La Ferté-Bernard

La Ferté-Bernard
La Ferté-Bernard
	Commune
	The church of Notre-Dame des Marais
	Coat of arms
	Location of La Ferté-Bernard
	La Ferté-Bernard La Ferté-Bernard
	Coordinates: 48°11′15″N 0°39′19″E
Country	France
Region	Pays de la Loire
Department	Sarthe
Arrondissement	Mamers
Canton	La Ferté-Bernard
Intercommunality	Pays de l'Huisne Sarthoise
Government
• Mayor (2020–2026)	Didier Reveau
Area 1	14.96 km2 (5.78 sq mi)
Population (2017-01-01)[1]	8,820
• Density	590/km2 (1,500/sq mi)
Demonym(s)	Fertois, Fertoise
Time zone	UTC+01:00 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00 (CEST)
INSEE/Postal code	72132 /72400
Elevation	79–146 m (259–479 ft)
	1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

La Ferté-Bernard is a commune in the Sarthe department in the Pays de la Loire region in north-western France.

Twin towns

It is twinned with Louth in Lincolnshire.

History

La Ferté-Bernard owes its origin and name to a stronghold (fermeté) built about the 11th century and afterwards held by the family of Bernard. In 1424 it did not succumb to the English troops until after a four months' siege. It belonged in the 16th century to the family of Guise and supported the League, but was captured by the royal forces in 1590.[2]

La Ferté-Bernard was involved in the 1906 Grand Prix de l'Automobile Club de France, the world's first motoring Grand Prix. The D97 towards Le Mans and the D1 towards Vibraye and Saint-Calais formed two sides of the triangular course.

Notable people

Louise du Pierry, astronomer, was born here[3] on 7/30/1746 or 8/1/1746 as Elisabeth Louise Felicite Pourra de la Madeleine.

Local folklore

La Ferte-Bernard is connected with a mythical dragon called the Peluda, which is said to have terrorized the town in medieval times.

References

"Populations légales 2017". INSEE. Retrieved 6 January 2020.
One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "La Ferté-Bernard". Encyclopædia Britannica. 16 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 68.
Bernardi, Gabriella (2016-03-14). The Unforgotten Sisters: Female Astronomers and Scientists before Caroline Herschel. ISBN 9783319261270.

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[1] "Populations légales 2017". INSEE. Retrieved 6 January 2020.

[2] One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "La Ferté-Bernard". Encyclopædia Britannica. 16 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 68.

[3] Bernardi, Gabriella (2016-03-14). The Unforgotten Sisters: Female Astronomers and Scientists before Caroline Herschel. ISBN 9783319261270.