Montpellier (; ) is a city in southern France near the Mediterranean Sea. One of the largest urban centres in the region of Occitania, Montpellier is the prefecture of the department of Hérault. As of 2023, 310,240 people live in the city proper, while its metropolitan area has a population of 842,923. Montpellier is the third-largest French city near the Mediterranean coast, behind Marseille and Nice, and the seventh-largest city of France overall. The inhabitants are called Montpelliérains and Montpelliéraines.
In the Middle Ages, Montpellier was an important city of the Crown of Aragon (and was the birthplace of James I), and then of Majorca, before its sale to France in 1349. Established in 1220, the University of Montpellier is one of the oldest universities in the world and has the oldest medical school still in operation, with notable alumni such as Petrarch, Nostradamus and François Rabelais. Above the medieval city, the ancient citadel of Montpellier is a stronghold built in the seventeenth century by Louis XIII.
Since the 1990s, Montpellier has experienced one of the strongest economic and demographic growths in the country. Its urban area has experienced the highest population growth in France since the year 2000. Numbering 70,000, students comprise nearly one-fourth of its population, one of the highest such proportions in Europe. Its living environment, with one of Europe's largest pedestrian areas, along with its rich cultural life and Mediterranean climate, explains the enthusiasm for the city, which is nicknamed the "Gifted". Montpellier was nominated for "Best Emerging Culture City of the Year 2017" by the think tank LCD. It is ranked as a Sufficiency city by the Globalization and World Cities Research Network.
History
Medieval period
In the Early Middle Ages, the nearby episcopal town of Maguelone was the major settlement in the area, but raids by pirates encouraged settlement a little farther inland. In 737 Charles Martel destroyed Maguelone.
Montpellier, first mentioned in a document of 985, was founded under a local feudal dynasty, the Guilhem, who combined two hamlets and built a castle and walls around the united settlement. The name is from medieval Latin mons pisleri, "Woad Mountain" referring to the woad (Latin pastellus, pestellus) used for dyeing locally. There is no real "mountain" in the area, with the mons referring to a pile of stones. In 986 the Lords of Montpellier begin with William I of Montpellier. In the 10th century the town consisted of two portions, Montpellier and Montpelliéret. In 1160 the law school was active.
The two surviving towers of the city walls, the Tour des Pins and the Tour de la Babotte, were built later, around the year 1200. Montpellier came to prominence in the 12th century—as a trading centre, with trading links across the Mediterranean world, and a rich Jewish cultural life that flourished within traditions of tolerance of Muslims, Jews and Cathars—and later of its Protestants. William VIII of Montpellier gave freedom for all to teach medicine in Montpellier in 1180. The city's faculties of law and medicine were established in 1220 by Cardinal Conrad of Urach, legate of Pope Honorius III; the medical faculty has, over the centuries, been one of the major centres for the teaching of medicine in Europe. This era marked the high point of Montpellier's prominence. The city became a possession of the Kings of Aragon in 1204 by the marriage of Peter II of Aragon with Marie of Montpellier, who was given the city and its dependencies as part of her dowry.
Montpellier gained a charter in 1204 when Peter and Marie confirmed the city's traditional freedoms and granted the city the right to choose twelve governing consuls annually. Under the Kings of Aragon, Montpellier became a very important city, a major economic centre and the primary centre for the spice trade in the Kingdom of France. It was the second or third most important city of France at that time, with some 40,000 inhabitants before the Black Death. Montpellier remained a possession of the crown of Aragon until it passed to James III of Majorca, who sold the city to the French king Philip VI in 1349, to raise funds for his ongoing struggle with Peter IV of Aragon.
From the middle of the 14th century until the French Revolution (1789), Montpellier was part of the province of Languedoc.
Renaissance In the 14th century, Pope Urban VIII gave Montpellier a new monastery dedicated to Saint Peter, noteworthy for the very unusual porch of its chapel, supported by two high, somewhat rocket-like towers. With its importance steadily increasing, the city finally gained a bishop, who moved from Maguelone in 1536, and the huge monastery chapel became a cathedral. In 1432, Jacques Cœur established himself in the city and it became an important economic centre, until 1481 when Marseilles overshadowed it in this role.
After the Reformation At the time of the Reformation in the 16th century, many of the inhabitants of Montpellier became Protestants (or Huguenots as they were known in France) and the city became a stronghold of Protestant resistance to the Catholic French crown. Montpellier was among the most important of the 66 ('cities of protection' or 'protected cities') that the Edict of Nantes granted to the Huguenots. The city's political institutions and the university were all handed over to the Huguenots.
Increasing tension with Paris led to King Louis XIII besieging the city in 1622. A truce ended 40 days of bombardment on 12 October 1622, with the Huguenots agreeing to the peace settlement on 18 October. Peace terms called for the dismantling of the city's fortifications and the building of the royal Citadel of Montpellier to secure the city for the government. The university and consulate were taken over by the Catholic party. Even before the Edict of Alès in 1629, Protestant rule was dead and the was no more.
Louis XIV made Montpellier capital of Bas Languedoc, and the town started to embellish itself, by building the Promenade du Peyrou, the Esplanade and a large number of houses in the historic centre.
French Revolution
After the French Revolution, the city became the capital of the much smaller Department of Hérault.
Modern history During the 19th century the city thrived on the wine culture that it was able to produce due to the abundance of sun throughout the year. The wine consumption in France allowed Montpellier's citizens to become very wealthy until in the 1890s the phylloxera induced fungal disease had spread amongst the vineyards and the people were no longer able to grow the grapes needed for wine.
During the repression of January and February 1894, the police conducted raids targeting the anarchists living there, without much success.
After this the city grew because it welcomed French repatriates from Algeria and other parts of northern Africa after Algeria's independence from France. In the 21st century Montpellier is between France's number seventh and eighth largest city. The city had another influx in population more recently, largely due to the student population, who make up about one-fourth of Montpellier's population. The school of medicine kickstarted the city's thriving university culture, though many other universities have been well established there. The coastal city also benefited in the past 40 years from major construction programs such as Antigone, Port Marianne and Odysseum districts.
Geography The city is situated on hilly ground inland from the Mediterranean coast, on the river Lez.
Montpellier is located from Marseille, from Toulouse, and from Paris. The city is relatively close to Nîmes, being just 50 km (31 mi).
Montpellier's highest point is the Place du Peyrou, at an altitude of . The city is built on two hills, Montpellier and Montpelliéret, thus some of its streets have great differences of altitude. Some of its streets are also very narrow and old, which gives it a more intimate feel.
Climate Montpellier has a Mediterranean climate (Köppen Csa), with cool, damp winters, and hot, rather dry summers. The monthly mean ranges from in January to in July. Precipitation is around , and is greatest in fall and winter, but not absent in summer, either. Extreme temperatures have ranged from recorded on 5 February 1963 and up to on 28 June 2019.
Neighborhoods Since 2001, Montpellier has been divided into seven official neighbourhoods, themselves divided into sub-neighbourhoods. Each of them possesses a neighbourhood council.
Montpellier-centre: historical centre (Écusson), Comédie, Gares, Faubourg Boutonnet, Saint-Charles, Faubourg Saint-Jaume, Peyrou, Les Arceaux, Figuerolles, Faubourg du Courreau, Gambetta, Clémenceau, Méditerranée, boulevard de Strasbourg, Le Triangle, Polygone, Antigone, Nouveau-Monde, Parc à Ballons, Les Aubes, Les Beaux-Arts, Saint-Lazare. Croix-d'Argent: avenue de Toulouse, Croix d'Argent, Mas Drevon, Tastavin, Lemasson, Garosud, Mas de Bagnères, Mas Nouguier, les Sabines, Lepic, Pas du Loup, Estanove, les Bouisses, Val-de-Crozes, Bagatelle. Les Cévennes: Les Cévennes, Alco, Le Petit Bard, Pergola, Saint-Clément, Clémentville, Las Rebès, La Chamberte, La Martelle, Montpellier-Village, Les Grisettes, Les Grèzes. Mosson: La Mosson, Celleneuve, La Paillade, les Hauts-de-Massane, Le Grand-Mail, Les Tritons. Hôpitaux-Facultés: Malbosc, Saint-Priest, Euromédecine, Zolad, Plan des 4 Seigneurs, Hôpitaux, IUT, Père Soulas, Universités, Vert-Bois, Hauts de Boutonnet, Aiguelongue, Justice, Parc zoologique de Lunaret, Agropolis. Port-Marianne: La Pompignane, Richter, Millénaire, Jacques Cœur, Consuls de Mer, Grammont, Odysseum, Montaubérou, La Méjanelle, Cambacérès. Prés d'Arènes: Les Prés d'Arènes, Avenue de Palavas, La Rauze, Tournezy, Saint-Martin, Les Aiguerelles, Pont-Trinquat, Cité Mion.
Demographics
The whole metropolitan area had a population of 813,272 at the 2020 census. In a study made by INSEE from 2017 to 2023 Montpellier saw the strongest population growth of France's cities with more than 100,000 inhabitants (+1.4%). For most of its history, and even today, Montpellier has been known for its significant Spanish population, heritage and influence. Montpellier also houses significant Moroccan, Algerian, and Italian communities.
Heraldry
Sights
The main focus point of the city is the Place de la Comédie, with the Opéra Comédie built in 1888. The Musée Fabre. In the historic centre, a significant number of hôtels particuliers (i.e. mansions) can be found. The majority of the buildings of the historic centre of Montpellier (called the Écusson because its shape is roughly that of an escutcheon) have medieval roots and were modified between the 16th and the 18th centuries. Some buildings, along Rue Foch and the Place de la Comédie, were built in the 19th century. The Rue du Bras de Fer (Iron Arm Street) is very typical of the medieval Montpellier. The mikve, ritual Jewish bath, dates back to the 12th century and is one of very few old mikves preserved in Europe. The Jardin des plantes de Montpellier—oldest botanical garden in France, founded in 1593. The La Serre Amazonienne, a tropical rain forest greenhouse The 14th-century Saint Pierre Cathedral The Porte du Peyrou, a triumphal arch built at the end of the 17th century, and the Place Royal du Peyrou built in the 17th century, are the highest point of the Ecusson. The Tour des Pins, the only remaining of 25 towers of the medieval city walls, built around 1200. The Tour de la Babote, a medieval tower which was modified in the 18th century to house an observatory. The Saint Clément Aqueduct, built in the 18th century. The Antigone District was designed by the postmodern architect Ricardo Bofill from Catalonia, Spain A number of châteaux (such as Château de Flaugergues, Château de la Mogère or Château d'O), so-called follies, built during the 18th century by wealthy merchants surround the city