Orléans

Key Facts about Orléans

1. Orléans is a city in North-central France, located about 80 miles (130 kilometers) to the Southwest of Paris.
   
   
2. As of the 1999 census, Orleans had a population of 113,126.
   
   
3. Prior to the arrival of the Romans, there was a Gallic settlement in the area known as Cenabum.
   
   
4. The Romans, led by Julius Caesar, conquered and destroyed Cenabum in 52 BCE.
   
   
5. The Emperor Aurelian (214 to 275, Roman Emperor 270 to 275) built a new city on the site, calling it Aurelianum, or Aureliana Civitas.
   
   
6. The modern name Orléans, is derived from this: Orléans derives from "cité d'Aurélien" (city of Aurelian).
   
   
7. In the early 5th century, the Alans migrated to Gaul, and settled in the area around Orléans.
   
   
8. In 451, one of the final Roman victories of ancient history took place in the vicinity of Orléans. An alliance of Romans, Visigoths, and some Alans, led by the Roman general Flavius Aëtius, defeated the invading Huns, led by Attila, at the Battle of Catalaunian Plains (also known as the Battle of Châlons).
   
   
9. During the Hundred Years War between England and France, Orléanswas the scene of an important turning point in the conflict, when Joan of Arc led the French to victory in a battle there in 1429.
   
   
10. The city of New Orleans in the United States is named after Orléans. The name comes from the time when the French controlled Louisiana, and the city was named after King Louis XV of France's regent of Louisiana, the duke of Orléans.

Weather in Orléans

• BBC Weather forecast for Orléans, France