Sens is a town and commune of France, in the Yonne département, of which it is a sous-préfecture, in the Bourgogne région. It is crossed by the Yonne and the Vanne, which empties into the Yonne here.

History

Caesar mentions Agedincum in the territory of the Senones several times in his Commentarii de Bello Gallico, and the city retains the skeleton of its Roman street-plan. The site was referred to by Ammianus Marcellinus as Senones (oppidum Senonas) but it did not become an administrative center until after the reorganization of the Roman Empire in 375, when it was the chief town of Lugdunensis Quarta.

During the Middle Ages, its archbishops held the prestigious role of Primates of Gaul and Germany. The Hôtel de Sens in Paris was their official residence in that city. Starting from 1135, the cathedral of Sens, dedicated to Saint Stephen, was rebuilt as one of the first Gothic cathedrals; there, in 1234 Louis IX of France celebrated his wedding to Marguerite of Provence. Sens witnessed the trial of Peter Abelard, Pope Alexander III sojourned for some time in the city, and there also Thomas Becket spent part of his exile.

Sens lived troublesome times during the Wars of Religion.

Main sights

• The Cathedral, one of the first Gothic edifices in France.
• Archbishops' Palace.
• Church of St. Maurice.
• House of Abraham.
• Museum.

Administration

Sens is the chief-town of the arrondissement of Sens.

Miscellanea

It is the presumed birthplace of the 12th-century architect William of Sens.

Twin towns

• Chester, England
• Lörrach, Germany
• Senigallia, Italy
• Vyshhorod, Ukraine

See also

• Senones
• St. Columba of Sens
• Archdiocese of Sens

Notes

External links

• Official website
• archdiocese & Councils City council website (in French)
• Richard Stillwell, ed. Princeton Encyclopedia of Classical Sites, 1976: "Agedincum (Sens), Yonne, France"
• Pictures of Sens Cathedral: , ,