 Place de la Comédie in Montpellier
Montpellier is the capital of the Languedoc-Roussillon région,
Montpellier is also the préfecture (administrative capital) of the Hérault département. Population of the city of Montpellier at the 1999 census was 225,392 inhabitants, whereas the whole metropolitan area had a population of 459,916 inhabitants in 1999. As of February 2004 estimates, the population of the city of Montpellier reached 244,700.
Montpellier is one of the few cities in France without a (Gallo-)Roman background. In the Early Middle Ages the nearby episcopal town of Maguelone was the major settlement in the area, but raids by pirates encouraged settlement a little further inland. Montpellier, first mentioned in a document of 985, was founded under a local feudal dynasty, the Guillem counts of Toulouse, who joined together two hamlets, built a castle and walls around the settlement.
After the French Revolution, the city became the capital of the much smaller Hérault.
During the 19th century the city developed into an industrial centre. In the 1960s, its population grew dramatically after French settlers in Algeria were resettled in the city following Algeria's independence from France. In the 1980s and 1990s, the city drew attention with a number of major redevelopment projects, such as the Corum and especially the Antigone District.
information from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
|
