L'Aigle

For the municipality in Switzerland, see Aigle.

L'Aigle
Commune
The chateau in L'Aigle
Coat of arms
Location of L'Aigle
L'Aigle Show map of France L'Aigle Show map of Normandy
Coordinates: 48°46′N0°38′E / 48.77°N 0.63°E / 48.77; 0.63
Country	France
Region	Normandy
Department	Orne
Arrondissement	Mortagne-au-Perche
Canton	L'Aigle
Intercommunality	Pays de L'Aigle
Government
• Mayor (2020–2026)	Philippe Van-Hoorne [1]
Area 1	18.02 km2 (6.96 sq mi)
Population  (2021) [2]	7,824
• Density	430/km2 (1,100/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+01:00 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00 (CEST)
INSEE/Postal code	61214 /61300
Elevation	195–277 m (640–909 ft) (avg. 210 m or 690 ft)
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

L'Aigle is a commune in the Orne department in Normandy in northwestern France. Before 1961, the commune was known as Laigle. ^[3] According to Orderic Vitalis, the nest of an eagle (aigle in French) was discovered during the construction of the castle.

The river Risle flows through the commune.

Meteorite

Main article: L'Aigle (meteorite)

On 26 April 1803 a meteoroid entered the Earth's atmosphere and air burst over L'Aigle. ^[4]

Population

Historical population

Year	Pop.	±% p.a.
1968	8,702	—
1975	9,619	+1.44%
1982	9,834	+0.32%
1990	9,466	−0.48%
1999	8,972	−0.59%
2007	8,508	−0.66%
2012	7,940	−1.37%
2017	8,090	+0.38%
Source: INSEE [5]

Points of Interest

• Musée Juin 44 - The Museum of June 44 has told the story of the Battle of Normandy, since 1953 in L'Aigle. ^[6]
• Musée De La Météorite De L'aigle - The Museum of the L'Aigle meteorite is dedicated to the 1803 event in L'Aigle when thousands of fragments of a meteorite reached the ground of L'Aigle. ^{[7] [8]}
• Musée des Instruments de musique is a museum located in the town hall, presenting to the public over 90 different types of instruments. ^[9] The museum opened in 1983, when local musician, Marcel Angot, upon his death bequeathed his collection to the local community. ^[10]
• musée Louis Verrière a museum dedicated to the work of local farmer and woodcarver Louis Verrière, works include a replica of the Eiffel Tower and panorama of Lourdes, which took 30,000 hours to complete. ^[11] The museum opened to the public in 2014. ^[12]

National heritage sites

The Commune has eight buildings and areas listed as a Monument historique ^[13]

• L'Aigle Chateau, A seventeenth-century chateau including its shed and stables were listed as a monument in 1948. ^[14]
• Saint-Barthélémy Church, A twelfth-century church, originally part of the Saint-Lhomer abbey of Blois, was listed in 1966 ^[15]
• Saint-Jean Church, A fifteenth-century church which was registered as a monument in 1985 ^[16]
• Saint-Martin Church, An eleventh-century church, which had work added to it in the fifteenth, sixteenth and twentieth centuries, was listed as a monument in 1990. ^[17] The work in the 20th century, which was to repair the glass roofs of the southern roof, also saw the empty canopies of the southern part decorated with work from artists including Paul Belmondo, Hubert Yencesse and Jean Lambert-Rucki. ^[17]
• Hotel Colombel de la Rousselière, A seventeenth-century hotel, which was listed in 1981. ^[18]
• Small Hotel Colombel, An eighteenth-century hotel, registered as a monument in 1987. ^[19]
• Mérouvel needle factory, Built in 1819, the factory remained in use until 1952, where after the Second World War it spent the last few years of its life as a plastics moulding factory. ^[20] The workshops have since been in part transformed into housing, and it was listed as a monument in 1987. ^[20]
• Coaching inn, This former coaching inn was built in the eighteenth century, and listed as a monument in 1981. ^[21]

Transport

L'Aigle station has rail connections to Argentan, Paris and Granville. ^[22]

Notable People

• Charles de la Cerda (1327 - 1354), commonly known as Charles of Spain, was a Franco-Castilian nobleman and soldier who died here. ^[23]
• Charles-Simon Catel (1773 - 1830), a composer and educator, was born here. ^[24]
• Léon Richer (1824 – 1911), a free-thinker, freemason, journalist and feminist who worked closely with Maria Deraismes during the early years of the feminist movement in Paris, was born here. ^[25]
• Léon-Eugène Méhédin (1828 – 1905), an archaeologist, architect and photographer who was born here. ^[26]
• André Sylvane (1851, L'Aigle – 1932), a dramatist and screenwriter, was born here. ^[25]

Heraldry

Arms of L'Aigle

The arms of L'Aigle are blazoned  : Or, a double-headed eagle sable, a chief France modern (Azure, 3 fleurs de lys Or).

Events

• 8 January 1354 : Assassination of the constable of France, Charles d'Espagne, by men of Charles the Bad, king of Navarre.
• 26 April 1803 - meteorite falls.

Twin towns – sister cities

See also: List of twin towns and sister cities in France

L'Aigle is twinned with: ^[27]

• Aigle, Switzerland
• Clausthal-Zellerfeld, Germany
• Spišská Nová Ves, Slovakia

See also

• Communes of the Orne department
• L'Aigle station
• L'Aigle family

References

1. "Répertoire national des élus: les maires" (in French). data.gouv.fr, Plateforme ouverte des données publiques françaises. 13 September 2022.
2. "Populations légales 2021". The National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies. 28 December 2023.
3. Commune de L'Aigle (61214), INSEE
4. "ACCOUNT OF A FIRE BALL". The Observer . Manchester. 11 September 1803. p. 3.
5. Population en historique depuis 1968, INSEE
6. "Musée Juin 44".
7. "Météorite de l'Aigle". Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle.
8. "Exposition permanente de la météorite - Journées du Patrimoine 2022 - Musée de la météorite - L'Aigle, 61300 - Sortir à L'Aigle". leparisien.fr.
9. "A L'Aigle, quatre musées qui n'attendent que la lumière". actu.fr. 26 August 2023.
10. "Visite libre du musée des Instruments de musique - Journées du Patrimoine 2023 - Musée des instruments de musique Angot - L'Aigle, 61300 - Sortir à L'Aigle". leparisien.fr.
11. "Musée Louis Verrière, L'Aigle, undefined - infos et adresse". leparisien.fr.
12. "Visitez le musée Louis Verrière et son panorama de Lourdes". actu.fr. 6 February 2015.
13. "Les Monuments Historiques en Orne - 61". monumentum.fr.
14. "Château et ses communs à L'Aigle - PA00110681". monumentum.fr.
15. "Eglise Saint-Barthélémy à L'Aigle - PA00110682". monumentum.fr.
16. "Eglise Saint-Jean à L'Aigle - PA00110683". monumentum.fr.
17. "Eglise Saint-Martin à L'Aigle - PA00110684". monumentum.fr.
18. "Hôtel Colombel de la Rousselière à L'Aigle - PA00110685". monumentum.fr.
19. "Petit Hôtel Colombel à L'Aigle - PA00110686". monumentum.fr.
20. "Usine d'aiguilles de Mérouvel à L'Aigle - PA00110688". monumentum.fr.
21. "Ancien relais de poste à L'Aigle - PA00110687". monumentum.fr.
22. Plan du réseau, TER Normandie, accessed 24 September 2023.
23. Delachenal, Roland, ed. (1910). Les Grandes Chroniques de France: Chronique des règnes de Jean II et de Charles V, Tome Premier (1350 – 1364). Vol. I. Librairie Renouard. pp. 37–38.
24. "Radio Swiss Classic - Music database - Musician". www.radioswissclassic.ch.
25. "Histoire. Le fondateur du féminisme Léon Richer est né à L'Aigle dans l'Orne". actu.fr. 11 August 2019.
26. "RKD Research". research.rkd.nl.
27. "Jumelage". ville-laigle.fr (in French). L'Aigle. Retrieved 20 April 2021.