kragujevac
Kragujevac ( sr-Cyrl, Крагујевац, ) is the List of cities in Serbia, fourth largest city in Serbia and the administrative centre of the Šumadija District. It is the historical centre of the geographical region of Šumadija in central Se ...
, Serbia
*
Villach, Austria
See also
*
Communes of the Hauts-de-Seine department
*
Fort Mont-Valérien
*
Garden City of Suresnes
*
Suresnes American Cemetery and Memorial
*
History of Suresnes
References
External links
* (in French)
Map and infoSuresnes libraries
{{Authority control
Communes of Hauts-de-Seine