Vitry-le-François

Vitry-le-François
Coat of arms
Vitry-le-François
Location within Champagne-Ardenne region Vitry-le-François
Coordinates:
Country	France
Region	Alsace-Champagne-Ardenne-Lorraine
Department	Marne
Arrondissement	Vitry-le-François
Canton	Vitry-le-François-Est and Vitry-le-François-Ouest
Intercommunality	Vitry-le-François
Government
• Mayor (2008–Now)	Jean-Pierre Bouquet
Area1	6.45 km2 (2.49 sq mi)
Population (2006)2	15,641
• Density	2,400/km2 (6,300/sq mi)
INSEE/Postal code	51649 / 51300
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries. 2 Population without double counting: residents of multiple communes (e.g., students and military personnel) only counted once.

Vitry-le-François is a commune in the Marne department in north-eastern France. It is located on the Marne River and is the western terminus of the Marne-Rhine Canal.

History

In 1142, Louis VII invaded Champagne and seized Vitry-le-François. Over a thousand residents were killed when the town's church was set ablaze.

The present town is a relatively recent construction, having been built in 1545 at the behest of King Francis who wished to replace, on a new site, Vitry-en-Perthois, which in 1544 had been entirely destroyed as part of the backwash from the king's Italian War of 1542–46. The new Vitry was to be a modern city, constructed according to a plan produced by Girolamo Marini. The king's role in its creation resulted in Vitry-le-François receiving the king's name as part of its own name.

Demography

See also

• Communes of the Marne department
• Champagne Riots
• French wine
• 1961 Vitry-Le-François train bombing