Vaujours
Encyclopedia
Vaujours is a commune
Communes of France
The commune is the lowest level of administrative division in the French Republic. French communes are roughly equivalent to incorporated municipalities or villages in the United States or Gemeinden in Germany...

 in the northeastern suburbs of Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...

, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

. It is located 18.2 km (11.3 mi) from the center of Paris
Kilometre Zero
In many countries, Kilometre Zero or similar terms in other languages, is a particular location , from which distances are traditionally measured...

, in the département of Seine-Saint-Denis
Seine-Saint-Denis
- Culture :A number of hip hop artists come from the Seine-Saint-Denis, including one of the first major hip-hop groups in France, NTM, as well as Lord Kossity, or more recent acts such as Tandem or Sefyu.- Miscellaneous topics :...

. Known for its wines and fruit until the end of the 19th century
France in the nineteenth century
The History of France from 1789 to 1914 extends from the French Revolution to World War I and includes:*French Revolution *French First Republic *First French Empire under Napoleon...

, Vaujours is now one of the world's premier producers of plaster of Paris.

History and Heritage

The commune is mentioned in documents predating the 9th century. In archives from the twelfth century, it is named as Vallis Jost and Vaujoi, from the Latin for 'valley of joy'.
Around the year 1100, the land belonged to Étienne de Senlis, archdeacon of Notre Dame de Paris
Notre Dame de Paris
Notre Dame de Paris , also known as Notre Dame Cathedral, is a Gothic, Roman Catholic cathedral on the eastern half of the Île de la Cité in the fourth arrondissement of Paris, France. It is the cathedral of the Catholic Archdiocese of Paris: that is, it is the church that contains the cathedra of...

 who gave it in turn as one of many generous gifts of the time to the Abbey of St Victor, Paris.
Henry VI of England and (for a time) of France had a hunting lodge near Montauban Hill, where now there is a housing development which bears his name.

At the end of the 18th century Saint Nicholas Church was constructed. This building still houses the treasures of sacred art, in particular an 18th century painting representing the baptism of Christ, and a tabernacle from the seventeenth century. Until the start of the 20th century the village of Vaujours was largely controlled by the Pailleux family. The funerary flagstones of the family of the Master who ruled the village from 1760 to 1840 can also be seen in the church.

In 1844, the 18th century mansion known as château de Vaujours was converted into Fénelon Horticultural School. Named after the celebrated French writer François Fénelon
François Fénelon
François de Salignac de la Mothe-Fénelon, more commonly known as François Fénelon , was a French Roman Catholic archbishop, theologian, poet and writer...

, this restored some of the former prestige of the mansion. The mansion's wrought ironwork, sculptures and paintings are registered historic monuments and beside the building is a tithe barn
Tithe barn
A tithe barn was a type of barn used in much of northern Europe in the Middle Ages for storing the tithes - a tenth of the farm's produce which had to be given to the church....

 dating from the 17th or 18th century.

Vaujours was also a strategic point during the First Battle of the Marne
Battle of the Marne
There were two Battles of the Marne, taking place near the Marne River in Marne, France during World War I:* First Battle of the Marne * Second Battle of the Marne...

 in September 1914, one of the most important battles of the First World War.

Heraldry

Transport

Although Vaujours does not have its own station on the Parisian rail network, it is served by Vert-Galant station on Paris RER line B
RER B
The RER B is one of the five lines in the RER rapid transit system serving :Paris, France.The line runs from the northern termini Aéroport Charles de Gaulle and Mitry-Claye to the southern termini Robinson and Saint-Rémy-lès-Chevreuse ....

. This station is located in the neighbouring commune of Villepinte
Villepinte, Seine-Saint-Denis
Villepinte is a commune in the northeastern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the center of Paris.-Heraldry:-Transport:Villepinte is served by three stations on Paris RER line B: Villepinte, Parc des Expositions, and Vert-Galant....

, 1.4 km (0.869921831309729 mi) from the centre of Vaujours.
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