Châtenay-Malabry is a town of Hauts-de-Seine, in the region of Ile-de-France, 15 km south-west of central Paris, on the edge of the Essonne.
Of a modest area (6.3 km²), the territory of the locality consists of a plateau to the west and two valleys to the east, and especially presents the specificity of being covered half of spaces green.
Inhabited since antiquity, crossed by one of the pilgrimage routes of Saint-Jacques de Compostela, the site of Châtenay established on a ridge belongs first of all to the chapter of Notre-Dame de Paris. The parish is franked in the thirteenth century and includes several hamlets, including Malabry.
The town has an agricultural vocation in the nineteenth century but also becomes residential, and several celebrities of the literary world settle there like Chateaubriand or Eugene Sue. Becoming Châtenay-Malabry in 1920, the city experienced a population boom with the establishment of a city gardens (housing workers) in 1936 and passes the 4000 inhabitants mark. Its urbanization continues in the last quarter of the twentieth century, and business parks and academic institutions (Ecole Centrale Paris and Faculty of Pharmacy) are welcomed. However, while there are now more than 33,000 inhabitants, the living environment has been preserved and this "city-park" with a rich built heritage and environmental is a step of interest during a stay in the region Parisian.
Dotted with many parks or green spaces, a walk in the city is an opportunity to discover even visit several historical sites and buildings of interest.
This is the case of the avenue Jean-Jaurès, former "route of the princes" connecting the castle of Sceaux to that of Versailles or the Louis XV Borne implanted on the former royal road of Versailles to Choisy-le-Roi, decorated with lily flowers that were hammered during the Revolution.
In another register, the Sainte-Marie standpipe at the corner of the Rue des Prés-Hauts and the Doctor-Le-Savoureux, which dates from the end of the 19th century, a bust of Voltaire rue Jean-Longuet, work of Marguerite Gagneur, called Syamour, inaugurated in 1906 are also to be included in this course.
Rue du Docteur-Le-Savoureux, we notice the castle of Roseraie, pretty house of the seventeenth century which was the property of Marshal Ségur and the Count of Boigne. His wife held a salon in the nineteenth century and received many artists. The property with a park was then an orphanage and became in 1975 a Resource Center, Expertise and Performance Sports (CREPS).
We will continue with the Château de Malabry (in fact, an upscale residence Avenue Leclerc Division) where lived in the nineteenth century academician Edmond About, the parish church of St. Germain l'Auxerrois which dates essentially from the sixteenth century. century even if it remains some elements of the original building (Xe), an 18th century wash house or fragments of the Tuileries Palace recovered during the Paris Commune at the corner of Roger-Salengro and Marc-Sangnier streets.
Direction then Île Verte, rue Eugène-Sinet, a residence built in 1833, where lived the poet Jules Barbier. There he digs the pond and build an island. Property of the County Council since 2003, the garden can be visited all year round.
Other wealthy properties have remained famous for being inhabited by men of letters. Like the house of Eugène Sue, rue Henri-Marrou, built in the eighteenth century, inhabited in 1840 and 1841 by the author of the "Mysteries of Paris". This house is now a municipal nursery.
To see then, the house of Chateaubriand in the street of the same name. The writer settled there in 1807 fearing a reaction from Napoleon after the publication of a critical article. For ten years, Chateaubriand landscaped the house and its park, planting exotic trees reminiscent of his trip to America. In 1811, he began writing the "Mémoires d'Outre-tombe". He left the place in 1817. In 1914, Dr. Le Savoureux reconstituted the original home of the writer and created the Society of Friends of Chateaubriand. Partly classified, bought by the Department, the house and its park are open to visitors. Entry: 1.50 to 4.50 euros. Information on +33 1 55 52 13 00.
In the same street is the house Henri De Latouche, director of Figaro, which hosted many artists including Balzac. Avenue Jean Jaurès, is the house where lived the poet and Nobel Prize winner Sully Prudhomme in the early twentieth century.
The Colbert Pavilion, rue Longuet, built by Mansart in the 17th century, now owned by the city, the property of the Croux family (19th century house and its park), rue Salengro and the property of the White Walls, street Marrou which was the seat of the magazine "Esprit" when Emmanuel Mounier settled there in 1944.
The property of La Faulotte (and its 17th facade), in the same street, Les Porchères property, avenue Roger-Salengro (19th) and finally the Thévenin property and its park (XVIIth but remodeled), rue Chateaubriand, will complete this rich itinerary.
If so many people have appreciated Châtenay-Malabry, it is for its living environment near Paris. Many green spaces, parks and gardens, testify that this quality has been preserved.
It will be fun to walk in the wooded park of the Valley Wolves. It is vast of 36 hectares and the paths which cross it make it possible to benefit from a fauna and a varied flora. Free access from Chateaubriand Street, Avenue Jean-Jaurès and Chemin de la Justice. Information on +33 1 41 87 28 60.
Note also the park of the house of Chateaubriand (10 hectares, free entry), the park of the White Eagle facing the entrance to the property of Green Island and its free garden also access (courses of gardening are offered regularly, contact +33 1 41 13 03 83) and of course the Bois de Verrières and its 567 hectares divided between Châtenay-Malabry and Verrières-le-Buisson. There are 40 km of tracks for pedestrians, cyclists and riders. Information on +33 1 46 30 16 51.
However, the jewel of the city is its Arboretum, rue Chateaubriand, where you can enjoy a "collection" of more than 500 species of trees and shrubs spread over 13 hectares. This departmental park is divided into thematic gardens and we admire a weeping cedar, ranked remarkable tree of Ile-de-France in 2015, 14 m high. Garden classes and guided tours are offered. Free access all year long. Information on +33 1 49 73 79 27.
Other squares and small parks are also located in the urban center, with play areas for children, not to mention the Coulée verte which runs through the locality (linking Massy to Malakoff) on the route of the old Chemin de Saint- Jacques. Information on +33 1 41 87 28 00.
For the amateurs, these different spaces are so many points of steps which can mark out long hikes. Documentation and information +33 1 47 02 75 22. And sports side, still, many facilities are available to visitors, especially to play a game of tennis: to reserve a court, contact +33 1 43 50 46 31.
On the cultural level, La Piscine's theater offers year-round concerts, theater and dance performances. Information on +33 1 41 87 20 84.
As for the Pavilion of Arts and Heritage, it hosts quality exhibitions. Information on +33 1 47 02 75 22.
