Lucheux
Lucheux (French pronunciation: [lyʃø]) is a commune in the Somme department in Hauts-de-France in northern France.
Lucheux | |
|---|---|
The belfry of Lucheux is a former city gate tower | |
Coat of arms | |
Lucheux Lucheux | |
| Coordinates: 50°12′00″N 2°25′00″E / 50.2°N 2.4167°E | |
| Country | France |
| Region | Hauts-de-France |
| Department | Somme |
| Arrondissement | Amiens |
| Canton | Doullens |
| Intercommunality | CC Territoire Nord Picardie |
| Government | |
| • Mayor (2020–2026) | Michel Duhautoy[1] |
| Area 1 | 27.65 km2 (10.68 sq mi) |
| Population (2021)[2] | 520 |
| • Density | 19/km2 (49/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC+01:00 (CET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+02:00 (CEST) |
| INSEE/Postal code | 80495 /80600 |
| Elevation | 70–174 m (230–571 ft) (avg. 87 m or 285 ft) |
| 1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries. | |
Geography edit
Lucheux is situated on the D5 road, some 18 miles (29 km) southwest of Arras, near the border with the neighbouring département of the Pas-de-Calais.
Population edit
| Year | Pop. | ±% p.a. |
|---|---|---|
| 1968 | 543 | — |
| 1975 | 513 | −0.81% |
| 1982 | 553 | +1.08% |
| 1990 | 607 | +1.17% |
| 1999 | 568 | −0.74% |
| 2007 | 591 | +0.50% |
| 2012 | 577 | −0.48% |
| 2017 | 534 | −1.54% |
| Source: INSEE[3] | ||
History edit
The château was taken by the Protestants under Captain Cocqueville in 1568 during the Wars of Religion. Laid to siege and taken again in 1595 during the same wars, this time by the Spanish under Hernando Teillo de Porto Carrer.
Places of interest edit
Lucheux is a medieval town with many remarkable monuments:
- The belfry, listed as an historic monument in 1896 and a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2005 (as part of a group of Belfries of Belgium and France) because of its architecture and historical importance in civic affairs.[4]
- The fifteenth-century château.
Dominating the town on the road leading north to Avesnes-le-Comte), it presents an abrupt wall into the valley and the forest with the ruins of some round towers. The moat surrounding the fortress is preserved and can be visited. Some parts are overgrown and inaccessible.[5] The vestiges of the round towers are hidden on their exterior face, but the entrance is well restored. The interior allows an understanding of the dimensions of the dwelling space available to the lord of the manor, with its walls and double bays of the Great Hall, below which one can see the
moat and a preserved section of the keep or donjon.
- The church, dating from the twelfth century.
- An unusual hollow tree, known as the "marriage tree"
- Many restored typical Picardy houses.
- Château walls and moat
- Ruins of the donjon
- Cemetery
- Sundial
People edit
- Saint Leger, who was killed in the forest of Sarcing in 678.
See also edit
References edit
- ^ "Répertoire national des élus: les maires" (in French). data.gouv.fr, Plateforme ouverte des données publiques françaises. 13 September 2022.
- ^ "Populations légales 2021". The National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies. 28 December 2023.
- ^ Population en historique depuis 1968, INSEE
- ^ "Belfries of Belgium and France". UNESCO World Heritage Centre. United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization. Retrieved 5 November 2021.
- ^ Noted in this state in the spring of 2007