Buc () is a commune in the Yvelines department and Île-de-France region of north central France. Geography Buc is located some 20 km south-west of central Paris and 3 km south of Versailles. The old town lies in the valley of the River Bièvre at an elevation of around 100 m above sea level. Most of Buc's residential districts have been built on the plateau de Saclay, some 50 m higher. The surrounding communes are: Versailles to the north Jouy-en-Josas to the north-east Les Loges-en-Josas to the south-east Toussus-le-Noble to the south Châteaufort to the extreme south-west Guyancourt to the west. Demography History The name Buc derives from the Latin buscum which means boxwood. The inhabitants of Buc are known in French as Bucois (m.) and Bucoises (f.). Territory attached to the domain of Versailles in 1660 and used to be frequented by Louis XIV of France mostly for hunting. 1684-1686 : Construction of the Buc aqueduct. 1880 : Construction of the Fort du Haut-Buc. 1909, July 25 : Installation of Louis Blériot on 200 hectares; he built his private airfield and, in 1913, a flying school. Culture Saint-Jean-Baptiste Church : Built in siliceous rock from the 12th century, enlarged in 1994. The nave has a gothic architectural shape and its bell tower has a romanesque style. In the steeple, the bell, which is classified Monument historique, has been melted, blessed and then baptized Louise Auguste Adélaïde by its sponsor Louis XIV of France in 1775. Aqueduc de Buc : Built by François Michel Le Tellier de Louvois in 1686. This aqueduct purpose was to provide water drained from the Ponds of Saclay (more precisely, ponds of Saclé, Pont Salé and Saint-Hubert by the time it was used) and delivered to the Domain of the Palace of Versailles, known as well as the Gardens of Versailles, in order to supply huge amounts of water to its multitude of fountains and basins. The aqueduct has 19 millstone arches, is 21 meters high and 580 meters long. Now disused, this great architectural work has been classified Monument historique in 1952. Château du Haut-Buc : This ancient little castle was part of the Grand parc de Versailles (Great Versailles Domain) and was used by Louis XIV of France to accommodate his son Louis-Alexandre de Bourbon, comte de Toulouse (1681), duc de Penthièvre (1697), d'Arc, de Châteauvillain and de Rambouillet (1711) which later moved