Melun (Anc. Melodunujn), a town of France, capital of the department of Seine-et-Marne, on the Seine, 25 m. S. E. of Paris; pop. in 1866, 11,408. Part of the town is built on an island in the Seine. The most important portion, on the right bank, rises in the form of an amphitheatre, and contains a large square and several fine promenades. The church of Notre Dame has two Romanesque towers, and that of St. Aspai's is a lofty edifice of the 15th century, with double aisles, an elaborate vault, and some fine painted glass windows. The central prison is adapted for 1,200 persons; the prefecture occupies an ancient Benedictine abbey; and there are a communal college, a primary normal school, and a public library. Cloth, woollen, and cotton goods, earthenware, and other articles are manufactured. In the neighborhood, which is remarkable for its fine scenery, is Fouquet's chateau of Vaux-Praslin, where the brilliant financier was arrested in the midst of a fete which he gave in honor of Louis XIV. - The town was besieged by the Normans, and on several occasions by the English, who were finally expelled.

At the beginning of the 12th century Abelard, though very young, opened a school of philosophy in this town, which was at that time a favorite resort of the French court.