Laon

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Laon
Laon.JPG
View from the railway station, with the cathedral in the background
Coat of arms of Laon
Laon is located in France
Laon
Administration
Country France
Region Picardy
Department Aisne
Arrondissement Laon
Intercommunality Laon
Mayor Antoine Lefèvre
(2008–2014)
Statistics
Elevation 63–183 m (207–600 ft)
(avg. 83 m or 272 ft)
Land area1 42.00 km2 (16.22 sq mi)
Population2 26,175  (2008)
 - Density 623 /km2 (1,610 /sq mi)
INSEE/Postal code 02408/ 02000
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: 49°33′50″N 3°37′28″E / 49.5639°N 3.6244°E / 49.5639; 3.6244

Laon (French pronunciation: [lɑ̃]) is the capital city of the Aisne department in Picardy in northern France.

Contents

History [link]

Cathedral of Notre-Dame of Laon

The hilly district of Laon, which rises a hundred metres above the otherwise flat Picardy plain,[1] has always held strategic importance. In the time of Julius Caesar there was a Gallic village named Bibrax where the Remis (inhabitants of the country round Reims) had to meet the onset of the confederated Belgae[2]. Whatever may have been the precise locality of that battlefield, Laon was fortified by the Romans, and successively checked the invasions of the Franks, Burgundians, Vandals, Alans and Huns. At that time it was known as Alaudanum or Lugdunum Clavatum.

Remigius, archbishop of Reims, who baptised Clovis, was born in the Laonnais, and it was he who, at the end of the fifth century, instituted the bishopric of Laon. Thenceforward Laon was one of the principal towns of the kingdom of the Franks, and the possession of it was often disputed. Charles the Bald had enriched its church with the gift of very numerous domains. About 847 the Irish philosopher John Scotus Eriugena appeared at the court of Charles the Bald, and was appointed head of the palace school. Eriugena spent the rest of his days in France, probably at Paris and Laon. [3] After the fall of the Carolingians Laon took the part of Charles of Lorraine, their heir, and Hugh Capet only succeeded in making himself master of the town by the connivance of the bishop, who, in return for this service, was made second ecclesiastical peer of the kingdom.

Early in the twelfth century the communes of France set about emancipating themselves, and the history of the commune of Laon is one of the richest and most varied. The citizens had profited by a temporary absence of Bishop Gaudry to secure from his representatives a communal charter, but he, on his return, purchased from the king of France the revocation of this document, and recommenced his oppressions. The consequence was a revolt, in which the episcopal palace was burnt and the bishop and several of his partisans were put to death on 25 April 1112 . The fire spread to the cathedral, and reduced it to ashes. Uneasy at the result of their victory, the rioters went into hiding outside the town, which was anew pillaged by the people of the neighbourhood, eager to avenge the death of their bishop.

The king alternately intervened in favour of the bishop and of the inhabitants till 1239. After that date the liberties of Laon were no more contested till 1331, when the commune was abolished. During the Hundred Years' War it was attacked and taken by the Burgundians, who gave it up to the English, to be retaken by the French after the consecration of Charles VII. Under the League, Laon took the part of the Leaguers, and was taken by Henry IV.

At the Revolution Laon permanently lost its rank as a bishopric. During the campaign of 1814, Napoleon tried in vain to dislodge Blücher and Bülow from it in the Battle of Laon.[4]

In 1870, during the Franco-Prussian War, an engineer blew up the powder magazine of the citadel at the moment when the German troops were entering the town. Many lives were lost; and the cathedral and the old episcopal palace were damaged. It surrendered to a German force on September 9, 1870.[4]

In the fall of 1914, during World War I, German forces captured the town and held it until the Allied offensive in the summer of 1918.[4]

Population [link]

Historical population of Laon
Year 1793 1800 1806 1821 1831 1836 1841 1846 1851 1856 1861
Population 7500 6691 6976 6837 8400 8230 9406 9809 10,098 8199 10,090
Year 1866 1872 1876 1881 1886 1891 1896 1901 1906
Population 10,268 10,365 12,139 12,623 13,677 14,129 14,625 15,434 15,288
Year 1911 1921 1926 1931 1936 1946 1954 1962 1968
Population 16,262 18,904 19,402 19,125 20,254 17,401 21,931 25,078 26,316
Year 1975 1982 1990 1999 2008
Population 27,914 26,682 26,490 26,241 26,175

Main sights [link]

Rue Châtelaine.
View from the upper town.

The city contains numerous medieval buildings, including the cathedral Notre-Dame of Laon, dating mostly from the 12th and 13th centuries. The chapter-house and the cloister contain specimens of the architecture of the beginning of the 13th century. The old episcopal palace, contiguous to the cathedral, is now used as a court-house. The front, flanked by turrets, is pierced by large pointed windows. There is also a Gothic cloister and an old chapel of two storeys, of a date anterior to the cathedral.

The church of St Martin dates from the middle of the 12th century. The old abbey buildings of the same foundation are now used as the hospital. The museum of Laon had collections of sculpture and painting. In its garden there is a chapel of the Templars belonging to the 12th century. The church of the suburb of Vaux near the railway station dates from the 11th and 12th centuries.

Transportation [link]

Laon station from the upper town

The town has the only fully automated municipal cable car system in the world, called the Poma 2000. It links the upper town (the historical centre, located on a plateau) with the lower town, has three stations and runs on rubber tyres. In contrast, the San Francisco cable car system is manually operated, and all the other automated cable car systems have restricted operations within airports and hospitals.

TUL operates the local bus routes.

International relations [link]

See also: List of twin towns and sister cities in France

Laon is twinned with:

Personalities [link]

Laon was the birthplace of:

Media [link]

Laon is featured in the book Pursuit of Passy by D. M. Crook.

References [link]

  1. ^ "Picardy Town Information". https://www.french-at-a-touch.com/French_Regions/Picardie/picardie_town_information_ii.htm. Retrieved 11 December 2009. 
  2. ^ Goldsworthy, Adrian (2007), Caesar: The Life of a Colossus, p. 290 
  3. ^ https://www.newadvent.org/cathen/05519a.htm
  4. ^ a b c Wikisource-logo.svg "Laon". Collier's New Encyclopedia. 1921. 
  5. ^ City council website

External links [link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Laon

https://wn.com/Laon

Laon (disambiguation)

Laon is a city in Picardie in northern France.

Laon may also refer to:

  • 12279 Laon, a main-belt asteroid
  • US Laon, a French association football team
  • Laon, the title character of the Manhwa Laon
  • Laon, a Korean manhwa by YoungBin Kim abd Hyun You.

    • See also

  • Loan (disambiguation)
  • Laona, New York
    • Read more
    This page contains text from Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia - https://wn.com/Laon_(disambiguation)

    List of minor planets: 12001–13000

  • 12,001…
  • 12,101…
  • 12,201…
  • 12,301…
  • 12,401…
  • 12,501…
  • 12,601…
  • 12,701…
  • 12,801…
  • 12,901…
  • 1–1000
  • 1000s
  • 2000s
  • 3000s
  • 4000s
  • 5000s
  • 6000s
  • 7000s
  • 8000s
  • 9000s
  • 10,000s
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    This page contains text from Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia - https://wn.com/List_of_minor_planets:_12001–13000

    Radio Stations - Laon

    RADIO STATION
    GENRE
    LOCATION
    ABC Beatles 70s,60s France
    NRJ Michael Jackson Pop France
    Radio Emotion Oldies France
    M2 Love Rock,Soft Rock,Adult France
    OÜI FM Alternatif Alternative France
    DYNAMHITS R&B,Hip Hop,Rap France
    RCT CapSao Latin Hits France
    Radio Arverne Adult Contemporary France
    4U Smooth Jazz Jazz France
    Psychedelik Dark-Psyché Electronica France
    Radio NTI Nantes Dance,Electronica France
    Beaub FM 89 Indie France
    Radio Espace Dance,Top 40,R&B France
    Canal Académie Talk France
    France Bleu Isere Varied France
    Sea FM Coutances Varied France
    Delta FM Saint Omer Adult Contemporary France
    Bachata Dominicana World Caribbean,Latin Hits France
    Radio Gospel France Christian Contemporary,Gospel,Christian France
    France Bleu Alsace News Talk France
    Delta FM Dunkerque Adult Contemporary France
    Sweet FM Varied,Top 40 France
    Skyrock Pop,R&B,Rap France
    FD Radio Latino Latin Hits France
    Clubbin Radio Dance,Electronica France
    Radio Chopin Classical France
    Radio Espérance Enseignement Religious,Christian France
    Alta Frequenza Pop France
    Fréquence Plus Pop France
    DJBuzz Radio Electronica France
    Carrément Mash Up Experimental France
    Variation Varied France
    Euro Mixx Dance France
    Nostalgie Poetes Varied France
    France Bleu Armorique Varied France
    jazz swing manouche radio Jazz,Blues France
    Jazz Radio Ladies&Crooners Jazz France
    Hotmixradio Hits Varied France
    M2 80 Rock,80s,Pop France
    Generations Rap US Rap France
    Radio Liberté (FR) Varied France
    Radio ZamZam Religious France
    Tropiques FM 90.0 Bourg-en-Bresse World Caribbean,World Tropical,World Africa France
    Alouette Easy,Contemporary France
    Jazz Radio Soul Food Radio Jazz France
    Radio Saint Nabor Varied France
    R Meribel Varied France
    Nostalgie Stars 80 80s France
    Radio No1 Varied France
    Azur Blues Blues France
    France Bleu Loire Ocean Varied France

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