| Montigny-le-Bretonneux | |
| Commune Status: | Commune |
| Map Size: | 270px |
| Image Coat Of Arms: | Blason ville fr Montigny-le-Bretonneux (Yvelines).svg |
| Adjustable Map: | Montigny-le-Bretonneux_map.png |
| Map Caption: | Location (in red) within Paris inner and outer suburbs |
| Coordinates: | 48.7711°N 2.0333°W |
| Arrondissement: | Versailles |
| Canton: | Montigny-le-Bretonneux |
| Insee: | 78423 |
| Postal Code: | 78180 |
| Mayor: | Lorrain Merckaert[1] |
| Term: | 2020 - 2026 |
| Intercommunality: | Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines |
| Elevation Min M: | 150 |
| Elevation Max M: | 171 |
| Area Km2: | 11.65 |
Montigny-le-Bretonneux (in French pronounced as /mɔ̃tiɲi lə bʁətɔnø/) is a commune in the Yvelines department in the Île-de-France region in north-central France. It is located in the south-western suburbs of Paris, 24.51NaN1 from the centre of Paris, in the "new town" of Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, of which it is the central and most populated commune.
Montigny-le-Bretonneux, the 8th town of the Yvelines department by population, has 33,000 inhabitants and is the central and principal town of the Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines district. It is situated at the heart of Yvelines, between the Vallée de Chevreuse and the Forest of Rambouillet in the south, and the towns of Versailles and Saint-Germain-en-Laye in the north.
The history of the town reflects that of a small traditional French village, devoted to agriculture. The growth of the new town in the 1970s actually initiates the change from the village of Montigny-le-Bretonneux (1292 inhabitants in 1970) to the town (10,063 in 1980).
The town is found 25km (16miles) south west of Paris, and 5km (03miles) from Versailles, and at the heart of an agglomeration of 150,000 people, of which Montigny is the largest commune.
After two decades of steady urbanization, Montigny-le-Bretonneux is now essentially completed, although the opportunity to create new housing is still there. In 2002, the State has decreed the end of the Operation of National Interest Statute establishing the new district of Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, whose seven member municipalities have opted for a new intercommunal principal, the “Community of Agglomeration”.
Montigny-le-Bretonneux has now passed the building phase — the frenzy of building that characterised the town is suitably balanced between neighbourhoods and business areas. Montigny has become a haven for St. Quentinois wishing to settle there.The parks were born in the 1970s and 1980s with the rise of the new town are and were in principle built to rehabilitate the economic heritage and to adapt to technological standards now imposed on businesses. Its economy is rooted primarily in the service sector (1,590 businesses). Furthermore, several major headquarters of international companies have settled in the city (for example; SAIPEM, BMW France et COGEMA).
Recent developments in Montigny-le-Bretonneux include the national velodrome built between 2011 and 2014, supported by the State, the French Cycling Federation, local authorities and a pool of business partners, and the Faculty of Medicine (UFR des sciences de la santé Simone Veil), part of the Versailles Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines University.
The town organises annual events for which the community comes together to celebrate. Some are listed below:
Montigny-le-Bretonneux is served by Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines–Montigny-le-Bretonneux station on Paris RER line C, on the Transilien La Défense suburban rail line, and on the Transilien Paris-Montparnasse line N suburban rail line.
The community has nine neighbourhoods. They are Manet, Pas du Lac, Plan de l'Eglise, Plan de Troux Prés, Saint Quentin, Sourderie Nord, Sourderie Sud, and Village.[3]
15 schools serve école maternelle (preschool) students, and 15 schools serve école élémentaire (elementary) students. There are two groupes scolaires, or combined preschools and elementary schools.[4]
Public secondary schools:
Private schools:
The rainbow symbolises the radiance and vitality of the town. The dominant green colour symbolises the green space of the community, and the Ferme du Manet and leisure facilities in the town. The four white stones and lily are the historical reference; under l’ancien Regime, important boundaries marking royal properties were marked with a white stone, engraved with initials or a crest. At Montigny, the crest was a lily flower. Four were planted at a crossroads leading to Versailles, Trappes, Montigny and Bois d’Arcy.
See also: List of twin towns and sister cities in France.
Montigny-le-Bretonneux is twinned with:[9]
Lunca, Romania
Wicklow, Ireland
San Fernando, Spain
Marostica, ItalyCuriously, the signpost pictured on the right implies that all the twin towns, be they in Germany, Romania, UK, Ireland, Spain or Italy, are in the same direction from Montigny.