HUNDREDS of people have joined a campaign protesting at the sudden closure of France’s biggest English-language library outside Paris.

The Anglophone Library of Montpellier was closed on New Year’s Day after 55 years serving expats and students.

The Université Paul Valéry, which housed the service, said visitor numbers had been in decline for years.

The library housed 30,000 books, journals, magazines and DVDs - the largest collection of English-language material in France after the American Library in Paris.

Members say they were given no advance warning - with news of the closure coming four days later in an email.

An online petition attracted 850 signatures at the time of writing. It aims "to register the number of people, both here in France and in other locations, who would like this library, used by residents and exchange students alike, to remain open and accessible to all, and to keep its present collection intact".

Petition creator Ed Ward wrote on his blog: "The problem is that a number of us have paid dues to use this facility, and have come to look at it as a private lending library funded by our dues and moneys raised by the Friends.

"Although I’ve found the collection eccentric in the extreme, I've also found a lot of stuff there that I either wouldn’t buy for myself, or can’t afford to buy for myself. I considered this library to be a wonderful service to a sizeable minority of residents here, and had no idea that it existed at the whim of the university."

An email newsletter from the Friends of the American Library said members were "sad, frustrated and angry that they were not kept informed” and were “eagerly awaiting some explanations".

The head of cultural affairs at the Mairie de Montpellier, Michael Delafosse, has described the library as "a treasure" and said he was deeply concerned by the decision to close it.

A spokesman for the university said there were fewer than 200 people enrolled at the library, down from 600 in previous years. "There were whole days when the librarian said no one visited," he said.

The library was run by a not-for-profit association which dissolved itself in December. The university did not want to take on the responsibility for running the service by itself.

The spokesman said membership fees were paid by calendar year and as such there should be no members who are owed money.

The university’s English department has expressed an interest in taking about 20% of the books. The rest will be put into storage for the time being.

Online petition at http://snipurl.com/montpellierlibrary