Dreux (French pronunciation: [dʁø]) is a commune in the Eure-et-Loir department in northern France.

Geography

Dreux lies on the small river Blaise, a tributary of the Eure, about 35 km north of Chartres. Dreux station has rail connections to Argentan, Paris and Granville. The Route nationale 12 (Paris–Rennes) passes north of the town.

History

Dreux was known in ancient times as Durocassium, the capital of the Durocasses Celtic tribe. Despite the legend, its name was not related with Druids. The Romans established here a fortified camp known as Castrum Drocas.

In the Middle Ages, Dreux was the centre of the County of Dreux. The first count of Dreux was Robert, the son of King Louis the Fat. The first large battle of the French Wars of Religion occurred at Dreux, on 19 December 1562, resulting in a hard-fought victory for the Catholic forces of the duc de Montmorency.

In October 1983, the Front National won 55% of the vote in the second round of elections for the city council of Dreux, in one of its first significant electoral victories.

Population

Dreux has a significant Muslim population, and is estimated to be around 35%. Dreux's Muslim population consists mainly of North Africans, Arabs, Turks, and Sub-Saharan Africans. Many Muslims in Dreux experience high levels of poverty and unemployment. One-in-four residents in the town are immigrants.

Sights

Chapelle royale de Dreux

In 1775, the lands of the comté de Dreux had been given to the Louis Jean Marie de Bourbon, duc de Penthièvre by his cousin Louis XVI. In 1783, the duke sold his domain of Rambouillet to Louis XVI. On 25 November of that year, in a long religious procession, Penthièvre transferred the nine caskets containing the remains of his parents, the Louis-Alexandre de Bourbon, comte de Toulouse and Marie Victoire de Noailles, comtesse de Toulouse, his wife, Marie Thérèse Félicité d'Este, Princess of Modène, and six of their seven children, from the small medieval village church next to the castle in Rambouillet, to the chapel of the Collégiale Saint-Étienne de Dreux. The duc de Penthièvre died in March 1793 and his body was laid to rest in the crypt beside his parents. On 21 November of that same year, in the midst of the French Revolution, a mob desecrated the crypt and threw the ten bodies in a mass grave in the Chanoines cemetery of the Collégiale Saint-Étienne. In 1816, the duc de Penthièvre's daughter, Louise Marie Adélaïde de Bourbon, duchesse d'Orléans, had a new chapel built on the site of the mass grave of the Chanoines cemetery, as the final resting place for her family. In 1830, Louis-Philippe I, King of the French, son of the duchesse d'Orléans, embellished the chapel which was renamed Chapelle royale de Dreux, now the necropolis of the Orléans royal family.

Other sights

• Musée d'Art et d'Histoire de Dreux
• Hôtel de Montulé (16th century)
• Pavilion of Louis XVI
• Hôtel de Salvat-Duhalde (18th century)
• Renaissance Château d'Anet

Personalities

Dreux was the birthplace of:

• Kalifa Cissé, footballer
• Martin Pierre d'Alvimare (1772–1839), composer and harpist
• Charles Delescluze (1809–1871), journalist and military commander of the Paris Commune
• Siraba Dembélé, handball player
• Abdou Dieye, footballer
• Louis Victor Dubois (1837–1914), wine merchant and politician
• Léa Le Garrec, footballer for Fleury and the France national team
• Antoine Godeau (1605–1672), bishop, poet and exegete. He is now known for his work of criticism Discours de la poésie chrétienne from 1633.
• Rémi Gounelle (1967–), Protestant theologian
• Marouan Kechrid, basketball player
• Yannick Lesourd, athlete
• Jean-Louis-Auguste Loiseleur-Deslongchamps (1774–1849), botanist
• Eddie London (1956–), singer
• François-André Danican Philidor (1726–1795), musician and chess player
• Jean Rotrou (1609–1650), poet and tragedian
• Issa Samba, footballer
• Adrien Trebel (1991–), footballer
• Guerschon Yabusele, basketball player

Twin towns - sister cities

Dreux is twinned with:

See also

• Communes of the Eure-et-Loir department

References

External links

• City council website (in French)
• Tourist office website
• Personal website about Dreux (in French)

Dreux Pierre Frédéric (born November 26, 1985) better known by his stage name Lil' Fizz, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter and actor best known for being the youngest member and rapper of the R&B group B2K. Formerly, he starred on the television show Love & Hip Hop: Hollywood.

Early life

Frédéric was born in New Orleans, Louisiana and raised in Los Angeles, California. He is of Louisiana Creole heritage.

Career

Known as the rapper of the group, Lil' Fizz was a member of B2K from 2000 to 2004. After the group broke up, he began his independent rap career. His debut EP, Payday, was released on July 17, 2007, on iTunes as a digital download release.

He reconnected with former fellow B2K member J-Boog and long time friend and business manager Damuer H. Leffridge to launch a new record label, Popular Entertainment. Under Popular Ent., they released a 5-song EP titled Night Life, available for digital download on iTunes in September 2009.

Personal life

He has a son, Kameron, born in 2010, with Moniece Slaughter. He and Slaughter have both appeared on Love & Hip Hop: Hollywood since its inception in 2014.

In season 6 (2019), Fizz revealed that he was in a romantic relationship with Apryl Jones, who was a fellow Love & Hip Hop cast member and the ex-girlfriend and babies' mother of fellow B2K member Omarion. As of 2020, he and Apryl have ended their relationship. Lingering issues between the two were addressed in VH1 Family Reunion: Love & Hip Hop Edition, which was filmed in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic and aired in 2021.

He also appeared in Marriage Boot Camp: Hip-Hop Edition in 2019 with his girlfriend at that time, Tiffany Campbell.

Discography

Extended plays

• 2007: Payday
• 2009: Night Life (with J-Boog)

Singles

• 2006: Fluid
• 2007: Beds (featuring Ray J)
• 2009: Bounce (with J-Boog)
• 2013: Becky
• 2014: Famous (featuring Fresco Kane)
• 2015: Good Lotion
• 2019: Mirror

Filmography

Films

• 2004: You Got Served – Rashann
• 2009: Steppin: The Movie – Jay
• 2014: Hype Nation 3D – Tommy
• 2022: Run Nixon - Dre

Television

• 2002: All That – musical guest with B2K
• 2005: Pranksta (unaired) – host
• 2005–2007: The War at Home – Taye
• 2014–2016 (main cast), 2017–2019 (supporting cast): Love & Hip Hop: Hollywood on VH1
• 2019: All American (2 episodes, MC)
• 2019–present: Marriage Boot Camp on WE TV
• 2021: VH1 Family Reunion: Love & Hip Hop Edition on VH1

References

External links

• Lil' Fizz at IMDb
• Lil' Fizz on X

Gare de Dreux is a railway station serving the town Dreux, Eure-et-Loir department, northwestern France.

Services

The station is served by regional trains to Argentan, Paris and Granville.

References

External links

• Dreux station at "Gares & Connexions", the official website of SNCF (in French)

Philippa of Dreux, Dame de Coucy (1192–1242) was a daughter of Robert II of Dreux and his second wife Yolande de Coucy.

Family

Philippa was the fifth of seven children born to her parents, Robert II of Dreux and his second wife Yolande de Coucy.

Spouse and children

In 1219 she married Henry II of Bar (1190–1239), the son of Theobald I of Bar.

Children

• Margaret of Bar (1220–1275), in 1240 she married Henry V of Luxembourg
• Thiébaut II of Bar (c. 1221–1291), Succeeded Henry II as Count of Bar.
• Henry of Bar (died 1249)
• Jeanne of Bar (1225–1299), married first Frédéric de Blamont who died in 1255, and later married Louis V, Count of Chiny.
• Renaud of Bar (died 1271)
• Erard of Bar (died 1335)
• Isabelle of Bar (died 1320)

References

Sources

• Richard, Jean (1983). Lloyd, Simon (ed.). Saint Louis, Crusader King of France. Translated by Birrell, Jean. Cambridge University Press.

Michel de Dreux-Brézé, Marquis de Dreux-Brézé (15 June 1700 – 17 February 1754) was a French nobleman, military officer and courtier in the reign of Louis XV.

Biography

Dreux-Brézé was the son of Thomas de Dreux-Brézé and the grandson of Michel Chamillart. In 1717 he joined the musketeers and in 1718 he was named colonel of the Guyenne Regiment.

He became brigadier of the king's armies and commander in Nancy in 1734. He was made inspector general of the infantry in 1741 and was promoted to lieutenant general of the king's armies and general marshal of the army quarters in 1744. He served under Maurice de Saxe during the War of the Austrian Succession, notably commanding the French forces during a stage of the Siege of Tournai in 1745. He was commander-in-chief of Flanders and Hainaut, then governor of Loudun and Île Sainte-Marguerite.

Between 1749 and his death, he served Louis XV at the court of Versailles as Grand Master of Ceremonies of France and Provost Master of Ceremonies of the Order of the Holy Spirit. These positions were hereditary and held by Dreux-Brézé's descendants, most notably Henri Evrard, marquis de Dreux-Brézé.

Dreux-Brézé first married his cousin, Isabelle de Dreux-Nancré, granddaughter of Claude de Dreux-Nancré. Following her death, he married secondly Louise-Élisabeth de La Châtre, daughter of the Marquis Louis-Charles de La Châtre.

References

Yolande of Dreux (20 March 1263 – 2 August 1330) was a sovereign Countess of Montfort-l'Amaury from 1311 until 1322. Through her first marriage to Alexander III of Scotland, Yolande became Queen of Scotland. Through her second marriage to Arthur II, Duke of Brittany, she became Duchess of Brittany.

Life

Early life

She was the daughter of Robert IV, Count of Dreux, and Beatrice, Countess of Montfort. Her father was a patrilineal descendant of King Louis VI of France, making her a member of a cadet branch of the Capetian dynasty with powerful connections.

Queen of Scotland

In 1281, King Alexander III of Scotland lost his son David and two other children in the two following years, leaving his granddaughter, Margaret, Maid of Norway, as his heir presumptive. He needed to remarry to have a new heir to the throne. Yolande was daughter of the stepdaughter of Jean de Brienne, the second spouse of king Alexander's mother, queen dowager Marie de Coucy, and considered a suitable match. Yolande was related to her husband, Alexander III, through shared ancestry in the French noble houses of Coucy and Dreux. In addition to providing an heir for the Kingdom of Scotland, Alexander's marriage to Yolande represented a move to distance Alexander from his neighbour Edward I of England and to emphasize Scottish independence from England.

An embassy was sent from Scotland in February 1285 and returned with Yolande in the company of her brother John. The marriage was celebrated on 15 October 1285 at Jedburgh Abbey, attended by a great many nobles of France and Scotland.

Alexander died on either 18 March or 19 March 1286, after falling from his horse, while riding from his court at Edinburgh to join Yolande at Kinghorn. Following his death, queen dowager Yolande moved to Stirling Castle and declared that she was pregnant. The Guardians of Scotland were elected by a parliament held at Scone, Perth and Kinross on 2 April or 28 April 1286 and swore to govern the kingdom until Alexander's declared heir Margaret of Norway arrived to take the throne or Yolande gave birth to a child who would be preferred over Margaret.

It is unclear what happened to her pregnancy; either she had a miscarriage, or the baby was stillborn or died shortly after birth. However, by one account the Guardians gathered at Clackmannan on Saint Catherine's Day – 25 November 1286 – to witness the birth, but the child was stillborn. Tradition says the baby was buried at Cambuskenneth. After the queen dowager's pregnancy did not result in a living child, the council began preparations for Margaret of Norway to be taken to Scotland as their new sovereign.

Queen dowager Yolande remained in Scotland for a couple of years supported by her dower provisions and living possibly at Stirling Castle: it is known that she was still in Scotland at least as late as in 1288. At some point, she returned to France.

Duchess of Brittany and Countess of Montfort

In May 1294, she married Arthur II, Duke of Brittany. Together they had at least six children. Arthur died in 1312, being succeeded by his son John III, Duke of Brittany.

Yolande succeeded her mother as suo jure Countess of Montfort in 1311. She continued to manage her Scottish affairs: as late as shortly before her death, she is noted to have sent a knight to Scotland to see to her dower lands.

Yolande died on 2 August 1330 in the convent of Port-Royal des Champs outside of Paris. Her county of Montfort passed to her son John, who would later fight for his claim to his father's duchy in the Breton War of Succession.

Issue

Yolande and Arthur had at least six children:

• John, born c. 1294, later Count of Montfort – known as Jean de Montfort
• Beatrice, born c. 1295, married Guy X of Laval
• Joan, born c. 1296–1364, married Robert, son of Robert III of Flanders
• Alice, born c. 1297–1377, married Bouchard VI of Vendôme
• Blanche, born c. 1300, died young
• Marie, born c. 1302, entered a convent

Note

References

Sources

• Connolly, Sharon Bennett (2017). Heroines of the Medieval World. Amberley Publishing.
• Duncan, A A M (2016). The Kingship of the Scots, 842-1292: Succession and Independence. Edinburgh University Press. ISBN 0-7486-1626-8.
• Macdougall, Norman, "L'Écosse à la fin du XIIIe sieclè: un royaume menacé" in James Laidlaw (ed.) The Auld Alliance: France and Scotland over 700 Years. Edinburgh University, Edinburgh, 1999. ISBN 0-9534945-0-0
• Marshall, Rosalind, Scottish Queens, 1034-1714
• Richard Oram: The Kings and Queens of Scotland
• Timothy Venning: The Kings and Queens of Scotland
• Mike Ashley: British Kings and Queens
• Elizabeth Ewan, Sue Innes and Sian Reynolds: The Biographical Dictionary of Scottish Women
• Mike Ashley, The Chronicle of Lanercost 1272-1346

Necrologe de l'abbaie de Port-Royal-des-Champs