Boulogne-Billancourt is one of the wealthiest regions in the Parisian area and in France.[3] Formerly an important industrial site, it has successfully reconverted into business services and is now home to major communication companies headquartered in theVal de Seinebusiness district.
The original name of the commune was Boulogne-sur-Seine (meaning "Boulogne uponSeine").
Before the 14th century, Boulogne was a small village calledMenuls-lès-Saint-Cloud (meaning "Menuls nearSaint-Cloud"). In the beginning of the 14th century, KingPhilip IV of France ordered the building inMenuls-lès-Saint-Cloud of a church dedicated to the virgin of the sanctuary ofBoulogne-sur-Mer, then a famous pilgrimage centre in northern France. The church, meant to become a pilgrimage centre closer to Paris than the distant city of Boulogne-sur-Mer, was named Notre-Dame de Boulogne la Petite ("Our Lady of Boulogne the Minor"). Gradually, the village ofMenuls-lès-Saint-Cloud became known asBoulogne-la-Petite, and later asBoulogne-sur-Seine.
In 1924,Boulogne-sur-Seine was officially renamed Boulogne-Billancourt to reflect the development of the industrial neighbourhood of Billancourt annexed in 1860.
As for the name Billancourt, it was recorded for the first time in 1150 asBullencort, sometimes also spelledBollencort. It comes fromMedieval Latincortem,accusative ofcors, meaning "enclosure", "estate", suffixed to the Germanicpatronym Buolo (meaning "friend, brother, kinsman"), thus having the meaning of "estate of Buolo".
In 1860, the city of Paris absorbed the territory of the former communes that were located inside theThiers fortifications.[4] On that occasion, the communes ofAuteuil andPassy were disbanded and divided between Boulogne-Billancourt (then calledBoulogne-sur-Seine) and the city of Paris.Boulogne-sur-Seine received a small part of the territory of Passy, and about half of the territory of Auteuil (including the area of Billancourt, which belonged to the disbanded commune of Auteuil).
In 1929, theBois de Boulogne, which was hitherto divided between the communes of Boulogne-Billancourt andNeuilly-sur-Seine, was annexed in its entirety by the city of Paris. On that occasion, Boulogne-Billancourt, to which most of the Bois de Boulogne belonged, lost about half of its territory. Since then, Boulogne-Billancourt has been surrounded to the west, south and east by theSeine and to the north and north-east by the16th arrondissement of Paris.
Boulogne-Billancourt is known for being the birthplace of three major French industries. It was the location, in 1906 for the very firstaircraft factory, that ofAppareils d'Aviation Les Frères Voisin,[6] which was then followed by those of many other aviation pioneers, and the tradition continues with several aviation related companies still operating in the area. In the mid 20th century, the companySNCAC had a manufacturing facility in Boulogne-Billancourt that was damaged by Allied bombing on 3 March 1942.[7]
Theautomobile industry had a large presence withRenault onÎle Seguin, as well asSalmson building both cars and aircraft engines. Finally, the French film industry started here and, from 1922 to 1992 it was the home of theBillancourt Studios, and since becoming a major location for Frenchfilm production. It was used as the setting of the TV showCode Lyoko.
The ecologic neighbourhood of theTrapèze in Boulogne-Billancourt: the district stands on 74 hectares and will be able to house up to 18,000 inhabitants at the end of its construction. 65% of the district's energy is brought by geothermal power, which heats and freshens the buildings. Solar panels and a vegetable greenhouse were installed in the aim to link the district to sustainable energies. Bicycle and "soft" travels will of course be put first to reduce the pollution caused by cars, as well as other vehicles which do not run on electricity.[10]
TheMusée Albert-Kahn at 14, Rue du Port, Boulogne-Billancourt is a national museum and includes four hectares of gardens, joining landscape scenes of various national traditions. The museum also includes historic photographs and film.
The publiccollèges (middle schools) in the commune include Jacqueline-Auriol, Bartholdi, Paul-Landowski and Jean-Renoir. The public high schools are theLycée Jacques-Prévert and the Lycée Polyvalent Étienne-Jules-Marey.[21] Prior to the September 1968 opening of Prévert, the first high school/sixth-form in Boulogne, an annex ofLycée La Fontaine served the city.[22]
The private schoolGroupe Scolaire Maïmonide Rambam covers maternelle through lycée. There is also the private high school Notre-Dame. The latter's performance and ranking in Boulogne-Billancourt are given by its success of baccalaureate rate in different series. According to the ranking ofL'Express in 2015, the national rank of Notre-Dame de Boulogne was 170 out of 2301 and 7 out of 52 at department level. The private schools Dupanloup and Saint-Joseph-du-Parchamp serve maternelle through collège. Private maternelle and élémentaire schools include Saint-Alexandre and Saint-François d’Assise. Jardin de Solférino and La Maison de l'Enfant are private maternelles.[23]
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