Rambouillet

Rambouillet is a commune in the Yvelines department in the Île-de-France in north-central France.It is located in the suburbs of Paris 44.3 km (27.5 mi) southwest from the center. Rambouillet is a sub-prefecture of the department.

Rambouillet lies on the edge of the vast Forest of Rambouillet (Forêt de Rambouillet or Forêt de l'Yveline), and is famous for its historical castle, the Château de Rambouillet, which hosted several international summits. Due to its proximity to Paris and Versailles, Rambouillet has long been an occasional seat of government.

History

The history of Rambouillet is linked to that of its castle. In a more recent time, in 1999, Rambouillet was in the spotlight during the Kosovo Crisis, where parties to this conflict met in February/March 1999 under the auspices of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation. The meeting was meant to end the crisis there, with calls for restoration of Kosovo's autonomy, ceasefire by Yugoslavian paramilitary forces and allow NATO peacekeeping forces in Kosovo. Yugoslavian authorities refused to sign the Rambouillet Agreement, claiming a deferred independence to Kosovo. This started the Kosovo War: NATO's reaction to the refusal to sign the agreement was an air strike on Yugoslavia carried out between March and June 1999.

Transport

Rambouillet is served by the SNCF Rambouillet train station on the Transilien Paris – Montparnasse suburban rail line to Chartres.

Features

The Château de Rambouillet, a former medieval fortress, was acquired by Louis XVI of France in 1783 as a private residence because of its ideal situation in the game-rich forest of Rambouillet. It became a bien national during the French Revolution of 1789, and one of the imperial residences of Napoléon I during the First French Empire. At the time of the Bourbon Restoration, the castle became royal residence, and it is there that Charles X signed his abdication on 2 August 1830. Sometimes neglected at times of political unrest, the château de Rambouillet became the official summer residence of the French President of the Republic after President Félix Faure chose it as summer residence for himself and his family in 1896; Rambouillet thus became the official summer residence of the Presidents of the Third Republic and has retained its position ever since.
The Palais du Roi de Rome. In 1784, on a parcel adjacent to the gardens of the castle, Louis XVI had ordered the construction of the Hôtel du Gouvernement, which was restored during the reign of Napoléon I, and renamed Palais du Roi de Rome as the official Rambouillet residence of Napoleon 's infant son.
The Hôtel de Ville, the former Bailliage (Bailiwicks building) was built in 1786 at the request of Louis XVI by the architect Jean-Jacques Thévenin. It was given by Emperor Napoléon I to the inhabitants of Rambouillet to serve as their City Hall.
The new Saint-Lubin church was built between 1868 and 1871. Its architect was Anatole de Baudot.
The Bergerie nationale was built on the grounds of the Domain of Rambouillet at the request of Louis XVI, and is the home of the Rambouillet Merino sheep since 1786.
The Laiterie de la Reine, the Queen's Dairy also built on the grounds of the Domain of Rambouillet, is adjacent to the Bergerie. It was built in 1787 at the request of Louis XVI for his wife Marie Antoinette and designed by the architect Jean-Jacques Thévenin.
The Chaumière des coquillages, a thatched-roof cottage with its marble interior decorated with shells and mother of pearl, was built in 1779-1780 in the English garden of the Domain of Rambouillet by Claude-Martin Goupy, the architect of the duc de Penthièvre, for the princesse de Lamballe, Penthièvre's widowed daughter-in-law.
The Musée Rambolitrain, situated across from the Saint-Lubin church, is a museum featuring miniature trains
The Monument Américan (The American Eagle Monument), is situated at the south entrance of the town on the D 906 road to Chartres, at the site of two ambushes in which seven American soldiers were killed, on 16 August 1944. The monument was erected in 1947. It bears the inscription: "À la mémoire des soldats américains tombés pour la libération de notre région en août 1944", "In memory of the American soldiers fallen for the liberation of our region in August 1944". The names of nine American soldiers are inscribed on a plaque on the monument. Commemorative ceremonies are held at the monument every 19 August.

People

who were born in Rambouillet: Louis Jean Marie de Bourbon, duc de Penthièvre, grandson of Louis XIV
Ulysse Chevalier (1841-1923), bibliographer and historian
Robert Benoist (1895-1944), Grand Prix motor racing driver and war hero
Jérémie Aliadière, former Arsenal football player, now with Middlesbrough FC
Éloïse Boutin, former N2 swimming champion, now working with Calyon
who lived in Rambouillet: Charles d'Angennes, marquis de Rambouillet, and his wife Catherine de Vivonne, marquise de Rambouillet
Charles de Sainte-Maure, duc de Montausier and his wife Julie d'Angennes, the daughter of Charles d'Angennes and Catherine de Vivonne
Napoleon I, Emperor of the French
Charles X, king of France
Théodore Gosselin, French author and historian, who wrote under the pen name G. Lenotre
Ernest Hemingway, American writer and journalist, lived a few days in Rambouillet in August 1944
Charles de Gaulle
who died in Rambouillet: François Ier, king of France
Louis-Alexandre de Bourbon, comte de Toulouse, son of Louis XIV and father of the duc de Penthièvre
Germaine Coty, wife of President René Coty

Twin towns

Rambouillet is twinned with: Great Yarmouth, United Kingdom
Kirchheim unter Teck, Germany
Waterloo, Belgium
Zafra, Spain

Translation

The word "Rambouillet" occurs as such in the following languages: English, Catalan, Cebuano, Czech, Danish, German, Spanish, French, Indonesian, Italian, Swahili, Dutch, Norwegian (Bokmål), Norwegian (Nynorsk), Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Slovenian, Swedish, Vietnamese, Volapük.

Translation(s) in other languages: Latin: Rambolitum, Japanese: ランブイエ, Russian: Рамбуйе (город), Albanian: Rambuje, Serbian: Рамбује, Ukrainian: Рамбує.