Moulins [key], city (1990 pop. 23,353), capital of Allier dept., central France, on the Allier River. Clothing, shoes, dyes, automobile parts, and household products are manufactured. It is also an agricultural market. Formerly capital of the duchy of Bourbonnais (c.10th–16th cent.), Moulins has remarkable artistic and historic treasures. The cathedral contains a superb 15th-century triptych, and the tomb of Henri, duc de Montmorency, designed by François Anguier, is at the former convent (now a school) of the Order of Visitation. Other historic buildings are the ruined castle of the dukes of Bourbon and a Renaissance pavilion. Although the dukes resided at Moulins from the mid-14th cent., the city did not become capital of the duchy until the late 15th cent. The duchy was confiscated by the French crown in 1527. In 1566, Charles IX held an assembly at Moulins where important administrative and legal reforms were adopted. The national theatrical costume museum is in the city.
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