Sens is asub-prefecture and the second largest city of the department, the sixth largest in the region. It is crossed by theYonne and theVanne, which empties into the Yonne here. At the last census of 2021, the municipality had 27,034 inhabitants. Its inhabitants are called lesSenonese in French.
The city was rewarded with the distinction of Grand Prix et quatre fleurs in 2007 at Concours des villes et villages fleuris.[4]
Sens is located at the extreme north-west of theBourgogne-Franche-Comté, on the border of three regions, namely theÎle-de-France, theGrand Est and theCentre-Val de Loire. Located on the course of the riverYonne in the valley of the same name, the city is bordered by the hills ofParon andSaint-Martin-du-Tertre to the west, extension of the plateau ofGâtinais which also extends to theLoiret. To the east, it is bordered by the forest ofOthe which extends over the department ofAube. To the north, the Yonne valley leads to the Brie inSeine-et-Marne.
The city is said to have been one of theoppida of theSenones, one of the oldest Celtic tribes living in Gaul. TheBattle of the Allia was foughtc. 387 BC[5][6] between theSenones – aGallic tribe led byBrennus, who had invadedNorthern Italy – and theRoman Republic. It is mentioned asAgedincum byJulius Caesar[7] several times in hisCommentarii de Bello Gallico. In 53 BC, during the invasion of Gaul, Caesar wintered six legions, at the place called « the camp of Caesar » south of the city.[8]The Roman city was built during the first century BC and surrounded by walls during the third (notable parts of the walls still remain, with alterations along the centuries). It still retains today the skeleton of its Roman street plan.[9] The site was referred to byAmmianus Marcellinus asSenones (oppidum Senonas), where the future emperorJulian faced anAlamannic siege for a few months, but it did not become an administrative center until after thereorganization of the Roman Empire in 375, when it was the chief town ofLugdunensis Quarta.
During theMiddle Ages its archbishops held the prestigious role of primate of Gaul and Germany. The bishop of Sens became anarchbishop as early as the mid-5th century, but the cult of the traditional foundersSavinian and Potentian, not mentioned byGregory of Tours, did not appear until the 8th century, when they were added to the local recension of theSeventy Apostles.[10] TheHôtel de Sens in Paris was their official residence in that city. The Archdiocese of Sens ruled over the dioceses ofChartres,Auxerre,Meaux,Paris,Orléans,Nevers andTroyes, summarized by the acronym CAMPONT.
Sens experienced troublesome times during theWars of Religion. In 1562, 100 of the town’s Huguenot population were killed in theMassacre of Sens.[11]
The city declined after Paris was elevated to archdiocese in 1622. Since 2002, Sens remains an archbishopric (though the incumbent has resided in Auxerre since 1929?)[citation needed] but with no metropolitical function (nopallium or marriage appeals).
Despite the creation of new regions, Sens remains subject to the Paris cour d'appel.
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^Treves 2015: "...in 390 BCE or, according to *Polybius (1)'s more probable chronology, 387."
^Kruta 2000, p. 189: "La bataille de l'Allia aurait eu lieu en 387 av. J.-C., le 18 juillet, jour du calendrier romain proclamé désormais néfaste."
^The manuscripts of theGallic War also give varied readings ofAgendicum andAgetincum (William Smith, ed.A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography); the gilded statue of "Brennus" ("leader") surmounts thehôtel de ville.
