Huy
Encyclopedia
Huy is a municipality
of Belgium
. It lies in the country's Walloon Region and Province of Liege
. Huy lies along the river Meuse
, at the mouth of the small river Hoyoux
. It is in the sillon industriel
, the former industrial backbone of Wallonia, home to about two-thirds of the Walloon population. The Huy municipality
includes the old communes of Ben-Ahin and Tihange.
castrum, an early fortress located on the right bank of the River Meuse. The village was evangelized by Saint Domitian
, Bishop of Tongeren in the 6th century and the town is mentioned for the first time in a 7th century testament.
In the early Middle Ages
, Huy was one of the most prosperous cities on the Meuse, with a flourishing economy based mostly on metallurgy, but also on tanning, sculpting, woodworking, and wine-making. In the 10th century, Huy was promoted to county status, but soon became part of the Prince-Bishopric of Liège, with which it would share its history for more than eight centuries. Huy was the recipient of the first historically known charter north of the Alps, confirming it as a city in 1066. It is around that time that Peter the Hermit
harangued the locals and persuaded them to participate in the First Crusade
.
In the 13th and 14th century, the economy boomed thanks to the cloth industry. The castle on a hill right in the middle of town, was used in times of war and strengthened accordingly. By the 15th century, it had become the symbol of the city. The following two centuries, however, witnessed a gradual decline in the city’s fortunes, due in large part to the strategic value of its location on the Meuse. In the latter part of the 17th century, Louis XIV’s wars caused the city to be repeatedly attacked and put to the sword, to the point that the frustrated inhabitants dismantled their own castle, source of their miseries, in 1715.
A new fortress was built by the Dutch
in 1818 at the same strategic location above the town. The 19th century was a period of relative prosperity based on the paper and other industries. The decline of heavy industry in the 20th century was felt here, as in other parts of Wallonia. Today, the city has started to prosper again, thanks in part to its tin products and tourist activity.
):
(English: Wall of Huy), a climb of about 1 kilometer with an average gradient of 10%, with sections of 20%.
Every seven years, a religious procession takes place in the so-called 'septennial festivities' in commemoration of the end of a drought
in 1656. The last one took place on August 15, 2005.
Municipality
A municipality is essentially an urban administrative division having corporate status and usually powers of self-government. It can also be used to mean the governing body of a municipality. A municipality is a general-purpose administrative subdivision, as opposed to a special-purpose district...
of Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
. It lies in the country's Walloon Region and Province of Liege
Liège (province)
Liège is the easternmost province of Belgium and belongs to the Walloon Region. It is an area of French and German ethnicity. It borders on the Netherlands, Germany, Luxembourg, and in Belgium the provinces of Luxembourg, Namur, Walloon Brabant , and those of Flemish Brabant and Limburg . Its...
. Huy lies along the river Meuse
Meuse River
The Maas or Meuse is a major European river, rising in France and flowing through Belgium and the Netherlands before draining into the North Sea...
, at the mouth of the small river Hoyoux
Hoyoux
The Hoyoux is a river of Belgium, a right tributary of the Meuse. It flows for 28 kilometres through the province of Liège in the northern-central part of the country. It flows into the Meuse in Huy....
. It is in the sillon industriel
Sillon industriel
The sillon industriel is the former industrial backbone of Wallonia and thus of Belgium. It runs across Wallonia, passing from Dour, in Borinage, in the west, to Verviers in the east, through Mons, La Louvière, Charleroi, Namur, Huy, and Liège, following the valleys of the rivers Haine, Sambre,...
, the former industrial backbone of Wallonia, home to about two-thirds of the Walloon population. The Huy municipality
Municipality
A municipality is essentially an urban administrative division having corporate status and usually powers of self-government. It can also be used to mean the governing body of a municipality. A municipality is a general-purpose administrative subdivision, as opposed to a special-purpose district...
includes the old communes of Ben-Ahin and Tihange.
History
The first village originated around the RomanAncient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
castrum, an early fortress located on the right bank of the River Meuse. The village was evangelized by Saint Domitian
Domitian of Huy
Domitian of Huy was a Gaulish bishop of the sixth century who is noted for both his generosity and writings against heresy. He is venerated as a saint in the Roman Catholic Church.-Life:...
, Bishop of Tongeren in the 6th century and the town is mentioned for the first time in a 7th century testament.
In the early Middle Ages
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
, Huy was one of the most prosperous cities on the Meuse, with a flourishing economy based mostly on metallurgy, but also on tanning, sculpting, woodworking, and wine-making. In the 10th century, Huy was promoted to county status, but soon became part of the Prince-Bishopric of Liège, with which it would share its history for more than eight centuries. Huy was the recipient of the first historically known charter north of the Alps, confirming it as a city in 1066. It is around that time that Peter the Hermit
Peter the Hermit
Peter the Hermit was a priest of Amiens and a key figure during the First Crusade.-Before 1096:According to Anna Comnena, he had attempted to go on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem before 1096, but was prevented by the Seljuk Turks from reaching his goal and was tortured.Sources differ as to whether he...
harangued the locals and persuaded them to participate in the First Crusade
First Crusade
The First Crusade was a military expedition by Western Christianity to regain the Holy Lands taken in the Muslim conquest of the Levant, ultimately resulting in the recapture of Jerusalem...
.
In the 13th and 14th century, the economy boomed thanks to the cloth industry. The castle on a hill right in the middle of town, was used in times of war and strengthened accordingly. By the 15th century, it had become the symbol of the city. The following two centuries, however, witnessed a gradual decline in the city’s fortunes, due in large part to the strategic value of its location on the Meuse. In the latter part of the 17th century, Louis XIV’s wars caused the city to be repeatedly attacked and put to the sword, to the point that the frustrated inhabitants dismantled their own castle, source of their miseries, in 1715.
A new fortress was built by the Dutch
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
in 1818 at the same strategic location above the town. The 19th century was a period of relative prosperity based on the paper and other industries. The decline of heavy industry in the 20th century was felt here, as in other parts of Wallonia. Today, the city has started to prosper again, thanks in part to its tin products and tourist activity.
Main sights
The four 'wonders of Huy' are (in Huy dialectWalloon language
Walloon is a Romance language which was spoken as a primary language in large portions of the Walloon Region of Belgium and some villages of Northern France until the middle of the 20th century. It belongs to the langue d'oïl language family, whose most prominent member is the French language...
):
- Li Pontia, the bridge over the River Meuse
- Li Rondia, the rose window of the GothicGothic architectureGothic architecture is a style of architecture that flourished during the high and late medieval period. It evolved from Romanesque architecture and was succeeded by Renaissance architecture....
Notre-Dame collegiate churchCollegiate churchIn Christianity, a collegiate church is a church where the daily office of worship is maintained by a college of canons; a non-monastic, or "secular" community of clergy, organised as a self-governing corporate body, which may be presided over by a dean or provost... - Li Bassinia, the 15th-century fountain that stands in the middle of the Grand Place
- Li Tchestia, the 1818 fortress that dominates the city
Events and folklore
Huy is home to the finish of the Flèche Wallonne (English: Walloon Arrow; Dutch: Waalse Pijl), an important 1-day cycling race held midweek in mid-April. The races traverses, and finishes, at the summit of the Mur de HuyMur de Huy
The Mur de Huy is a high hill located in Huy, Belgium. It is also known as le Chemin des Chapelles because of the seven chapels along its route. This climb is famous for being part of the route of La Flèche Wallonne professional cycling race....
(English: Wall of Huy), a climb of about 1 kilometer with an average gradient of 10%, with sections of 20%.
Every seven years, a religious procession takes place in the so-called 'septennial festivities' in commemoration of the end of a drought
Drought
A drought is an extended period of months or years when a region notes a deficiency in its water supply. Generally, this occurs when a region receives consistently below average precipitation. It can have a substantial impact on the ecosystem and agriculture of the affected region...
in 1656. The last one took place on August 15, 2005.
Sport events
- Huy was on Tour de FranceTour de FranceThe Tour de France is an annual bicycle race held in France and nearby countries. First staged in 1903, the race covers more than and lasts three weeks. As the best known and most prestigious of cycling's three "Grand Tours", the Tour de France attracts riders and teams from around the world. The...
three times: 19951995 Tour de FranceThe 1995 Tour de France was the 82nd Tour de France, taking place July 1 to July 23, 1995. It was Miguel Indurain's fifth and final victory in the Tour. On the fifteenth stage Italian rider Fabio Casartelli died after an accident on the Col de Portet d'Aspet....
, 20012001 Tour de FranceThe 2001 Tour de France was particularly difficult, having contained a 67-km long team time trial, two individual time trials and five mountain-top finishes on consecutive days, the second of which being the Chamrousse special category climb time trial. Thus, all the high-mountain stages were...
und 20062006 Tour de FranceThe 2006 Tour de France was the 93rd Tour de France, taking place from July 1 to July 23, 2006. It was won by Óscar Pereiro following the disqualification of apparent winner Floyd Landis....
.
Famous persons
- Renier de HuyRenier de HuyRenier de Huy was a 12th century metalworker and sculptor to whom is attributed a major masterpiece of Mosan art, the baptismal font at St Bartholomew's Church, Liège in Liege, Belgium of 1107–18...
, metalworker (first half 12th c.) - Joseph LebeauJoseph LebeauJean Louis Joseph Lebeau was a Belgian liberal politician and statesman, the second Prime Minister.-Biography:...
, politician (1794-1865) - Joseph George, politician (1954-)
- Anne-Marie LizinAnne-Marie LizinAnne-Marie Lizin is a Belgian politician. She used to be member of the Socialist Party but was banned from the party after a corruption case. She was the first female President of the Belgian Senate...
, politician (born in 1949) - André MalherbeAndré MalherbeAndré Malherbe was a Belgian motocross racer. He won three F.I.M. 500cc motocross World Championships.Born in Huy, the son of a motorcycle dealer, Malherbe began racing at an early age and earned his racing licence in 1973. He rode a Zündapp to win the 1973 FIM 125cc European motocross...
, three-time motocross world champion - Jean-Joseph Merlin, inventor of the roller skate (September 17, 1735 in Huy - May 4, 1803 in LondonLondonLondon is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
) - Peter the HermitPeter the HermitPeter the Hermit was a priest of Amiens and a key figure during the First Crusade.-Before 1096:According to Anna Comnena, he had attempted to go on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem before 1096, but was prevented by the Seljuk Turks from reaching his goal and was tortured.Sources differ as to whether he...
, instigator of the First CrusadeFirst CrusadeThe First Crusade was a military expedition by Western Christianity to regain the Holy Lands taken in the Muslim conquest of the Levant, ultimately resulting in the recapture of Jerusalem...
(1050 in AmiensAmiensAmiens is a city and commune in northern France, north of Paris and south-west of Lille. It is the capital of the Somme department in Picardy...
- 1115 in Huy) - Le Père Pire, recipient of the 1958 Nobel Peace PrizeNobel Peace PrizeThe Nobel Peace Prize is one of the five Nobel Prizes bequeathed by the Swedish industrialist and inventor Alfred Nobel.-Background:According to Nobel's will, the Peace Prize shall be awarded to the person who...
, lived in Huy (February 10, 1910 in DinantDinantDinant is a Walloon city and municipality located on the River Meuse in the Belgian province of Namur, Belgium. The Dinant municipality includes the old communes of Anseremme, Bouvignes-sur-Meuse, Dréhance, Falmagne, Falmignoul, Foy-Notre-Dame, Furfooz, Lisogne, Sorinnes, and Thynes.-Origins to...
- January 30, 1969) - Alizée PoulicekAlizée PoulicekAlizée Poulicek is a beauty pageant contestant who won the title of Miss Belgium 2008 and represented her country in Miss Universe 2008 in Nha Trang, Vietnam. She went unplaced at the latter pageant. She also represented Belgium in Miss World 2008 in Johannesburg, South Africa.She can speak...
- Patrick Sarsfield, (1660 – 21 August 1693) 1st Earl of Lucan. Cavalry commander of JacobiteJacobitismJacobitism was the political movement in Britain dedicated to the restoration of the Stuart kings to the thrones of England, Scotland, later the Kingdom of Great Britain, and the Kingdom of Ireland...
forces at the Siege of Limerick, IrelandIrelandIreland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
, General in French Army following "Flight of the Wild GeeseFlight of the Wild GeeseThe Flight of the Wild Geese refers to the departure of an Irish Jacobite army under the command of Patrick Sarsfield from Ireland to France, as agreed in the Treaty of Limerick on October 3, 1691, following the end of the Williamite War in Ireland...
" is buried here, in the graveyard of St. Martin's Church.
Twin cities, friend cities
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