Forest of Montmorency - SpeedyLook encyclopedia

The forest of Montmorency is a main forest of 2.200 hectares including 1.970 hectares of forest domanial, located in the Val-d'Oise, to 15 km in the north of Paris.

Physical geography

The forest located between the Valley of Montmorency and the flat of France is deeply undulating and has very wet hollows. Located on vast a Flat-topped outlier of 12 km length and 4 km broad, it is made up of three hills reaching 195 m of altitude (close to the sandy hillock of the Pines Flarings). Several brooks escape from it to feed the Lac of Enghien.

Administrative geography

The forest of Montmorency extends on thirteen communes from the Val-d'Oise:

Fauna and flora

Composed to 90% of Coppice of Chestnut S, planted massively during the 18th century, overexploited during the 20th century, the forest was acquired by the State only between 1970 and 1980. It is the subject since this date of a vast program of refitting to very long run (180 years) by the National office of the forests (ONF) in order to create a Futaie mainly of Chêne S, more favourable with the walk, and to improve the very many reception of a public. It indeed constitutes the first wooded solid mass of importance in the north of Paris.

One finds there the principal gasolines present in Île-de-France: the Chestnut (90%), the Oak, the Beech, the Birch, the woodland Pine and some other coniferous trees. Gasolines specific to certain mediums were also planted by the ONF: the Wild cherry tree or the maple sycamore in the wet hollows.

The forest also shelters the royal Osmonde, fern protected for its scarcity.

Fauna: roe-deers, wild boars, foxes, Badger X.

Geology

On the surface, the Butte-témoin is covered with stone Meulière. In-depth, is the greatest reserve of Gypse of Europe. This one is currently exploited in underground by Lafarge and Placoplatre (Ex SAMC, Public limit company of Building machinery) and constitutes the most important underground career of France, with a million tons exploited per annum. This exploitation does not go without danger, nor without dispute on behalf of environmental associations, because of the dependant risks of collapses on the surface. One estimated in 2005 at more than ten million m ³ the volume of galleries exploited to embank under the forest. The Val-d'Oise is indeed the first producing gypsum department with 50% of the French national production.

The SAMC had to carry out the construction of an underground access to large gauge starting from the Francilienne to Baillet-in-France, which makes of it the longest private road tunnel of France. It should be noted that the air base and load dispatching Center of the air operations (CCOA), HQ of the force of French nuclear deterrence, is installed under the forest with Taverny since 1957 in old careers of Gypse.

History

Whereas the majority of the forests of Île-de-France consisted of oaks at the end of the Moyen-âge, the forest of Montmorency was, it, planted chestnuts necessary to the clothes industry of prop for the many vineyards of the surroundings (the Châtaignier provides a quasi-imputrescible, ideal wood for this use).

Wood was also used for the heating or the clothes industry of hoopings of barrel X. At the beginning of the 20th century, foresters still lived with their families in arranged huts. The forest remained entirely private until in 1933, and parcelled out between various properties of very variable size. It became almost entirely national forest in 1980.

Remarkable places

the castle of Hunting

In the middle of the forest, the castle of Hunting is a small feudal castle (it falls under a square of 20 side m) built at the 12th century by Mathieu de Montmorency. Flanked of four round 6 m in diameter, curiously truncated towers, it constitutes a picturesque table between its two often embrumés ponds.

Eginhard, chronicler of Charlemagne, already described with this site a strong Castle impregnable and named “Castelllum de Chassia” (of the word Gallic cassanos , the oak).

Property of the family of Montmorency, placed in the middle of a giboyeux field, the castle was the appointment of hunting of famous characters: Louis X Hutin, Philippe VI of Valois, Jean the Good, Charles V, Louis XI, François Ier and Henri II. In 1728 the small son of the Grand Cop made cut the turns and cover with tiles. Classified historic building in 1933, become property of the ONF in 1973, the castle is not visited, but the ground floor was arranged to receive the school complexes or to organize temporary exhibitions. Two teaching paths are arranged at the beginning of the castle, one on forest ecology, the other on the forestry techniques. A development of the site (panels, given in state of the covered way of the pond) is partially financed by the group Ikea.

the Holy-Radegonde fountain

Located in the field of the castle of Hunting, the Holy-Radegonde fountain is most famous of the sources of the forest. Its water was supposed to cure sterility. Nothing proves nevertheless the arrival of the Radegonde queen in this place. The forest of Montmorency, and particularly the accesses of the castle of Hunting and the Holy-Radegonde fountain, were at the 18th century a destination of favorite walk of Jean-Jacques Rousseau which came to herborize there.

I counted well that the forest of Montmorency, which was almost with my door, would be from now on my study.

the cemetery of Bosc

With little distance from the castle, one can see one moving small Cimetière drowned in the vegetation. Louis-Augustin Bosc d' Antic (1759 - 1828) one was impassioned of natural history, raises royal Garden of the plants where it followed the courses of Jussieu, and friend of the Girondins during the French revolution.

He accommodated several Of Gironde with the priory of the Holy-Radegonde fountain in 1793, of which the Roland which will know a fine tragedy. (Mrs Roland was guillotinée in November 1793 and her husband gave himself death) Bosc will be made bury in 1828 in this small valley of the forest to which it was particularly attached and there rests with his wife, her daughter and several parents.

the tower of Plumet

This tower, which goes back to 1863, is the work of the baron Joseph Louis Léopold Double. It was restored at the beginning of the Années 2000 by France telecom, mobile telephone operator, following the installation of a relay at its top.

Pond Godard

In the middle of the forest, this pond bears the surname of the famous musician of the 19th century Benjamin Godard. it is the place of convergence of many paths, forming the roundabout of the Camp of César, at the beginning of Taverny or Saint-Leu-the-Forest. It is a halt and a benchmark for the amateurs of jogging or walk.

To deepen

Forest
List of the principal forests of France

External bonds

Site of the National office of the forests
Exposure in line devoted to the forest of Montmorency
the forest of Montmorency seen of the sky (Google Maps)

Notes, sources and references

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