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Angers is the capital of Maine-et-Loire département, western France. The city is the former capital of Anjou and lies along the Maine River 5 miles (8 km) above the latter's junction with the Loire River, northeast of Nantes.

Capital of the Andecavi, a Gallic tribe of the state of Andes, the ancient town became Juliomagus under the Romans. Angers became the seat (870-1204) of the powerful counts of Anjou and the historic capital of the province. The rule of the Plantagenets was marked in Angers by the construction of magnificent monuments, of which the French Hôpital Saint-Jean (now housing an archaeological museum) is the most striking.

The court of Rene on Anjou, known as the Good, regent of Sicily and Jerusalem resided here. A man of letters and benefactor of the local community, he was fond of fetes and tournaments where were often held at the castle.

The religious wars later led to the decline of the castle and Henry III ordered it to be demolished in 1585. When Henry IV came to the throne the destruction came to a halt and Angers was the scene of the engagement of Cesar of Vendome with Francoise of Lorraine. It was restores in 1950.

In 1373, the King of France, Charles V, lent his brother Louis I, Duke of Anjou, the manuscript of an "Apocalypse in French fully illustrated and historiated: This inspired the Duke to commission "large tapestries of the story of the Apocalypse.

Treasure house of the tapestries of the Apocalypse series of Nicholas Bataille who did the weaving and Hennequin de Bruges did the painting. The Tapestry is 140 meters long and the biggest in the world. It’s weaving took only seven years. Composed with clarity of thought, it recounts the Apocalypse according to Saint John in six sections and 75 scenes, with alternate blue and red backgrounds. Also the 'Song of the World' by Jean Lurçat was born in Angers, so the city can assert itself as the City of Tapestry.

Today the castle of Angers houses the Museum for Contemporary Tapestries, created in 1986. It regularly exhibits great artists like Gleb, Dom Robert, Vasarely, Manessier, Wogensky, Tourlière, Klee, Calder, Grau Garriga, Jorj Morin...and organizes events such as the "Mini Textiles Triennial".

Despite the damage of past wars, particularly World War II, Angers is still rich in medieval architecture. The 12^th–13^th-century Cathedral of Saint-Maurice retains its original stained glass. The 15^th-century Barrault House contains the public library, an art museum, and the complete works of the sculptor Pierre-Jean-David d'Angers, who was born in the city. The prefecture is in the former Saint-Aubin Abbey (11^th century), which has Roman arcades. The medieval Universitas Andegavensis was refounded in 1876 as the Catholic Faculty of the West.

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