Cholet is a commune in the Maine-et-Loire department of western France. It was the capital of military Vendée. In 1906, the population was 16,554. Cholet stands on an eminence on the right bank of the Moine, which used to be crossed by a bridge from the fifteenth century. The town owes the rise of its prosperity to the settlement of weavers there by Édouard Colbert, count of Maulévrier, a brother of the great Jean-Baptiste Colbert. It then became an estate of Gabriel François, Count de Rougé and Marquess of Cholet, who developed the city and its economy. The main commercial mall being built this year is named after him: The "Arcades Rougé". During...more »