Milly-la-Forêt, Essonne Département, Île-de-France Region, France

🇫🇷 Milly-la-Forêt is a commune in the Essonne department in Île-de-France in northern France.

Geology The Forest of Fontainebleau, in the western end of which Milly-la-Forêt lies, is composed of the Oligocene Fontainebleau sands, which are a marine deposit, laid down in an intertidal zone.

History Milly-la-Forêt is the probable birthplace of Wulfram of Sens, Saint Wulfram; in about 640.

Name The first name of this domaine was called Maurillac in Gaul, Mauriliaco on a Merovingien coin, became Maureliacum, Melliacum in 667, Milliacum in Latin. The place name Milly is relatively current; it refers to an antic presence of a villa rustica owned during the Gallo-Romaine era by a certain Milius or Emilius. Hereby, the name was imported in 1080 by the knight Adam de Milly, originally from Milly-en-Beauvaisis and first lord of the place. But a charter dated from 651 mentioned already the name Melliacus. In the 13th century more accuracy was added to the place, Miliacum in Gastineto in 1267, which gave the name Milly-en-Gâtinais without being official. Upon a request from the municipal council and by a statutory order from 6 February 1948, the name was replaced by Milly-la-Forêt, considered at that time as the most touristic place and to differentiate it from its homonym Milly in Normandy.

The village Milly contains several facilities: such as the Collège Jean Rostand, the Conservatoire des Deux Vallées, a gymnasium and sports ground complex, a multimedia library, a swimming pool, a bus station, dealers in craft products and so on. There is a market every Thursday in the very impressive late medieval market hall, built in 1479.

The yearly calendar includes attic-clearing sales; at the opening of the summer holiday period, the town celebrates la Saint-Pierre, a fair is organised and there are several fairground rides and other attractions, as well as cultural stands for the sale of specialist food and craft products.

Economy • Milly produces many culinary and medicinal herbs. The firm of Daregal is a world leader and began in 1887 under the leadership of the Darbonne family who still run the enterprise. • The Conservatoire National des Plantes à Parfum, Médicinales, Aromatiques et Industrielles is a botanical garden situated in a former farm.

Culture • Christian Dior and Jean Cocteau have made their homes here. Cocteau died in 1963.

Towards the end of the 1950s Jean Cocteau decorated the chapelle Saint-Blaise, which dates from the twelfth century. His theme was those medicinal and culinary herbs on which the renown of Milly rests. He is now buried in the chapel. • Le Cyclop, a monumental sculpture in the forest of Milly-la-Forêt, constructed by Jean Tinguely in collaboration with Niki de Saint Phalle • the 15th century covered market.