Saint-Pierre-en-Port
Encyclopedia
Saint-Pierre-en-Port is a commune
in the Seine-Maritime
department in the Haute-Normandie
region in northern France
.
, situated some 31 miles (49.9 km) northeast of Le Havre
, at the junction of the D33 and D79 roads. The commune has a pebble
beach and some very high limestone
cliffs overlooking the English Channel
.
period (9000 to 3300 years BC). In 1970, archaeological excavations found sarcophagi of the Merovingian period (500 to 750 AD).
In the 13th century, a church was built on the site of the old cemetery. At the same time, the chapel of Saint-Gervais was built on the plateau at Boulleville (near the present-day water tower). This was destroyed in a fire in the early 18th century.
In the early 19th century, the population of the valley began a slow migration inland and away from the sea. Fires and storms regularly destroyed the modest homes of the fishing families. The growth of fishing in Newfoundland also took sailors away from the village to spend 9 months at sea.
In 1846, the mayor (the Count de Trémauville) built the town hall and a boys’ school. Three years later, he demolished the old church and cemetery, citing the lack of maintenance and very poor condition and undertook the reconstruction of the church, saving only a part of the porch of the old building.
Forty years later, like many communes in the region, Saint-Pierre welcomed tourism by those wishing to spend their leisure time by the sea.
On the hillsides, where herds of grazing sheep once roamed, second homes were springing up out of the land. This in turn led to the village developing, with more shops, handicrafts, agriculture, the revival of inshore fishing and some cultural events.
Around this time, in 1883, the Grand Hotel des Terrasses and the casino
were built. They were destroyed in 1944 by the Germans.
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 Seine-Maritime
Seine-Maritime
Seine-Maritime is a French department in the Haute-Normandie region in northern France. It is situated on the northern coast of France, at the mouth of the Seine, and includes the cities of Rouen and Le Havre...
department in the Haute-Normandie
Haute-Normandie
Upper Normandy is one of the 27 regions of France. It was created in 1984 from two départements: Seine-Maritime and Eure, when Normandy was divided into Lower Normandy and Upper Normandy. This division continues to provoke controversy, and some continue to call for reuniting the two regions...
region 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
A farming village in the Pays de CauxPays de Caux
The Pays de Caux is an area in Normandy occupying the greater part of the French département of Seine Maritime in Haute-Normandie. It is a chalk plateau to the north of the Seine Estuary and extending to the cliffs on the English Channel coast - its coastline is known as the Côte d'Albâtre...
, situated some 31 miles (49.9 km) northeast of Le Havre
Le Havre
Le Havre is a city in the Seine-Maritime department of the Haute-Normandie region in France. It is situated in north-western France, on the right bank of the mouth of the river Seine on the English Channel. Le Havre is the most populous commune in the Haute-Normandie region, although the total...
, at the junction of the D33 and D79 roads. The commune has a pebble
Pebble
A pebble is a clast of rock with a particle size of 4 to 64 millimetres based on the Krumbein phi scale of sedimentology. Pebbles are generally considered to be larger than granules and smaller than cobbles . A rock made predominantly of pebbles is termed a conglomerate...
beach and some very high limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
cliffs overlooking the English Channel
English Channel
The English Channel , often referred to simply as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates southern England from northern France, and joins the North Sea to the Atlantic. It is about long and varies in width from at its widest to in the Strait of Dover...
.
History
Several polished stone axes were discovered here in the 19th century, evidence of human presence in the NeolithicNeolithic
The Neolithic Age, Era, or Period, or New Stone Age, was a period in the development of human technology, beginning about 9500 BC in some parts of the Middle East, and later in other parts of the world. It is traditionally considered as the last part of the Stone Age...
period (9000 to 3300 years BC). In 1970, archaeological excavations found sarcophagi of the Merovingian period (500 to 750 AD).
In the 13th century, a church was built on the site of the old cemetery. At the same time, the chapel of Saint-Gervais was built on the plateau at Boulleville (near the present-day water tower). This was destroyed in a fire in the early 18th century.
In the early 19th century, the population of the valley began a slow migration inland and away from the sea. Fires and storms regularly destroyed the modest homes of the fishing families. The growth of fishing in Newfoundland also took sailors away from the village to spend 9 months at sea.
In 1846, the mayor (the Count de Trémauville) built the town hall and a boys’ school. Three years later, he demolished the old church and cemetery, citing the lack of maintenance and very poor condition and undertook the reconstruction of the church, saving only a part of the porch of the old building.
Forty years later, like many communes in the region, Saint-Pierre welcomed tourism by those wishing to spend their leisure time by the sea.
On the hillsides, where herds of grazing sheep once roamed, second homes were springing up out of the land. This in turn led to the village developing, with more shops, handicrafts, agriculture, the revival of inshore fishing and some cultural events.
Around this time, in 1883, the Grand Hotel des Terrasses and the casino
Casino
In modern English, a casino is a facility which houses and accommodates certain types of gambling activities. Casinos are most commonly built near or combined with hotels, restaurants, retail shopping, cruise ships or other tourist attractions...
were built. They were destroyed in 1944 by the Germans.
Population
| 1962 | 1968 | 1975 | 1982 | 1990 | 1999 | 2006 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 849 | 922 | 856 | 853 | 832 | 802 | 849 |
| Starting in 1962: Population without duplicates | ||||||
Places of interest
- The 19th-century church of St. Pierre, with a small part dating from the 13th century.