University of Rennes 1 - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

The University of Rennes 1 is one of the two main universities

University

A university is an institution of higher education and research, which grants academic degrees in a variety of subjects. A university is an organisation that provides both undergraduate education and postgraduate education...

in the city of Rennes

Rennes

Rennes is a city in the east of Brittany in northwestern France. Rennes is the capital of the region of Brittany, as well as the Ille-et-Vilaine department.-History:...

, France. It is under the Academy of Rennes. It specializes in science, technology, law, economy, management and philosophy. The University of Rennes 1 has been in existence since 1969, but its heritage stems back to the days of the Breton university founded in 1461. There are currently about 22,000 students enrolled, with about 1600 members of teaching staff and 940 other staff members employed by the university.

Creation of the University of Brittany

Asked by Francis II, Duke of Brittany, the Pope created the first university of Brittany in Nantes

Nantes

Nantes is a city in western France, located on the Loire River, from the Atlantic coast. The city is the 6th largest in France, while its metropolitan area ranks 8th with over 800,000 inhabitants....

in 1460 . It taught arts, medicine, law, and theology.
In 1728, the mayor of Nantes, Gérard Mellier, asked that the university be moved to Rennes, Nantes being more trade orientated. The Law school was thus moved the Rennes in 1730. This city already had the Parliament of Brittany, it was thus more suited to have this School. In 1793 the French Revolution

French Revolution

The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...

closed all universities. It is not before 1806 that the Law school reopened in Rennes.

Development of the faculties in Rennes

In 1808, Napoleon I

Napoleon I of France

Napoleon Bonaparte was a French military and political leader during the latter stages of the French Revolution.As Napoleon I, he was Emperor of the French from 1804 to 1815...

reorganized the universities in France, creating the University of France

University of France

The University of France was a highly centralized educational state organization founded by Napoleon I in 1808 and given authority not only over the individual, previously independent, universities, but also over primary and secondary education. The former individual universities were henceforth...

. From the 2 original cities housing the University of Brittany, only Rennes was included in this University. Nantes had to wait until 1970 to have again its university

University of Nantes

The University of Nantes is a well-known French university, located in the city of Nantes. Currently, it is attended by approximately 34,000 students. 10% of them are international students coming from 110 countries.-History:...

. In 1810 a faculty of letters opened, which gathered in 1835 five schools (French literature, foreign literature, antic literature, history, and philosophy). The science faculty opened still in Rennes in 1840. Those 3 faculties remained without clear boundaries between them until 1885 with the creation of a "Conseil des facultés" which took in 1896 the name of University of Rennes. In the middle of the 19th century, they were gathered in the Palais Universitaire, located currently in the Quai Émile Zola, but were then scattered downtown. The faculty of law and the faculty of letter were thus relocated in 1909 in the Séminaire, located currently in the Place Hoche.

Creation of the University of Rennes 1

In 1969, in order to enforce the growth of French universities, a law was passed, splitting the University of Rennes into two new entities. This new university took the name of 'University of Rennes 1'. The Beaulieu neighborhood was then still in development, building housing facilities for students, along with other university facilities.
In the east of the city, Beaulieu gathers sciences and philosophy. In the west, the Villejean neighborhood gathers Schools of Foreign Languages, Arts, Human Sciences and Social Sciences. Rennes I University's School of Medicine, is located on the edge of Villejean campus

University of Rennes 2 - Upper Brittany

The University of Rennes 2 is a French university in Upper Brittany, one of four in the Academy of Rennes.The main campus is situated in the northwest section of Rennes in the Villejean neighborhood not far from the other campus, located at La Harpe.-Creation of the University of Brittany:Asked...

, but also on Brittany's largest hospital center, Pontchaillou.

Location

Most of the university's 1.64 km² of grounds lie within the city boundary of Rennes, but it has other sites dotted around Brittany

Brittany

Brittany is a cultural and administrative region in the north-west of France. Previously a kingdom and then a duchy, Brittany was united to the Kingdom of France in 1532 as a province. Brittany has also been referred to as Less, Lesser or Little Britain...

. The three main campus

Campus

A campus is traditionally the land on which a college or university and related institutional buildings are situated. Usually a campus includes libraries, lecture halls, residence halls and park-like settings...

es are in Beaulieu (in the east of Rennes), Villejean (in the north-west of Rennes) and a central campus. There are other sites in Lannion

Lannion

Lannion is a commune in the Côtes-d'Armor department in Brittany in northwestern France. It is a subpréfecture of Côtes-d'Armor, the capital of Trégor and the center of an urban area of almost 60,000 inhabitants.-Population:...

, Saint-Brieuc

Saint-Brieuc

Saint-Brieuc is a commune in the Côtes-d'Armor department in Brittany in northwestern France.-History:Saint-Brieuc is named after a Welsh monk Brioc, who evangelized the region in the 6th century and established an oratory there...

, Saint-Malo

Saint-Malo

Saint-Malo is a walled port city in Brittany in northwestern France on the English Channel. It is a sub-prefecture of the Ille-et-Vilaine.-Demographics:The population can increase to up to 200,000 in the summer tourist season...

, Fougères

Fougères

Fougères is a commune and a sub-prefecture of the Ille-et-Vilaine department in Brittany, in north-western France.-Sights:Fougères' major monument is a medieval stronghold built atop a granite ledge, which was part of the ultimately unsuccessful defence system of the Duchy of Brittany against...

and Dinard

Dinard

Dinard is a commune in the Ille-et-Vilaine department in Brittany in north-western France.Dinard is on the Côte d'Émeraude of Brittany. Its beaches and mild climate make it a popular holiday destination, and this has resulted in the town having a variety of famous visitors and residents...

; some research centers in Monterfil

Monterfil

Monterfil is a commune in the Ille-et-Vilaine department in Bretagne in north-western France.-Demographics:Inhabitants of Monterfil are called Monterfilois.-References:* ;* -External links:*...

, Paimpont

Paimpont

Paimpont is a commune in the Ille-et-Vilaine department in Brittany in north-western France.-Demographics:Inhabitants of Paimpont are called Paimpontais.-External links:* * *...

and the isle of Bailleron; and a museum owned by the university in Penmarch

Penmarch

Penmarc'h or Penmarch is a commune in the Finistère department of Brittany in north-western France. It lies 18 km south-west of Quimper by road.-History:...

Alumni

Michel Boiron (born 1925), doctor
Jean-Michel Boucheron (1948), teacher, politician
Yves Cochet
Yves Cochet
Yves Cochet is a French politician, member of The Greens. He was minister in the government of Lionel Jospin.He wrote Apocalypse pétrole which was published in 2005.-External links:*...

, (1946), mathematician, politician
Yves Coppens
Yves Coppens
Yves Coppens is a French anthropologist. He graduated from the University of Rennes. He has studied ancient hominids and has had multiple published works on this topic, and has also produced a film....

(1934), academic, paleontologist
Alexandre Léontieff
Alexandre Léontieff
Alexandre Léontieff was the President of French Polynesia from 1987 to 1991.-Personal life:Léontieff was born on October 20, 1948, at Teahupo'o, Tahiti, near the world famous surfing location...

(1970), politician, former President of French Polynesia
President of French Polynesia
This is the list of Presidents of French Polynesia.-See also:*List of monarchs of Tahiti*Colonial and Departmental Heads of French Polynesia-External links:*...

.

Faculty