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    In 1815 after the fall of Napoleon, some French "communes" found it a good idea to adapt their names to the new political situation. A certain "bourg" or village on the French-Spanish border was so enthusiastic about the return home of a particular aristocrat via their territory that they proposed to re-baptise the village after him. He politely declined the offer, but suggested a reference to his wife, a princess of royal blood. Who was this "madame", who was her royal but unfortunate father, who was the aristocrat, and what was the new name given to the village?

    Question #85696. Asked by Flem-ish. (Sep 11 07 3:42 PM)


    voltaire11

    		The only town that comes to mind is Bourg-Madame, formerly Caldegas, in the Pyrenees-Orientales department.

    In 1815, Louis-Antoine d'Artois [1], Dauphin of France and Duke of Angoulême (Louis XIX, King of France and Navarre for twenty minutes in 1830 and Legitimist Pretender to the throne from 1836 to 1844) and his wife (and cousin) Princess Marie-Thérèse-Charlotte (1778–1851) passed through the town after returning from their Spanish exile.

    The Princess, also known as Madame Royale, is the eldest daughter of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette.

    for the Madame see: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marie-Th%C3%A9r%C3%A8se-Charlotte_of_France

    for the aristocrat see:
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louis-Antoine,_Duke_of_Angoul%C3%AAme

    for the town see:
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Communes_of_the_Pyrénées-Orientales_department

    and

    http://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=fr&u=http://histoireduroussillon.free.fr/Villages/Histoire/BourgMadame.php&sa=X&oi=translate&resnum=2&ct=result&prev=/search%3Fq%3DBourg-madame%26start%3D10%26hl%3Den%26rlz%3D1T4GGLJ_enPH222PH223%26sa%3DN

    Sep 11 07, 7:06 PM
    lanfranco

    		For those who read French, this site explains the "honor" obtained from the Duc d'Angouleme, of naming the town after his wife:




    http://www.mairie-bourgmadame.com/page/historique_bourg_madame.php

    Sep 11 07, 7:20 PM
    Flem-ish

    		Perfect. Many more name-changes had taken place at the time of the Revolution. Local authorities wanted to get rid of all associations with the so-called Ancien Régime.
    A remarkable example was Rocroi. Though the real etymology is "Raoul's crossroads", the name was believed to mean "Roc(he) du Roi". So the city-authorities shook off all links with the times of the monarchy and became "Roc-Libre".http://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rocroi

    Sep 11 07, 9:09 PM

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