Montpellier

Montpellier (Occitan Montpelhièr) is a city in the south of France. It is the capital of the Languedoc-Roussillon région, as well as the préfecture (administrative capital) of the Hérault département. Population of the city (commune) of Montpellier at the 1999 census was 225,392 inhabitants, whereas the whole metropolitan area (in French: aire urbaine) had a population of 459,916 inhabitants in 1999. As of February 2004 estimates, the population of the city of Montpellier reached 244,700 inhabitants, meaning a record 1.7% population growth per year between 1999 and 2004.

History

Montpellier is one of the few cities in France that does not have a Roman background. In the Early Middle Ages the nearby episcopal town of Maguelone was the major settlement in the area, but raids by pirates encouraged settlement a little further inland. Montpellier, first mentioned in a document of 985, was founded under a local feudal dynasty, the Guillem counts of Toulouse, who joined together two hamlets, built a castle and walls around the settlement. The two surviving towers of the city walling, the Tour des Pins and the Tour de la Babotte are later in date, however. Montpellier came to prominence in the 10th century as a trading centre, with trading links across the Mediterranean world and a rich Jewish cultural life and traditions of tolerance of its Muslims, Jews and Cathars— and later of its Protestants.

Related Topics:
Early Middle Ages - Maguelone - 985 - Counts of Toulouse - 10th century - Cathar - Protestant

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William VII of Montpellier established a faculty of medicine in 1180; the city's university was established in 1220 and was one of the chief centers for the teaching of medicine. This marked the high point of Montpellier's prominence.

Related Topics:
William VII of Montpellier - 1180 - 1220 - Medicine

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The city became a possession of the kings of Aragon in 1213 by the marriage of Peter II of Aragon with Marie of Montpellier, who brought the city as her dowry. Montpellier gained a charter in 1204 when Peter and Marie confirmed the city's traditional freedoms and granted the city the right to choose twelve governing consuls annually. Montpellier remained a possession of the crown of Aragon until it passed to James III of Majorca, who sold the city to the French king Philip VI in 1349, to raise funds for his ongoing struggle with Peter IV of Aragon. In the 14th century, Montpellier gained a church (not yet a cathedral) dedicated to Saint Peter, noteworthy for its very unusual porch supported by two high, somewhat rocket-like towers. With its importance steadily increasing, the city finally gained a bishop, who moved from Maguelone in 1536 and sat in the neighbouring community of Montpelliéret (eventually absorbed into Montpellier proper).

Related Topics:
Kings of Aragon - 1213 - Peter II of Aragon - Marie of Montpellier - 1204 - James III of Majorca - Philip VI - 1349 - Peter IV of Aragon - 14th century - Saint Peter - 1536

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At the time of the Reformation in the 16th century, many of its inhabitants became Protestants (or Huguenots as they were known in France) and it became a stronghold of Protestant resistance to the (mainly Catholic) French crown. In 1622, King Louis XIII besieged the city and took it after eight months, building the citadel to secure it. During the 19th century the city developed into an industrial centre. In the 1960s, its population grew dramatically after French settlers in Algeria were resettled in the city following Algeria's independence from France.

Related Topics:
Reformation - 16th century - Protestants - Huguenots - 1622 - Louis XIII - 19th century - 1960s - Algeria

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Lords of Montpellier

Main article: Lords of Montpellier

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• William I of Montpellier (d. 1019)
• William II of Montpellier (d. 1025)
• William III of Montpellier (d. 1058)
• William IV of Montpellier (d. 1068)
• William V of Montpellier (d. 1120)
• William VI of Montpellier (d. 1149)
• William VII of Montpellier (d. 1179)
• William VIII of Montpellier (d. 1202)
• Marie of Montpellier (d. 1219)
• and Barral of Marseilles (d. 1194)
• and Bernard IV of Comminges (div. 1201)
• and King Peter II of Aragon (d. 1213)
• James I of Aragon (d. 1276)
• James II of Majorca (d. 1311)

Sources

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• Lewis, Archibald. "The Guillems of Montpellier: A Sociological Appraisal", 1971.
• Catholic Encyclopedia: Montpellier, diocese of