Evreux

Evreux (ancient Mediolanum, later Eburovices), the capital of the French department of Eure, is situated in the fertile valley of the Iton, a feeder of the Eure, 67 miles by rail WNW. of Paris. The cathedral, of various dates from the 11th to the 18th century, is a cruciform structure, with Italian façade, a central spire, and fine painted glass. Other buildings are St Taurin's, with a 13th-century shrine, which once contained the relics of that saint, the first Bishop of Evreux; the episcopal palace (1484); and the 'Tour de l'Horloge,' of the same century. Evreux has extensive manufactures of paper, linen, &c., and a trade in grain, seeds, timber, and liquors. Pop. (1872) 10,702; (1886) 13,135. Evreux has sustained innumerable sieges, having been sacked in 892 by the Normans under Rollo, burned by Henry I. of England in 1119, and in 1194 and 1199 captured by Philip Augustus of France. It was frequently taken and recovered in the wars between France and England during the reigns of our Henry V. and VI.—At the neighbouring village of VIEL EVREUX, supposed to mark the site of Mediolanum, excavations have disclosed remains of a theatre, an aqueduct, baths, &c.