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Villers-Cotterêts is a commune of the Aisne département in the Picardie (Picardy) région in northern France.
Geography It is located 80 km NE of Paris via the RN2 facing Laon. Its nickname Petite villa sur la côte de Retz means Little villa by the coast of Retz, as the town is situated next to the Retz forest which covers 130 km² of land. History Villers-Cotterêts is famous because of the Ordinance of Villers-Cotterêts 1539 signed by king Francis I of France ('François Ier') which made French the official language in the kingdom instead of Latin. Sight The Château, known as Chateau de Noüe, built in the 16th century for François Ier, later got 18th century régénce decoration by Gilles-Marie Oppenord. Miscellaneous It was the birthplace of Alexandre Dumas, père (1802-1870), novelist. | ||||||||
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