Montereau-Fault-Yonne

For other uses, see Montereau (disambiguation).

Administration
Montereau-Fault-Yonne

Bridges over rivers Seine (foreground), Yonne (background) and statue of Napoléon
Montereau-Fault-Yonne
Location within Île-de-France region Montereau-Fault-Yonne
Country	France
Region	Île-de-France
Department	Seine-et-Marne
Arrondissement	Provins
Canton	Montereau-Fault-Yonne
Intercommunality	Deux Fleuves
Mayor	Yves Jégo (PR) (2008–2014)
Statistics
Elevation	47.2–120 m (155–390 ft) (avg. 53 m or 174 ft)
Land area¹	9.70 km² (3.75 sq mi)
Population²	16,993 (2006)
- Density	1,752 /km² (4,540 /sq mi)
INSEE/Postal code	77305/ 77130
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.

Coordinates: 48°23′07″N 2°57′03″E / 48.3853°N 2.9508°E / 48.3853; 2.9508

Montereau-Fault-Yonne, or simply Montereau, is a commune in the Seine-et-Marne department in the Île-de-France region in north-central France.

1 Name
2 Sights
3 History
4 Demographics
5 Economy
6 Twin towns
7 See also
8 References
9 External links

Name [edit]

The city takes its name from its geographical position on the confluence of the Yonne and the Seine rivers. Fault, also spelled faut comes from the verb faillir ("to fail") in its old meaning to fall. Montereau is where the Yonne falls into the Seine.

Sights [edit]

John XXIII Square, in Surville.

The town is split in three by the rivers, ville basse situated on the southern shore and Surville on the hill to the north. The old town centre is located in ville basse while Surville is an assembly of high rise buildings, erected after World War II, and is in many ways a typical cité in the Île-de-France. Some of these high rise buildings are now (2005) going to be destroyed and replaced by individual houses. The old château-park in Surville (now the site of a high school Lycée André Malraux) however gives a very nice view over the confluent and the Seine-et-Marne region. On the east side, between the two rivers, are the port and an industrial park.

History [edit]

In 1359, the King of Navarre Charles II of Navarre, who held the town because of his Champagne ascent, lost it in front of the regent of France (the future king Charles V).

Plaque commemorating the murder of John the Fearless, on the bridge crossing the Yonne river.

John the Fearless was killed on the town's bridge in September, 1419 by Tanneguy du Chastel and the sire de Barbazan, during an interview with the dauphin (who became in 1422 Charles VII).

In the collegiate church Notre-Dame-et-Saint-Loup there is a sword which has long been said to be John the Fearless'. But actually this sword is certainly more recent.^[1]

The Geographer Malte-Brun reported, in La France illustrée^{[citation needed]} (1882), the existence of an inscription on the bridge where the duke was murdered.

In 1420, Philip the Good, the son of John the Fearless, seized the town, which remained for eight years in the hands of the Anglo-Burgundian coalition. However, at the end of a long siege, the king Charles VII, helped by Chabannes and Dunois, managed to take it again.

In 1567, during the Wars of Religion, Condé briefly seized the town.

In 1587, the inhabitants of Montereau took of party of the Catholic League, but in 1590 accepted the legitimacy of the new king Henry IV.

Statue of Napoleon, erected during the Second Empire on the bridge of Montereau.

Montereau was also the place of one of the last victories of Napoleon on 14 February 1814.

Demographics [edit]

Inhabitants of Montereau-Fault-Yonne are called Monterelais.^[2]

Historical population of Montereau-Fault-Yonne
Year	1793	1800	1806	1821	1831	1836	1841	1846	1851	1856
Population	3,115	3,364	3,453	3,945	4,153	4,494	4,450	4,942	5,465	6,063

Year	1861	1866	1872	1876	1881	1886	1891	1896	1901	1906
Population	6,217	6,748	6,714	7,041	7,306	7,709	7,672	8,041	7,929	8,213

Year	1911	1921	1926	1931	1936	1946	1954	1962	1968	1975
Population	8,617	8,853	9,314	9,965	9,322	8,962	10,119	14,121	19,789	21,568

Year	1982	1990	1999	2006	2007	2008	2009
Population	19,413	18,657	17,625	16,768	16,802	16,275	16,266

sources = Cassini,^[3] INSEE^[4] Data since 1962 : Population without double counting Data since 2006 : Municipal population Histogram
(Graph by Wikipedia)

The canton, which belonged to the arrondissement of Fontainebleau in the beginning, was attached to Provins in 1926. It has 14 communes and 33,934 inhabitants.

Economy [edit]

Historically, the city has sported a strong industrial base and thus has strong blue collar roots. In recent decades, unemployment has become an increasing problem, especially within the immigrant community in Surville.