Grenelle

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Grenelle is a quartier in southwestern Paris, France. It is a part of the XVe arrondissement.

The area takes it name from Latin Garanella, meaning a wooded area where rabbits live. The name eventually became Guarnelles and Garnelles before ending up with its modern-day name.

[edit] History

In 52 BCE, Garanella plain was the site of a battle between the troops of the Gaulish chief Camulogène and the Roman legion under General Labienus. Despite their courageous resistance, the Gauls were defeated.

Towards the middle of the 13th century, Grenelle became a fiefdom of the Abbey of Saint Genevieve and became part of the village of Vaugirard.

On May 15th, 1824, two city councillors from Vaugirard, Jean-Léonard Violet and Alphonse Letellier, bought and divided up Grenelle plain. They did this rather quickly, and the new quartier Beaugrenelle was founded on June 27th, 1824.

Thenceforth, under the encouragement of a group of entrepreneurs (the Compagnie des Entrepreneurs, founded by Violet and Letellier), the quartier continued to develop, occasionally provoking feelings of hostility from residents of old Vaugirard. Thus, on May 13th, 1829, following the refusal of the city to install oil lamps, the residents of Beaugrenelle demanded to break off from Vaugirard, a separation which took place the next year. However, it was to be short-lived. On January 1st, 1860, despite the objections of the residents of Grenelle, Baron Haussmann decided to annex Grenelle, Vaugirard, and Javel, thus creating the XVe arrondissement.