Le Kremlin-Bicêtre
| Le Kremlin-Bicêtre | ||
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| Commune | ||
Town hall
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 Paris and inner ring departments |
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| Coordinates: 48°48′36″N 2°21′29″E / 48.81°N 2.3581°ECoordinates: 48°48′36″N 2°21′29″E / 48.81°N 2.3581°E | ||
| Country | France | |
| Region | Île-de-France | |
| Department | Val-de-Marne | |
| Arrondissement | L'Haÿ-les-Roses | |
| Canton | Le Kremlin-Bicêtre | |
| Intercommunality | Val de Bièvre | |
| Government | ||
| • Mayor (2001–2014) | Jean-Luc Laurent | |
| Area1 | 1.54 km2 (0.59 sq mi) | |
| Population (2006)2 | 26,018 | |
| • Density | 17,000/km2 (44,000/sq mi) | |
| Time zone | CET (UTC+1) | |
| • Summer (DST) | CEST (UTC+2) | |
| INSEE/Postal code | 94043 /94270 | |
| Elevation | 45–115 m (148–377 ft) | |
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1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries. 2Population without double counting: residents of multiple communes (e.g., students and military personnel) only counted once. |
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1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.
Le Kremlin-Bicêtre is a commune in the southern suburbs of Paris, France. It is 4.5 km (2.8 mi) from the center of Paris. It is one of the most densely populated municipalities in Europe.
Le Kremlin-Bicêtre is most famous as the location of the Bicêtre Hospital, where Superintendent Philippe Pinel is credited as being the first to introduce humane methods into the treatment of the mentally ill, in 1793. Its most notorious guest was the Marquis de Sade.
The name has roots both in England and Russia. Le Kremlin-Bicêtre was originally a hamlet called simply Bicêtre and located within the commune of Gentilly. The name Bicêtre comes from the manor built there by John of Pontoise, Bishop of Winchester (England), in the end of the 13th century. The name of this Manor of Winchester was corrupted into Vinchestre, then Bichestre, and eventually Bicêtre. The Bicêtre Hospital was built starting in 1634 on the ruins of the manor.
In 1813 the Bicêtre Hospital acted as a major reception point for evacuated casualties of the Grande Armée from the French invasion of Russia. Veterans of the invasion of Russia used to gather in a tavern near Bicêtre Hospital. This tavern was soon renamed Au sergent du Kremlin ("At the Kremlin sergeant") in reference to the Moscow Kremlin where the veterans had camped.
Gradually the name Kremlin was used for the whole neighborhood around the Bicêtre Hospital, and appeared for the first time officially in an ordnance map of 1832. Later the names Kremlin and Bicêtre were joined together and became the official name of the area.
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Wikipedia