Gondreville, Loiret

Etymology

Gondreville (Gondulphi + villa; "farm of Gondulphe") was an old farm from Gallo-Roman times. Historically and in some publications, it has been known as Gondreville la Franche since the mid-seventeenth century, but this name has almost disappeared from everyday speech.

History

Gondreville was part of the Canton of Corbeilles from 1793 until 1801 when it became part of the Canton of Ferrières-en-Gâtinais.

Geography

Gondreville is situated in northern-central France, about 110 kilometres south of Paris. The nearest major town is Montargis, located to the southeast of Gondreville. The commune of Corquilleroy lies 5 kilometres to the east and the commune of Mignères lies to the southwest. 3 kilometres to the south is the commune of Pannes and the village of Le Bois-de-Fourche and to the northwest is the hamlet of Le Temple.

Gondreville is 803 hectares in sizes. It is situated in the is located in the Loing River basin, between Petit Fusain and the Loing canal.

The centre street of the village of Gondreville, running in a west-east direction, is named Rue Georges Pallain à Montargis ("Street of Georges Pallain of Montargis"). It is named in honor of Georges Pallain (1847–1923), mayor of Gondreville-la-Franche, Governor of the Bank de France, and President of the Société historique & archéologique du Gâtinais,

Demographics

A census conducted in 1793 recorded a population of 294. The population stayed the same between 1830 and 1896: 310 inhabitants in 1831; 276 in 1836; 286 in 1841; 314 in 1851; 304 in 1856; 293 in 1859; 3o8 in 1861; 318 in 1866; 303 in 1886 and 1891; and 314 in 1896. The village received its population peak in 1954 when 414 people were reported to be living in the commune. Since then, it has declined somewhat, having a population of 371 people in 2006.

Culture

At the end of the 13th century, the Flolin priory hired John of Bagneaux to build a church, L'église de Saint-Loup, for the parish and it became a bright feature of the town. When the old church fell into ruin, it was reconstructed in 1879 in the Gothic style under the auspices of a Mr. Legiund, an architect from Montargis. Built following a cruciform architectural plan, the building has a polygonal apse. There is a stone and brick tower anda gabled wall serves as a base for a porch. The interior contains cross vaults of flat brick and plaster moldings can be seen in the arches. Other features include cul-de-lampe, cantilevered stone protrusions, while the aisles contain two archivolt ogives and chamfered edging. Pilgrims to this church come for the healing of fear and sore legs, and for the preservation of sheep. The church has a reliquary containing the bones of the patron saint, given by the Bishop of Orléans, transported from Orléans to Gondreville on August 25, 1855. The church is also dedicated to Saint Sebastian, martyred in Rome on January 20 288, and his martyrdom is celebrated in the commune.

The town's single tennis court is located next to the cemetery.

Transport

The A77 autoroute passes from north-south to the east of the village of Gondrevillage and the A19 autoroute passes from west-east to the north. The A77 joins the A6 autoroute (European route E15) near Lepuy (commune of Chaintreaux) and connects the village to Paris in the north.