Yvelines () is a department in the western part of the
Île-de-France
The Île-de-France (, ; literally "Isle of France") is the most populous of the eighteen regions of France. Centred on the capital Paris, it is located in the north-central part of the country and often called the ''Région parisienne'' (; en, Pa ...
region
In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics ( physical geography), human impact characteristics ( human geography), and the interaction of humanity an ...
in Northern
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...
World Heritage Site
A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...
Yvelines was created from the western part of the former department of
Seine-et-Oise
Seine-et-Oise () was the former department of France encompassing the western, northern and southern parts of the metropolitan area of Paris.Versailles.
Yvelines derives its name from the Forest of Yveline, next to Rambouillet.
It gained the
communes
An intentional community is a voluntary residential community which is designed to have a high degree of social cohesion and teamwork from the start. The members of an intentional community typically hold a common social, political, relig ...
Toussus-le-Noble
Toussus-le-Noble () is a commune in the Yvelines department in the Île-de-France region in north-central France.
History
In 1969, the communes of Châteaufort and Toussus-le-Noble were separated from the Essonne department and added to Yvelin ...
from the adjacent department of Essonne in 1969.
The departmental capital, Versailles, which grew up around Louis XIV's château, was also the Frenchcapital for more than a century under the Ancien Régime and again between 1871 and 1879 during the early years of the Third Republic. Since then the château has continued to welcome the
French Parliament
The French Parliament (french: Parlement français) is the bicameral legislature of the French Republic, consisting of the Senate () and the National Assembly (). Each assembly conducts legislative sessions at separate locations in Paris ...
when it is called upon to sit in a congressional sitting (with both houses sitting together) in order to enact
constitutional
A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organisation or other type of entity and commonly determine how that entity is to be governed.
When these prin ...
changes or to listen to a formal declaration by the President.
Geography
Situation
Yvelines is bordered by the departments of Val-d'Oise on the north, Hauts-de-Seine on the east, Essonne on the southeast, Eure-et-Loir on the southwest and Eure on the west.
The eastern part of the department, as well as its northern part along the Seine, is part of the Paris metropolitan area, but the rest of the department is rural, much of it covered by the Forest of Rambouillet (also known as the Forest of Yveline, from which the name of the department is derived).
Two regional parks can be found in Yvelines: Haute Vallée de Chevreuse Regional Natural Park and part of Vexin Français Park. Yvelines is home to one of France's best known golf courses, La Tuilerie-Bignon, in the village of Saint-Nom-la-Bretèche.
Conflans-Sainte-Honorine
Conflans-Sainte-Honorine () is a commune in the Yvelines department in the Île-de-France region in north-central France. It is located in the northwestern suburbs of Paris, from the center of Paris.
The commune was originally named for its ge ...
,
Poissy
Poissy () is a commune in the Yvelines department in the Île-de-France region in north-central France. It is located in the western suburbs of Paris, from the centre of Paris. Inhabitants are called ''Pisciacais'' in French.
Poissy is one ...
Houilles
Houilles () is a commune in the Yvelines department in the Île-de-France region in north-central France. It is a northwestern suburb of Paris, located from the center of Paris.
History
Until 2000, the command post of French Navy's Ballisti ...
,
Plaisir
Plaisir () is a commune located in the heart of the Yvelines department in the Île-de-France in north-central France. It is located in the western suburbs of Paris, from the center of Paris.
It borders among others on Élancourt (south), Tr ...
,
Sartrouville
Sartrouville () is a commune in the Yvelines department, Île-de-France, north central France. it is located in the north-western suburbs of Paris, from the center of Paris.
Name
In the Middle Ages the name Sartrouville was recorded in Medieva ...
,
Chatou
Chatou () is a commune in the Yvelines department in the Île-de-France region in north-central France. Chatou is a part of the affluent suburbs of western Paris and is on the northwest side of the Seine river about from the city's center.
Hi ...
,
Le Chesnay
Le Chesnay () is a former commune in the Yvelines department in the Île-de-France region in north-central France. On 1 January 2019, it was merged into the new commune Le Chesnay-Rocquencourt. It is located in the western suburbs of Paris, fr ...
, and the new
agglomeration community
An agglomeration community (french: communauté d'agglomération) is a government structure in France, created by the Chevènement Law of 1999. It is one of four forms of intercommunality, less integrated than a métropole or a communauté u ...
of Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines. As of 2019, there are 21 communes with more than 20,000 inhabitants. The 10 most populous communes are:
Demographics
In French, a man from the Yvelines is called ''Yvelinois'' (plural ''Yvelinois''); a woman is ''Yvelinoise'' (plural ''Yvelinoises).
Château de Dampierre
The Château de Dampierre is a castle in Dampierre-en-Yvelines, in the ''Vallée de Chevreuse'', France.
Built by Jules Hardouin-Mansart in 1675–1683 for the duc de Chevreuse, Colbert's son-in-law, it is a French Baroque château of medium ...
*
Château de Maisons
The Château de Maisons (now Château de Maisons-Laffitte), designed by François Mansart from 1630 to 1651, is a prime example of French baroque architecture and a reference point in the history of French architecture. The château is located in M ...
Château of Thoiry
A château (; plural: châteaux) is a manor house or residence of the lord of the manor, or a fine country house of nobility or gentry, with or without fortifications, originally, and still most frequently, in French-speaking regions.
Nowaday ...
* Museum of National Antiques (Saint-Germain-en-Laye)
* Museum of River and Canal Craft (Conflans-Sainte-Honorine)
* Horse-drawn Coach Museum (Versailles)
* Toy Museum (Poissy)
* Sheep Museum (Rambouillet)
* Cloth Museum of Jouy (
Jouy-en-Josas
Jouy-en-Josas () 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, from the center of Paris.
Jouy-en-Josas is home to the main campus of HEC ...
)
* National Barn Museum of Port-Royal (
Magny-les-Hameaux
Magny-les-Hameaux () is a commune in the Yvelines department in the Île-de-France region in north-central France.
Population
Education
There are four preschools: Ecole Francis Jammes, Ecole André Gide, Ecole Petit Prince, and Ecole Jean Ba ...
)
* International Museum of Naive Art
* Musee Lambinet (Versailles)
Artists' and writers' houses
*
Maurice Denis
Maurice Denis (; 25 November 1870 – 13 November 1943) was a French painter, decorative artist, and writer. An important figure in the transitional period between impressionism and modern art, he is associated with ''Les Nabis'', symbolism, a ...
Montfort-l'Amaury
Montfort-l'Amaury () is a commune in the Yvelines department in the Île-de-France region, north central France. It is located north of Rambouillet. The name comes from Amaury I de Montfort, the first ''seigneur'' (lord) of Montfort.
Geogra ...
Ivan Turgenev
Ivan Sergeyevich Turgenev (; rus, links=no, Ива́н Серге́евич Турге́невIn Turgenev's day, his name was written ., p=ɪˈvan sʲɪrˈɡʲe(j)ɪvʲɪtɕ tʊrˈɡʲenʲɪf; 9 November 1818 – 3 September 1883 (Old Style dat ...
House (
Bougival
Bougival () is a suburban commune in the Yvelines department in the Île-de-France region in north-central France. It is located west from the centre of Paris, on the left bank of the River Seine, on the departmental border with Hauts-de-Seine. ...
)
*
Émile Zola
Émile Édouard Charles Antoine Zola (, also , ; 2 April 184029 September 1902) was a French novelist, journalist, playwright, the best-known practitioner of the literary school of naturalism, and an important contributor to the development of ...
's house (
Médan
Médan () is a village in the Yvelines department, Île-de-France region, in the northwestern suburbs of Paris, France, about 25 km from the capital. Inhabitants of Médan are called ''Médanais''.
Geography
Médan is located in the Seine V ...
Marly-le-Roi
Marly-le-Roi () is a commune in the Yvelines department in the administrative region of Île-de-France, France. It is located in the western suburbs of Paris, from the centre of Paris.
Marly-le-Roi was the location of the Château de Marly, t ...
)
* Vaux-sur-Seine Castle Garden ( Vaux-sur-Seine)
* The King's Vegetable Garden (Versailles)
* Outdoor and entertainment base of Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines (
Trappes
Trappes () is a Communes of France, commune in the Yvelines departments of France, department, region of Île-de-France, north-central France. It is a banlieue located in the western suburbs of Paris, from the Kilometre Zero, center of Paris, i ...
Gardens of Versailles
The Gardens of Versailles (french: Jardins du château de Versailles ) occupy part of what was once the ''Domaine royal de Versailles'', the royal demesne of the château of Versailles. Situated to the west of the palace, the gardens cover so ...
File:The Grand Trianon Castle in Summer.JPG, The
Grand Trianon
The Grand Trianon () is a French Baroque style château situated in the northwestern part of the Domain of Versailles in Versailles, France. It was built at the request of King Louis XIV of France as a retreat for himself and his '' maîtresse- ...
Lavoir
A lavoir (wash-house) is a public place set aside for the washing of clothes. Communal washing places were common in Europe until industrial washing was introduced, and this process in turn was replaced by domestic washing machines and by laun ...
Michel Rocard
Michel Rocard (; 23 August 1930 – 2 July 2016) was a French politician and a member of the Socialist Party (PS). He served as Prime Minister under François Mitterrand from 1988 to 1991 during which he created the ''Revenu minimum d'ins ...
DVD
The DVD (common abbreviation for Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any kind ...