Compiègne
[key], city, Oise dept., N France, in Île-de-France, on the Oise
River. It is an industrial center with varied manufactures; a large
glassworks is located in the suburbs. As far back as the Merovingian period
(7th cent.), Compiègne had been the site of royal gatherings; from
the 17th to 19th cent. French monarchs used it as a summer residence. The
forest of Compiègne was a royal hunting ground. Joan of Arc was
captured (1430) by the Burgundians at Compiègne. In a railroad car in
the forest the armistice ending World War I was signed; in 1940, Hitler
forced the French to surrender in the same car (which was later taken to
Germany and destroyed). The large 15th-century palace, other old structures,
and the place's historic connotations attract many tourists.
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