Вансенн: История и достопримечательности французской коммуны.

the French commune Vincennes

Vincennes (/v//ɪ//n/'/s//ɛ//n//z//, //v//æ̃/'/s//ɛ//n/, vɛ̃sɛn) is a commune in the Val de Marne department in the eastern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the centre of Paris. Vincennes is famous for its castle: the Château de Vincennes. It is next to but does not include the Bois de Vincennes, from which it took its name, which is attached to the city of Paris.

The Marquis de Sade was imprisoned in Vincennes fortress in 1777, where he remained until February 1784 although he escaped for a little over a month in 1778. Thereafter Vincennes fortress was closed and de Sade transferred to the Bastille. In 1821, the noted French poet, Alfred de Vigny, wrote his poem, "La Prison," which details the last days of the Man in the Iron Mask at Vincennes. The ministers of Charles X were imprisoned at the fortress of Vincennes after the July Revolution. A test was conducted in 1849 on Claude Étienne Minié's invention the Minié ball which would prove successful and years later be adopted by the French army. On the morning of 15 October 1917, famous femme fatale Mata Hari was executed for espionage by a French firing squad at Vincennes castle. In 1929, the commune of Vincennes lost about half of its territory when the city of Paris annexed the Bois de Vincennes, a large part of which belonged to the commune of Vincennes. Vincennes was also the site of some famous European colonial expositions in the 20th century in which fairs were held to showcase artifacts from former European colonies.

The city is famous for its castle, the Château de Vincennes, and its park, the Bois de Vincennes hosting the only larger zoo in Paris, Paris Zoological Park (though these two are now within the limits of the City of Paris). It also features a large military fort, now housing various army services. This fort and an adjoining plain known as the "Polygon" has historically been an important proving ground for French armaments. The city is also home to the Service Historique de la Défense (SHD), which holds the archival records of the French Armed Forces.

In 1933 Georges Saupique was commissioned to work on one of three "dessus de porte" to be placed above the doors of the new Vincennes' city hall "salle des fêtes". His composition involved allegorical figures representing commerce and industry supporting the Vincennes' coat of arms.

In the old royal château, a porcelain manufactory was established in 1740, specializing in imitations of Meissen porcelain and naturalistic flowers, which were incorporated into bouquets under the direction of Parisian marchands merciers. The Vincennes porcelain factory continued until 1756, when the production was transferred to new buildings at Sèvres, initiating the career of world famous Sèvres porcelain.

Vincennes is served by two stations on Paris Métro Line 1: Bérault and Château de Vincennes. Vincennes is also served by Vincennes station on Paris RER line A.