Laval, Mayenne
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Laval is a commune of France, préfecture (capital) of the Mayenne département. The people of Laval are Lavallois.
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Geography
Laval and is located on the Mayenne River in the region called Pays de La Loire in north-west central France (around the Loire Valley.)
History
The lords of Laval are of a dynasty which has made a mark in the history of France. The "old street" was for several centuries, one of the principal ways into Brittany. In Laval Cathedral, on the efigy tomb of the bishop, Louis Bougaud 1888, may be read the inscription:
- HEIC IN PACE QVIE SCIT
- LUDOVICVS BOVGAVD EPISCOPUS VALLEGVIDONENSIS DECESSIT VII IDVS NOVEMB AN MDCCCLXXXVIII (1888)
- ANNOS NATVS LXV.M.V.III.D.VII
- VIVAS IN DEO
Economy
- Foundries
- Electrical and electronic fabrication.
- Chemistry and pharmacy
- The town is historically, a manufacturer of fine linens.
Administration
Laval is the main town of five cantons:
- The canton of Laval-East is composed of part of Laval plus the comune of Entrammes (11 732 inhabitants);
- The canton de Laval-North-East is composed of part of Laval the communes of Changé, Saint-Germain-le-Fouilloux et Saint-Jean-sur-Mayenne (14 687 inhabitants);
- The canton de Laval-North-West is composed of part of Laval (12 022 inhabitants);
- The canton of Laval-Saint-Nicolas is composed of part of Laval (8 460 inhabitants);
- The canton de Laval-South-West is composed of part of Laval (12 668 inhabitants).
Mayors of Laval :
Notable People
- Jean Bauer, maker of stringed musical instruments.
- Francis Bayer du Kern, Breton poet
- André Bellesort, writer
- Alain Gerbault, sailor
- Jean-Marie Guyau, writer and philosopher
- Géo Ham, illustrator and designer
- Alfred Jarry(1873-1907), writer (birthplace)
- Charles Landelle, painter
- François de Laval (1623-1708), first bishop of Quebec (birthpace)
- Louis Lemercier de Neuville, dramatic author and puppeteer
- Prosper Mortou, musician
- Ambroise Paré, medical doctor
- François Pédron, writer
- François Pyrard, sailor
- Pascal Rannou, writer
- Jean-Yves Reuzeau, writer
- Henri Rousseau (1844-1910), known as le Douanier, painter (birthplace)
- Robert Tatin, artist
- Augustine Tuillerie, alias G.Bruno, writer
Buildings and tourist sites
- Medieval Château de Laval (tower and building)
- Cathedral of the Trinity
- Significant remains of the town walls and of a town gate.
Twin towns
Laval is twinned with:
- Boston, Lincolnshire, England
- Mettmann (North-Rhine-Westphalia, Germany), which was the origin of the German Christmas market organised in 2004
- Garango (Burkina Faso)
- Gandia (Spain)
- Laval (Quebec)
- Vatava (Romania)
- The department of Chalcidique (Greece).
Sports
- Stade Lavallois, football team
References
Bibliographie
- Histoire de Bretagne avec les Chroniques des maisons de Laval et de Vitré, Paris, 1638. Pierre Le Baud.
- Laval, by Jean Grangeot. Ouest-France, 1977.
External links
Site de la Ville de Laval (http://www.mairie-laval.fr)fr:Laval (Mayenne) ja:ラヴァル ro:Laval, Mayenne Template:France-geo-stub