Amiens
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Coordinates: 49°53′31″N 2°17′56″E / 49.892°N 2.299°E
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Commune of Amiens |
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  Saint Leu area in Amiens |
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| Location | |
  Amiens
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| Administration | |
|---|---|
| Country | France |
| Region | Picardie |
| Department | Somme |
| Arrondissement | Amiens |
| Intercommunality | Communauté d'agglomération Amiens Métropole |
| Mayor | Gilles Demailly (2008–2014) |
| Statistics | |
| Elevation | 14–106 m (46–350 ft) (avg. 33 m/110 ft) |
| Land area1 | 49.46 km2 (19.10 sq mi) |
| Population2 | 139,271 (2006) |
| - Density | 2,816 /km2 (7,290 /sq mi) |
| Miscellaneous | |
| INSEE/Postal code | 80021/ 80000 |
| 1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries. | |
| 2 Population sans doubles comptes: residents of multiple communes (e.g., students and military personnel) only counted once. | |
Amiens (French pronunciation: [amjɛ̃]) is a city and commune in northern France, 120 km (75 mi) north of Paris. It is the capital of the Somme department in Picardie.
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[edit] History
The Paleolithic culture named Acheulean was named for its first identified site, in Saint-Acheul, a suburb of Amiens. Amiens, the Roman Samarobriva, was the central settlement of the Ambiani, one of the principal tribes of Gaul, who were issuing coinage, probably from Amiens, in the first century BC. By tradition, it was at the gates of Amiens that Saint Martin of Tours, at the time still a Roman soldier, shared his cloak with a naked beggar. Saint Honorius (Honoré) (d. 600 AD) was the seventh bishop of the city.
In 1264, Amiens was the seat of arbitrations by King Louis IX of France in the conflict between King Henry III of England and his rebellious barons, led by Simon de Montfort. The arbitrations led to Louis deciding on the Mise of Amiens – a one-sided settlement in favour of Henry. This decision almost immediately led to the outbreak of the Barons' War.[1]
Amiens was later the capital of Picardy.
The Battle of Amiens was the opening phase of the Hundred Days Offensive in World War I. This offensive led to the armistice which ended the war.
During World War II, on 18 February 1944, Nazi-occupied Amiens was the site of Operation Jericho, a British operation which freed 258 people by bombing Amiens prison.
[edit] International relations
Main article: List of twin towns and sister cities in France
[edit] Twin towns — Sister cities
Amiens is twinned with:
Dortmund, Germany[2]
Tulsa, Oklahoma, United States of America
Darlington, England, United Kingdom
Nafplio, Greece
[edit] Sights
Amiens Cathedral (a World Heritage Site) is the tallest of the large 'classic' Gothic churches of the 13th century and is the largest in France of its kind. After a fire destroyed the former cathedral, the new nave was begun in 1220 - and finished in 1247. Amiens Cathedral is notable for the coherence of its plan, the beauty of its three-tier interior elevation, the particularly fine display of sculptures on the principal façade and in the south transept, and the labyrinth, and other inlays of its floor. It is described as the "Parthenon of Gothic architecture," and by John Ruskin as "Gothic, clear of Roman tradition and of Arabian taint, Gothic pure, authoritative, unsurpassable, and unaccusable."
Amiens is also known for the hortillonnages, gardens on small islands in the marshland along the Somme River, surrounded by a grid network of man-made canals.
[edit] Culinary
The "Summer Rambo," an heirloom apple cultivar, originated near Amiens sometime during the 16th century.
[edit] See also
- Treaty of Amiens
- Battle of Amiens (disambiguation page)
- Operation Jericho
[edit] References
- ^ Maddicott, John (1994). Simon de Montfort. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. pp. 257–8. ISBN 0521374936.
- ^ "List of Twin Towns in the Ruhr Destrict". © 2009 Twins2010.com. http://www.twins2010.com/fileadmin/user_upload/pic/Dokumente/List_of_Twin_Towns_01.pdf?PHPSESSID=2edd34819db21e450d3bb625549ce4fd. Retrieved 2009-10-28.
[edit] External links
- Official website
- Hortillons: http://perso.club-internet.fr/claudine.bienaime/parcsjardins.htm#parchortillons
- Amiens Cathedral in the Structurae database
- The Cathedral of Amiens colored !
- Columbia University Media Center for Art History - Amiens Cathedral Website
- Amiens - Business Directory
- Pictures of Amiens and the Somme
- Old Postcards of Amiens
- Photos of Amiens in 3d (Anaglyphs)
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Amiens |
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