Chavagnes-en-Paillers () is a
commune of the
Vendée department in the
Pays de la Loire region
In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as areas, zones, lands or territories, are portions of the Earth's surface that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and ...
in western
France
France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
.
Chavagnes en Paillers is known as one of the two ''villes saintes'' (holy towns) of the Vendée. (The other is
Saint-Laurent-sur-Sèvre). It is home to the mother-houses of two religious congregations: the Sons of Mary Immaculate and the
Ursulines of Jesus, both founded by the Roman Catholic priest
Louis-Marie Baudouin in about 1802 in the wake of the French Revolution (1789) and the
War in the Vendée (mainly 1793-1796).
Still present also in Chavagnes is the seminary Baudouin founded for the training of boys and men destined for the priesthood. It was the first junior seminary to be approved in France after the Revolution. It now continues as
Chavagnes International College, an international Catholic boarding school for boys, teaching through the medium of English.
The word Chavagnes is thought to come from the dog Latin ''cabanas'', meaning ''cabins''. The inhabitants are known as ''Chavagnais''.
Statistics
*Altitude: 36 m (mini) – 92 m (maxi)
*Area of the commune of Chavagnes: 40.57 km²
Population
See also
*
Communes of the Vendée department
References
External links
Official siteWebsite of Chavagnes International CollegeThe Annual 100km race in Chavagnes-en-Paillers
Communes of Vendée
{{Vendée-geo-stub