Flixecourt
Encyclopedia
Flixecourt is a commune
in the Somme
department in Picardie
in northern France
.
. A junction with the A16 autoroute is about a mile away.
.
The fiefdom
passed to the Louvencourt family, then in 1276 to the Fieffes family, who built a priory
, entrusting the management of it to the vidame
of Picquigny
,
The town that was established here comprised 140 homes at the start of the Hundred Years War, but only 40 in 1548.
In 1545, Charles d'Ailly obtained permission from the King to create a weekly market. This privilege continued for his son, Louis d'Ailly, in 1567.
In 1603, a huge fire burnt down half the town.
Near the site of the present-day church are vestiges of a château, mentioned in a notarial document in 1618, in which Philibert-Emmanuel d’Ailly, granted the structure to a certain Louis de la Massonière, provided he financed the repairs.
Towards the end of the French revolution
, the château belonged to the Croquoison family.
The present church was built in 1721.
The town’s commerce at this time was based on the production of peat
and of linen
In 1815, there were two watermill
s and two windmill
s.
The discovery of a new natural fibre, jute
, changed the destiny of both the town and the region. In 1840, the Saint brothers set up a weaving
factory, employing locals and Scottish
weavers. The factory was electrified in 1907. Before the outbreak of World War I
, 14,000 people were employed here.
The town was the factory, and the factory was the town. The owners set in place all manner of improvements to the daily and social life of the workers. Piped water supplies and electricity to all homes, a school, a creche, a pharmacy, a maternity hospital and a cooperative.
After World War II
and the advent of man-made fibres, the factory went into irreversible decline.
. Many are in a bad state of repair. Some have been restored but more needs to be done.
, a French professional footballer
, was born at Flixecourt
Communes of France
The commune is the lowest level of administrative division in the French Republic. French communes are roughly equivalent to incorporated municipalities or villages in the United States or Gemeinden in Germany...
in the Somme
Somme
Somme is a department of France, located in the north of the country and named after the Somme river. It is part of the Picardy region of France....
department in Picardie
Picardie
Picardy is one of the 27 regions of France. It is located in the northern part of France.-History:The historical province of Picardy stretched from north of Noyon to Calais, via the whole of the Somme department and the north of the Aisne department...
in northern France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
.
Geography
Flixecourt is situated on the N1 road and the banks of the river Nièvre, a tributary of the river Somme, some 20 miles (32 km) south of AbbevilleAbbeville
Abbeville is a commune in the Somme department in Picardie in northern France.-Location:Abbeville is located on the Somme River, from its modern mouth in the English Channel, and northwest of Amiens...
. A junction with the A16 autoroute is about a mile away.
History
In the 12th century, Flixecourt was a fief of Amiens and the site of a leper hospiceHospice
Hospice is a type of care and a philosophy of care which focuses on the palliation of a terminally ill patient's symptoms.In the United States and Canada:*Gentiva Health Services, national provider of hospice and home health services...
.
The fiefdom
Fiefdom
A fee was the central element of feudalism and consisted of heritable lands granted under one of several varieties of feudal tenure by an overlord to a vassal who held it in fealty in return for a form of feudal allegiance and service, usually given by the...
passed to the Louvencourt family, then in 1276 to the Fieffes family, who built a priory
Priory
A priory is a house of men or women under religious vows that is headed by a prior or prioress. Priories may be houses of mendicant friars or religious sisters , or monasteries of monks or nuns .The Benedictines and their offshoots , the Premonstratensians, and the...
, entrusting the management of it to the vidame
Vidame
Vidame, a French corruption of the official Latin term vicedominus , was a feudal title in France...
of Picquigny
Picquigny
Picquigny is a commune in the Somme department in Picardie in northern France.-Geography:Picquigny is situated at the junction of the N235, the D141 and D3 roads, on the banks of the Somme River, some northwest of Amiens...
,
The town that was established here comprised 140 homes at the start of the Hundred Years War, but only 40 in 1548.
In 1545, Charles d'Ailly obtained permission from the King to create a weekly market. This privilege continued for his son, Louis d'Ailly, in 1567.
In 1603, a huge fire burnt down half the town.
Near the site of the present-day church are vestiges of a château, mentioned in a notarial document in 1618, in which Philibert-Emmanuel d’Ailly, granted the structure to a certain Louis de la Massonière, provided he financed the repairs.
Towards the end of the French revolution
French Revolution
The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...
, the château belonged to the Croquoison family.
The present church was built in 1721.
The town’s commerce at this time was based on the production of peat
Peat
Peat is an accumulation of partially decayed vegetation matter or histosol. Peat forms in wetland bogs, moors, muskegs, pocosins, mires, and peat swamp forests. Peat is harvested as an important source of fuel in certain parts of the world...
and of linen
Linen
Linen is a textile made from the fibers of the flax plant, Linum usitatissimum. Linen is labor-intensive to manufacture, but when it is made into garments, it is valued for its exceptional coolness and freshness in hot weather....
In 1815, there were two watermill
Watermill
A watermill is a structure that uses a water wheel or turbine to drive a mechanical process such as flour, lumber or textile production, or metal shaping .- History :...
s and two windmill
Windmill
A windmill is a machine which converts the energy of wind into rotational energy by means of vanes called sails or blades. Originally windmills were developed for milling grain for food production. In the course of history the windmill was adapted to many other industrial uses. An important...
s.
The discovery of a new natural fibre, jute
Jute
Jute is a long, soft, shiny vegetable fibre that can be spun into coarse, strong threads. It is produced from plants in the genus Corchorus, which has been classified in the family Tiliaceae, or more recently in Malvaceae....
, changed the destiny of both the town and the region. In 1840, the Saint brothers set up a weaving
Weaving
Weaving is a method of fabric production in which two distinct sets of yarns or threads are interlaced at right angles to form a fabric or cloth. The other methods are knitting, lace making and felting. The longitudinal threads are called the warp and the lateral threads are the weft or filling...
factory, employing locals and Scottish
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
weavers. The factory was electrified in 1907. Before the outbreak of World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, 14,000 people were employed here.
The town was the factory, and the factory was the town. The owners set in place all manner of improvements to the daily and social life of the workers. Piped water supplies and electricity to all homes, a school, a creche, a pharmacy, a maternity hospital and a cooperative.
After World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
and the advent of man-made fibres, the factory went into irreversible decline.
Population
Places of interest
The town has a rich architectural heritage, typical of the first industrial revolutionIndustrial Revolution
The Industrial Revolution was a period from the 18th to the 19th century where major changes in agriculture, manufacturing, mining, transportation, and technology had a profound effect on the social, economic and cultural conditions of the times...
. Many are in a bad state of repair. Some have been restored but more needs to be done.
- The château (Folly) of the Saint family
- The buildings of ‘La Prévoyance’, near the railway
- The church (the tower was rebuilt in 1940)
- The railway station, dating from 1875, (destroyed by a fire at the beginning of the 21st century)
Personalities
Teddy BertinTeddy Bertin
Teddy Bertin is a French footballer. He currently plays for LB Châteauroux.Bertin mostly played for Le Havre AC, Olympique de Marseille and RC Strasbourg.-External links:*...
, a French professional footballer
Football (soccer)
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...
, was born at Flixecourt