commune
A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to:
Administrative-territorial entities
* Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township
** Communes of ...
department
Department may refer to:
* Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility
Government and military
*Department (administrative division), a geographical and administrative division within a country, ...
in
Hauts-de-France
Hauts-de-France (; pcd, Heuts-d'Franche; , also ''Upper France'') is the northernmost Regions of France, region of France, created by the territorial reform of French regions in 2014, from a merger of Nord-Pas-de-Calais and Picardy. Its Prefectu ...
in northern
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
.
Geography
The commune is situated on the D40 road, some northwest of
Abbeville
Abbeville (, vls, Abbekerke, pcd, Advile) is a commune in the Somme department and in Hauts-de-France region in northern France.
It is the chef-lieu of one of the arrondissements of Somme. Located on the river Somme, it was the capital of ...
, by the banks of the canalised river Somme. The ancient forests of Abbeville remain as woods on the hills to the west of the village.
History
The Latin names ''Latverum'' or ''Laverum'' appear in the year 881 in the records of the
Amiens
Amiens (English: or ; ; pcd, Anmien, or ) is a city and commune in northern France, located north of Paris and south-west of Lille. It is the capital of the Somme department in the region of Hauts-de-France. In 2021, the population of ...
. Controversy surrounds the meaning of the name: « lavoir » according to some, « arm of a river » according to others. In 883, when the
Normans
The Normans (Norman language, Norman: ''Normaunds''; french: Normands; la, Nortmanni/Normanni) were a population arising in the medieval Duchy of Normandy from the intermingling between Norsemen, Norse Viking settlers and indigenous West Fran ...
Carloman II of France
Carloman II ( 866 – 6 December 884) was the King of West Francia from 879 until his death. A member of the Carolingian dynasty, he and his elder brother, Louis III, divided the kingdom between themselves and ruled jointly until the latter's d ...
, set up his camp at Laviers to block their passage to the sea.
In the 11th century, a fort comprising a
palisade
A palisade, sometimes called a stakewall or a paling, is typically a fence or defensive wall made from iron or wooden stakes, or tree trunks, and used as a defensive structure or enclosure. Palisades can form a stockade.
Etymology
''Palisade' ...
on a
motte
A motte-and-bailey castle is a European fortification with a wooden or stone keep situated on a raised area of ground called a motte, accompanied by a walled courtyard, or bailey, surrounded by a protective ditch and palisade. Relatively easy to ...
was built at Laviers,near the Bois de Bonance, on a point jutting out towards the bay.
In 1137, Abbeville’s charter, granted by the Comte de Ponthieu mentioned « Laveriœ »
In 1177, Jean de Ponthieu gave money to the leper hospital of the ''frères du Val'' and the gift of a forest was noted. The clearing of an area of the forest now known as the "Valley of the Lepers", between Laviers and
Buigny-Saint-Maclou
Buigny-Saint-Maclou (; pcd, Bugny-Saint-Maclou) is a Communes of France, commune in the Somme (department), Somme Departments of France, department in Hauts-de-France in northern France.
Geography
The commune is situated on the Route nationale 1 ...
may have started up as early as 1164.
In 1696, the leper hospital was finally closed down.
In 1777, after a branch of the Somme was blocked at
Saint-Valery-sur-Somme
Saint-Valery-sur-Somme (, literally ''Saint-Valery on Somme''; pcd, Saint-Wary), commune in the Somme department, is a seaport and resort on the south bank of the River Somme estuary. The town's medieval character and ramparts, its Gothic chur ...
, the authorities decided to build a canal from Abbeville to the estuary at Saint Valery. Work began in 1786 but hit problems in 1793 with the installation of the
sluice
Sluice ( ) is a word for a channel controlled at its head by a movable gate which is called a sluice gate. A sluice gate is traditionally a wood or metal barrier sliding in grooves that are set in the sides of the waterway and can be considered ...
-gates in the muddy sub-strata and above all, the reaction of the local farmers, raising sheep and cattle on the salt-marshes. Work resumed under the orders of
Napoleon Bonaparte
Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...
Étaples
Étaples or Étaples-sur-Mer (; vls, Stapel, lang; pcd, Étape) is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in northern France. It is a fishing and leisure port on the Canche river.
History
Étaples takes its name from having been a medieval ...
was built, a section of the Paris – Boulogne line. The river bed of the Somme was filled and moved to accommodate the construction.
The town was comparatively safe during the
First World War
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
, accommodating Indian colonial assistants.
In May 1940, during the
Second World War
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, the town was separated from
Abbeville
Abbeville (, vls, Abbekerke, pcd, Advile) is a commune in the Somme department and in Hauts-de-France region in northern France.
It is the chef-lieu of one of the arrondissements of Somme. Located on the river Somme, it was the capital of ...
.
It was liberated by English troops in August 1944.
In 1953, a primary school was constructed at Grand-Laviers, and the following year, the pupils of the school inherited a castle from the Jusancourt family that now houses an educational medical institute. On May 2, 1976, the commune of Petit-Laviers was amalgamated with Grand-Laviers.
Population
Places of interest
* Bonance woods.
* fifteenth century church
* The ruins of a 13th-century chapel which belonged to an old friary hospital.