Domfront, Orne
Domfront | |
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Part of Domfront-en-Poiraie | |
 The city hall | |
.svg) Coat of arms | |
Location of Domfront  | |
  Domfront  Domfront | |
| Coordinates: 48°31′10″N 0°45′23″W / 48.5194°N 0.7564°W | |
| Country | France |
| Region | Normandy |
| Department | Orne |
| Arrondissement | Alençon |
| Canton | Domfront (chef-lieu) |
| Commune | Domfront-en-Poiraie |
Area 1 | 35.54 km2 (13.72 sq mi) |
| Population (2019)[1] | 3,461 |
| • Density | 97/km2 (250/sq mi) |
| Demonym | Domfrontais |
| Time zone | UTC+01:00 (CET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+02:00 (CEST) |
| Postal code | 61700 |
| Elevation | 117–256 m (384–840 ft) (avg. 135 m or 443 ft) |
| Website | www.ville-domfront.fr |
| 1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries. | |
Domfront (French pronunciation: [dɔ̃fʁɔ̃] ⓘ) is a former commune in the Orne department in north-western France.[2] It is classed as a Petites Cités de Caractère.[3] On 1 January 2016, it was merged into the new commune of Domfront-en-Poiraie.[4]
Geography
Domfront is situated on a bluff overlooking the river Varenne[5] and is said to have been established in the 6th century round the oratory of the hermit St. Front, and played an important part in the wars against the English and the French Wars of Religion.[5] Beginning from the strategically sited castle of Domfront, the dispossessed count Henry, youngest son of William the Conqueror, rallied support among local lords and eventually ruled the Anglo-Norman dominions as Henry I of England.[6]
In 1574 it was occupied by the Protestant leader Gabriel, comte de Montgomery, who after a stubborn siege was forced to yield it to Jacques Goyon, Count of Matignon.[5]
It has been subjected to floods when the river Varenne burst its banks, causing widespread havoc and damage to many of the buildings and houses that lay in its path. On 23 December 2020 occurred the highest on record since 1995, when les tanneries were badly affected with the ancient stone bridge being impassable.
Culture
Standing on a promontory, the town boasts a rich heritage of medieval half-timbered houses, old 17th and 18th century hotels and narrow streets.
Places and monuments
Domfront boasts five buildings protected as historic monuments :
- Domfront medieval castle: keep listed as a historic monument in 1875, ramparts, towers, bretches, casemates and former chapels listed since 1986.
- Saint-Symphorien de Domfront Priory, run by Benedictine monks, within the castle walls. Its former chapel is listed with the castle.
- Prieuré Saint-Antoine de Domfront, (Benedictine nuns), and Hôtel-Dieu Saint-Antoine de Domfront, both buildings were destroyed. They stood on the site of today's town hall. The town wall was partially listed as a historic monument by decree of April 9, 1929.
- The 11th-century Notre-Dame-sur-l'Eau church. This Romanesque edifice was listed as a historic monument in 1840. The church was completely restored in 2024, and the tombstones were reassembled to prevent flooding, thanks to a major private donation.
- The Saint-Julien church, built from 1924 to 1933 by architect Albert Guilbert (a French example of neo-Byzantine religious architecture using the Hennebique reinforced concrete process), was listed as a historic monument by decree of March 25, 1993. Due to damage to the concrete, it was closed to the public in 2006. After work to reinforce the arches supporting the 1,500 tonnes of the 55-metre-high bell tower, the church was reopened in 2013. The organ was installed by Gloton in 1931.
- The 16th-century Manoir de la Palue, partially listed as a historic monument by decree on March 30, 1976 and November 23, 2004.
- Manoir de la Chaslerie, built in the late 16th and 17th centuries, partially listed as a historic monument.
The commune also includes buildings and sites listed in the Inventaire général du patrimoine culturel (General Inventory of Cultural Heritage).
- Saint-Symphorien chapel in the château.
- The château garden is the subject of a pre-inventory study as a remarkable garden.
- The flour mill, which ceased operating after 1926.
- Varenne valley.
- La Varenne and the Domfront keep; Washhouse.
- The Collière garden is the subject of a pre-inventory study as a remarkable garden.
Other sites and heritage :
- At 1, rue Saint Julien, Domfront's oldest house, dated 1515 (MCXV).
Notable peo
- Claude Du Vall -notorious highwayman in England in the 1 ntury.
- Émile Deshayes de Marcère (1828-1918) - last surviving senator fo if f the Third Republic was born here.[7]
See also
References
- ^ Téléchargement du fichier d'ensemble des populations légales en 2019, INSEE
- ^ Des villages de Cassini aux communes d'aujourd'hui: Commune data sheet Domfront, EHESS (in French).
- ^ "(Tourisme) Domfront a décroché le label Petite cité de caractère". actu.fr. 27 December 2015.
- ^ Arrêté préfectoral 21 December 2015 (in French)
- ^ a b c One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Domfront". Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 8 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. pp. 399–400.
- ^ C. Warren Hollister, Henry I (Yale EnglisMonarch2001:85ff, 90ff.
- ^ "Emile Deshayes de Marcère - Base de données des députés français depuis 1789 - Assemblée nationale". www2.assemblee-nationale.fr.
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