Editing Angers (section)

== History ==
{{see also|Timeline of Angers}}

=== Prehistory and antiquity ===

[[File:Brozen Sword.jpg|upright=0.5|thumb|A model of a sword from the [[Bronze Age]] discovered in the 2000s in the Maine riverbed]]
The first sign of human presence in Angers dates back to around 400,000&nbsp;BC.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Rogers |first=Joe |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qTfGDA70tGUC&q=angers+400+000+bc&pg=PA128 |title=From an Irish Market Town |publisher=Publishamerica Inc |year=2011 |isbn=978-1456043087 |pages=128}}</ref> Vestiges from the [[Neolithic]] are more abundant and include numerous polished stone axes. Burials from 4500&nbsp;{{abbr|x|sometime between}}&nbsp;3500&nbsp;BC were also discovered on the castle grounds.

During the 5th century&nbsp;BC, the [[Andecavi]], a Celtic people, settled north of the [[Loire]]. By the end of the [[Age of Iron|Iron Age]], Angers was a relatively densely populated [[oppidum|hillfort]]. While the settlement's Roman name—Juliomagus—may be older, it is only attested from the 3rd century. The Roman town consisted of many villas and baths and had an amphitheater as well as a [[Mithraeum]], a temple dedicated to [[Mithra]].

Successive Germanic invasions in AD&nbsp;275 and 276 forced the inhabitants to move to the highest point of their city and to build a wall around a small area of around {{convert|9|ha|sp=us}}.

=== Middle Ages ===

[[File:Loire Maine Angers2 tango7174.jpg|left|thumb|The [[Château d'Angers|castle]], seat of the [[Plantagenêt]] dynasty]]
Angers received its first [[Bishop of Angers|bishop]] in 372 during the election of [[Martin of Tours]]. The first abbey, Saint-Aubin, was built during the 7th century to house the sarcophagus of [[Albinus of Angers|Saint Albinius]]. Saint-Serge Abbey was founded by the Merovingian kings [[Clovis II]] and [[Theuderic III]] a century later. In 2008, ten Frankish sarcophagi from that period were discovered where Saint-Morille church once stood during the [[Angers tramway|tramway]] construction.<ref>{{Cite web |title=City website |url=http://www.angers.fr/outils/actualite/index.html?tx_ttnews%5Btt_news%5D=453&tx_ttnews%5BbackPid%5D=50060&tx_ttnews%5BpS%5D=1222767993&cHash=17b442ddd8}}{{dead link|date=October 2016 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>

From the 850s, Angers suffered from its situation on the border with [[Brittany]] and [[Normandy]]. In September 851, [[Charles the Bald]] and [[Erispoe]], a Breton chief, met in the town to sign the [[Battle of Jengland|Treaty of Angers]], which secured Breton independence and fixed the borders of [[Brittany]]. However, the situation remained dangerous for Angers, and Charles the Bald created in 853 a wide buffer zone around Brittany comprising parts of [[Duchy of Anjou|Anjou]], [[Touraine]], [[Maine (province)|Maine]] and [[Sées]], which was ruled by [[Robert the Strong]], a great-grandfather of [[Hugh Capet]].

In 870, the [[Viking]] chief [[Hastein]] seized Angers where he settled until a successful siege temporarily displaced him. He again took control of the town in 873,<ref>Michel Dillange. ''Op. cit'', p 59–60</ref> before the Carolingian Emperor ousted him.

[[File:Hopital-St-Jean-Angers.jpg|thumb|The ''Hospice Saint-Jean'', founded by [[Henry II of England|Henry II Plantagenêt]]]]
[[Fulk I, Count of Anjou|Fulk I of Anjou]], a [[Carolingian]] descendant, was the first viscount of [[Viscounty of Angers|Angers]] (before 898 until 929) and of [[Viscounty of Tours|Tours]] (898–909), and count of [[County of Nantes|Nantes]] (909–919). Around 929, he took the title of count (earl) of Angers and founded the first Anjou dynasty, the [[House of Ingelger]] (''French: Ingelgeriens''). Angers subsequently formed the capital of the [[French province|province]] of [[Duchy of Anjou|Anjou]].{{sfnp|EB|1878}}

During the 12th century, after internal divisions in [[Brittany]], the county of Nantes was annexed by [[Duchy of Anjou|Anjou]]. [[Henry II of England|Henry II Plantagenêt]] kept it for more than 30 years. The grandson of [[Henry I of England]], he also succeeded to the English crown and ruled the vast [[Angevin Empire]], which stretched from the [[Pyrenees]] to [[Ireland]].<ref>''Le duché de Bretagne et la politique Plantagenêt aux XII et XIII siecles'', Judith Everard. ", ''in'' Marin Aurell and Noël-Yves Tonnerre éditeurs. ''Plantagenêts et Capétiens, confrontations et héritages'', Poitiers. Brepols, 2006, Turnhout. Collection ''Histoires de famille. La parenté au Moyen Âge'', p. 202</ref> The [[Château d'Angers|castle of Angers]] was then the seat of the Court and the dynasty. The Empire disappeared in 1204–1205 when the King of France, [[Philip II of France|Philip II]], seized [[Normandy]] and Anjou. Henceforth, there were no more counts of [[County of Anjou|Anjou]], as the French king had made Anjou a dukedom.

Now a part of the [[Kingdom of France]], Angers became the "Key to the Kingdom" ({{lang|fr|Clé du Royaume}}) facing still independent [[Brittany]]. In 1228, during [[Louis IX of France|Louis IX]]'s minority, [[Blanche of Castile]] decided to fortify the city and to rebuild the castle. Later, during the 1350s and 1360s, the schools of Law, Medicine and Theology, renowned in [[Europe]], were organized into a university. In 1373, [[Louis I, Duke of Anjou|Louis I of Naples and Anjou]] ordered the six tapestries illustrating the [[Apocalypse]] of St John known today as the ''[[Apocalypse Tapestry]]''.

=== Renaissance ===

[[File:King Rene and Jeanne de Lavalle. Louvre.jpg|thumb|left|[[René of Anjou|René of Naples and Anjou]], nicknamed ''Good King René'', and his second wife, [[Jeanne de Laval]]]]
King [[René of Anjou]] contributed to the economic revival in a city that had been diminished by the [[Black Death]] (1347–1350) and the [[Hundred Years War]] (1337–1453). A man of great culture and generosity, René transformed Angers into a cultural and political center and held court there. He transformed the castle moat into a [[menagerie]] and built several gardens. He also founded in Angers a new [[Ordre du Croissant]] which was supposed to compete with the [[Order of the Golden Fleece]], created several years earlier.

In 1474, [[Louis XI of France]], in his attempt to conquer Anjou, came to Angers with his army, asking for the keys of the city.<ref>Histoire de René d'Anjou, Louis François Villeneuve-Bargemont tome II (1446–1476) Editions J. J. Blaise, Paris : 1825</ref> René, then 65 years old, did not want to lead a war against his nephew and surrendered his domains without a fight. Thus, Anjou ceased to be an [[appanage]] and fell into the Royal domain. After his death, René was buried in 1480 in [[Angers Cathedral|Saint-Maurice cathedral]].

[[File:Angers - Logis Barrault (2).jpg|thumb|The ''Logis Barrault'', where the [[Edict of Nantes]] was prepared]]
In 1551, Angers became the seat of a [[bailiwick]] and the [[presidial court]] of a jurisdiction, a position the city kept until 1790. At the same time, with the growth of [[Protestantism]] in France, a Catholic was placed at the head of the city and its castle while the [[bourgeoisie]] formed a Catholic militia to protect Angers from the [[Huguenots]]. The bishop, [[Gabriel Bouvery]], organized on his side an "Angevin League".

When the news of the [[St. Bartholomew's Day massacre]] reached Angers, another massacre took place in the city. The bodies of slain Protestants were thrown into the [[Mayenne (river)|Mayenne]]. It was the [[aldermen]] who stopped the slaughter.<ref>Pierre Miquel, ''Op. cit.'', p. 286</ref>

In 1598, the [[Edict of Nantes]] was prepared by [[Henri IV of France|Henri IV]] in Angers. From 6 March until 2 April, Angers was the ''de facto'' capital of France and the King tried all means to satisfy the Catholics of the city, for example by laying the cornerstone of the new Capucine convent.

=== Classical period ===

[[File:Angers Merian 1657.jpg|thumb|left|The town is called ''Andegavum Angers'' on this 1657 engraving]]
In 1619, [[Louis XIII of France]] gave the governance of [[Duchy of Anjou|Anjou]] to his mother, [[Marie de' Medici]]. The Queen Mother settled in Angers, at the Logis Barrault, with her chaplain, [[Cardinal Richelieu]].

At the premature death of Louis XIII in 1643, his son [[Louis XIV of France|Louis XIV]] was only an infant. France was troubled at this time by several famines and epidemics, and by political instability. In 1649, the people of Angers revolted against rising taxes, the start of the [[Fronde]] in [[Duchy of Anjou|Anjou]]. The [[Fronde]] was a nationwide military conflict opposing some aristocrats wanting more autonomy and the Royal forces loyal to [[Anne of Austria]] as Queen Mother and Regent, and her prime minister, [[Cardinal Mazarin]]. Royalist repression in Angers was narrowly averted by Bishop [[Henri Arnauld]], who interceded with the Queen Mother. Arnauld, who would remain Bishop of Angers until 1692, was to leave a deep mark on the religious life of the city during the second half of the 17th century.

In 1652, [[Henri Chabot]], Duke of [[Duchy of Rohan|Rohan]] and governor of [[Duchy of Anjou|Anjou]], decided to back [[Louis, Grand Condé|Louis of Condé]], leader of the [[Fronde]]. Angers again became rebellious and [[Louis XIV of France|Louis XIV]] sent his army to seize it. The Duke of Rohan immediately surrendered and thus again prevented the sack of the city.

=== French Revolution ===

[[File:Cahier Angers.jpg|thumb|left|200px|One of the [[cahiers de doléances]] written in Angers in 1789]]
The first months of the [[French Revolution]] were relatively quiet in Angers. In 1789, the city lost its ancient administrative positions, replaced in 1790 by the [[department of France|department]] of ''Mayenne-et-Loire'', soon renamed "[[Maine-et-Loire]]". [[Duchy of Anjou|Anjou]], as a political entity, disappeared, although the new department included most of its territory.

The [[War in the Vendée|War of Vendée]], a Royalist rebellion and [[counterrevolution]] led in [[Vendée]], a department located at the southwest of [[Maine-et-Loire]], reached the [[Loire]] in March 1793. The Royalist army soon crossed the river and progressed as far as [[Granville, Manche|Granville]], in [[Normandy]], in November. Pushed back, the Vendéens went back south and, to cross the Loire again, had to attack Angers.

The city was defended by 4,000 Republican soldiers, whereas the Royalists were at least 20,000, but weakened by successive fights and deceases. The [[Siege of Angers]] occurred on 3 and 4 December 1793. The Royalists' bad tactics, as well as the strength of Angers city wall and castle, caused their loss. They consequently went back north for a while, around [[Le Mans]], before crossing the [[Loire]] at [[Ancenis]] on 16 December.

In 1794, fierce repression was conducted in the whole region against the Royalists. In Angers, 290 prisoners were shot and 1020 died of illness in jail.<ref>Jacques Hussenet (dir.), ''" Détruisez la Vendée ! "'', p. 452–453.</ref> The city also welcomed many refugees, mostly Republicans living in Royalist rural areas. Between 19 and 31 May 1793, between 650 and 1000 Republican families sought asylum in Angers.<ref>Guy-Marie Lenne, ''Les Réfugiés de la guerre de Vendée'', p. 20–25</ref>

=== Since 1800 ===

[[File:Hôtel ville Angers 1.jpg|thumb|The [[Hôtel de Ville, Angers|Hôtel de Ville]]]]
[[File:Pont de Segré (1).jpg|thumb|The ''Pont de Segré'', a truss railroad bridge built on the Maine during the second half of the 19th century]]
During the 19th century, the city was deeply influenced by the urban transformations in [[Paris]]. The city traditionally had a somewhat sombre appearance from the quantity of local [[slate]] used in construction but many quarters were gradually destroyed, redeveloped, or rebuilt on the Parisian model.{{sfnp|EB|1878}} The city wall, which formed a square around the old city core, was demolished around 1850 and replaced by wide boulevards. New districts of the city were also opened up on the opposite bank of the river.{{sfnp|EB|1878}}

The [[Hôtel de Ville, Angers|Hôtel de Ville]] (City Hall) was officially opened as a municipal building on 23 September 1823.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.angers.fr/vivre-a-angers/culture/patrimoine/angers-patrimoine/ressources/fiches-patrimoine/laissez-vous-conter-les-hotels-de-ville/index.html   |title=Laissez-vous conter les hôtels de ville|publisher=City of Angers|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220706165258/https://www.angers.fr/vivre-a-angers/culture/patrimoine/angers-patrimoine/ressources/fiches-patrimoine/laissez-vous-conter-les-hotels-de-ville/index.html|archive-date=6 July 2022}}</ref>

In 1849, the Angers-[[Saumur]] railway was built; it was extended to [[Nantes]] two years later. When completed, the line connected [[Paris]] to the [[Atlantic Ocean|Atlantic coast]].

In 1850, a [[catastrophic failure]] of the [[Angers Bridge]] suspension bridge caused the deaths of over 200 soldiers. The disaster inhibited the construction of [[suspension bridge]]s in France for two decades. The accident was mainly caused by soldiers' lilting march which created [[resonance]] in the bridge structure.<ref>[http://www.art-et-histoire.com/index4o.php?segreap.php?Angers Base de connaissance Art et Histoire]</ref>

In 1875, a "free faculty" was created. It was soon assimilated to the medieval Angevin University ({{lang|la|Universitas Andegavensis}}), which had been dissolved during the [[French Revolution]]. The new faculty was canonically erected as the Catholic University of Angers ({{lang|fr|[[Catholic University of the West|Université catholique d'Angers]]}}) by [[Pope Pius IX]] in 1879. However, in 1890, a law prohibited private institutions of higher education from calling themselves "universities". The institution was then renamed the "Free Faculty of Angers" ({{lang|fr|Faculté libre d'Angers}}), although it kept its original name on an informal basis. At the beginning of the 20th century, two higher education establishments, specializing in agriculture and commercial sciences, were opened.

[[File:Fontaine du Mail zoomed - Angers - 20080803.JPG|thumb|left|The fountain in ''Jardin du Mail'', built for the [[Exposition Universelle (1900)|1900 Exposition Universelle]] in [[Paris]]]]
During the first half of the 20th century, several [[Art Nouveau]] and [[Art Deco]] buildings were constructed, such as the ''Nouvelles Galeries'', the ''Hotel des Postes'', ''Hotel Continental'', the ''Alcazar'' and the ''Maison bleue''.

In September 1939, when [[Poland]] was invaded by Germany, the [[Polish government-in-exile]] settled in Angers. It left the city on 12 June 1940, after the invasion of France by the ''[[Wehrmacht]]''. Angers fell to the [[Nazi]]s during the same month. The Germans made it the seat of a regional Kommandantur. In 1941, a first [[Resistance during World War II|Resistance]] movement, called ''Honneur et Patrie'', was created in Angers. 60 Resistants were shot at the Belle-Beille range in 1942 and a German bunker factory employed 6000 people in 1943.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Lesplantagenets.fr |url=http://lesplantagenets.fr/index.php |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120707111936/http://lesplantagenets.fr/index.php |archive-date=7 July 2012 |access-date=2 August 2012}}</ref> In July 1942, 853 Jews were arrested and sent to [[Auschwitz concentration camp|Auschwitz]].<ref name="culture.cg49.fr">{{Cite web |editor-last=Conseil general de Maine-et-Loire |title=L'Anjou dans la seconde guerre mondiale |url=http://culture.cg49.fr/le-patrimoine/histoire/dhier-a-aujourdhui/}}</ref>

On the night of 28 May 1944, the first Allied bombing occurred over the Saint-Laud quarter. 243 people died and many others were wounded. Successive attacks on 29 and 30 May destroyed the train station and its surroundings<ref name="culture.cg49.fr" /> which were reconstructed in the 1950s.

After liberating [[Avranches]] and [[Rennes]], [[General Patton]] and his 5th infantry division arrived in [[Duchy of Anjou|Anjou]] on 5 August. To seize Angers, they decided to enter the city by its eastern side to surprise the Nazis. On 9 August, they crossed the Maine and started the fight. Helped by the local [[French Forces of the Interior]], they progressively moved forward to the city center. The fight was nevertheless difficult and Angers was liberated the day after, at around 5 p.m.<ref>{{Cite web |editor-last=City website |title=Août 1944. Angers est libérée |url=http://www.angers.fr/decouvrir-angers/histoire-d-angers/chroniques-historiques/pour-s-informer/aout-1944-angers-est-liberee/index.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130213142103/http://www.angers.fr/decouvrir-angers/histoire-d-angers/chroniques-historiques/pour-s-informer/aout-1944-angers-est-liberee/index.html |archive-date=13 February 2013 |access-date=2 August 2012}}</ref>

After the end of the war, the city experienced quick development and demographic growth. In 1971, a decision was made to reestablish a public university, and the Université catholique d'Angers was split between the [[Catholic University of the West|Université catholique de l'Ouest]] (private) and the [[University of Angers|Université d'Angers]] (public). Angers continues to have two different universities.

Until the 1980s, Angers experienced several massive urban development plans, such as the construction of the Lac de Maine, and several vast council estates and shopping malls, as well as the construction of a highway which crossed the city through its center, a project that forced the destruction of many old buildings and destroyed the original quays on the Maine. Later, other urban plans were drawn up, with a new emphasis on nature and heritage protection, as well as on social mixing. During the 1990s, the redevelopment of the Saint-Serge quarter, located just north of the historical center, produced a new business center, gardens and university buildings.
[[File:View of Angers on the Maine river from the castle.jpg|thumb|center|550px|View of Angers and the Maine river]]