Moulins, Allier

Moulins
Coat of arms
Moulins
Location within Auvergne region Moulins
Coordinates:
Country	France
Region	Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes
Department	Allier
Arrondissement	Moulins
Intercommunality	Moulins
Government
• Mayor (2014-2020)	Pierre-André Périssol (UMP)
Area1	8.61 km2 (3.32 sq mi)
Population (2012)2	18,959
• Density	2,200/km2 (5,700/sq mi)
INSEE/Postal code	03190 / 03000
Elevation	202–240 m (663–787 ft) (avg. 220 m or 720 ft)
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries. 2 Population without double counting: residents of multiple communes (e.g., students and military personnel) only counted once.

Moulins (French: [mu.lɛ̃]) is a commune in central France, capital of the Allier department. It is located on the Allier River.

Among its many tourist attractions are the Maison Mantin, the Anne de Beaujeu Museum, and The National Center of Costume and Scenography.

Geography

Moulins is located on the banks of the Allier River.

History

Before the French Revolution, Moulins was the capital of the province of Bourbonnais and the seat of the Dukes of Bourbon. It appears in documented records at least as far as the year 990. In 1232, Archambaud VIII, Sire de Bourbon, granted a franchise to the village's inhabitants.

The town achieved greater prominence in 1327, when Charles IV elevated Louis I de Clermont to Duke of Bourbon. Either Louis or the later Peter II, Duke of Bourbon and of Auvergne moved the capital of the province from Bourbon-l'Archambault to Moulins.

Note: This article in French suggests Pierre II moved the capital, while the local tourism website (also in French) suggests it was Louis I.

In February 1566 it became eponymous to the Edict of Moulins, an important royal ordinance dealing with many aspects of the administration of justice and feudal and ecclesiastical privilege, including limitations on the appanages held by French princes, abrogation of the levy of rights of tallage claimed by seigneurs over their dependents, and provisions for a system of concessions on rivers.

This was the birthplace of the great 19th-century operatic baritone and art collector Jean-Baptiste Faure. In the 20th century, Coco Chanel went to school in Moulins as an orphan, before moving to Paris, where she became a fashion designer and major innovator in women's clothing.

International relations

See also: List of twin towns and sister cities in France

Twin towns — Sister cities

Moulins is twinned with:

• Montepulciano, Italy
• Bad Vilbel, Germany

Population

Historical population
Year	Pop.	±%
1793	13,249	—
1800	13,509	+2.0%
1806	14,101	+4.4%
1821	13,697	−2.9%
1831	14,672	+7.1%
1836	15,231	+3.8%
1841	15,377	+1.0%
1846	17,110	+11.3%
1851	17,318	+1.2%
1856	18,069	+4.3%
1861	17,581	−2.7%
1866	19,890	+13.1%
1872	20,385	+2.5%
1876	21,774	+6.8%
1881	21,156	−2.8%
1886	21,721	+2.7%
1891	22,665	+4.3%
1896	22,215	−2.0%
1901	22,340	+0.6%
1906	21,888	−2.0%
1911	21,990	+0.5%
1921	22,968	+4.4%
1926	23,306	+1.5%
1931	22,225	−4.6%
1936	22,369	+0.6%
1946	23,254	+4.0%
1954	24,441	+5.1%
1962	23,909	−2.2%
1968	25,979	+8.7%
1975	26,067	+0.3%
1982	25,159	−3.5%
1990	22,799	−9.4%
1999	21,892	−4.0%
2008	19,760	−9.7%
2012	18,959	−4.1%

Transport

Moulins-sur-Allier station, in the centre of the town, has direct trains to Paris-Gare de Lyon, which take about 2 hours 25 minutes.

Montbeugny Airport is a small airport located near Moulins.

Museums

• Centre National du Costume de Scene (museum)

Personalities

• Coco Chanel, fashion designer, started as a cabaret singer here
• Philippe N'Dioro, footballer
• Stéphane Risacher, basketball player with the French national team, born in Moulins
• Jean-Baptiste Faure, opera singer, born in Moulins
• Claude Louis Hector de Villars, Marshal General of France, lived 1653–1734, born in Moulins

See also

• Moulins Cathedral
• Diocese of Moulins
• AS Moulins
• Communes of the Allier department

References

• INSEE

External links

• City council website (in French)
• Local tourism website (in French)
• Picture of Moulins Cathedral

1. REDIRECT Template:Prefectures of French departments