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Vitry-le-François

Vitry-le-François
Coat of arms of Vitry-le-François
Coat of arms
Vitry-le-François is located in France
Vitry-le-François
Vitry-le-François
Coordinates: 48°43′32″N 4°35′07″E / 48.7256°N 4.5853°E / 48.7256; 4.5853Coordinates: 48°43′32″N 4°35′07″E / 48.7256°N 4.5853°E / 48.7256; 4.5853
Country France
Region Grand Est
Department Marne
Arrondissement Vitry-le-François
Canton Vitry-le-François-Est and Vitry-le-François-Ouest
Intercommunality Vitry-le-François
Government
 • Mayor (2008–) Jean-Pierre Bouquet
Area1 6.45 km2 (2.49 sq mi)
Population (2006)2 15,641
 • Density 2,400/km2 (6,300/sq mi)
Time zone CET (UTC+1)
 • Summer (DST) CEST (UTC+2)
INSEE/Postal code 51649 / 51300

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.

1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

Vitry-le-François (French pronunciation: ​[vitʁi lə frɑ̃swa]) is a commune in the Marne department in north-eastern France. It is located on the Marne River and is the western terminus of the Marne-Rhine Canal.

In 1142, Louis VII invaded Champagne and seized Vitry-le-François. Over a thousand residents were killed when the town's church was set ablaze.

The present town is a relatively recent construction, having been built in 1545 at the behest of King Francis who wished to replace, on a new site, Vitry-en-Perthois, which in 1544 had been entirely destroyed as part of the backwash from the king's Italian War of 1542–46. The new Vitry was to be a modern city, constructed according to a plan produced by . The king's role in its creation resulted in Vitry-le-François receiving the king's name as part of its own name.

Vitry-le-François is twinned with:


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