Philippeville (; wa, Flipveye) is a city and
municipality
A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate.
The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...
of
Wallonia
Wallonia (; french: Wallonie ), or ; nl, Wallonië ; wa, Waloneye or officially the Walloon Region (french: link=no, Région wallonne),; nl, link=no, Waals gewest; wa, link=no, Redjon walone is one of the three regions of Belgium—alo ...
located in the
province of Namur
Namur (; nl, Namen ; wa, Nameur) is a province of Wallonia, one of the three regions of Belgium. It borders (clockwise from the West) on the Walloon provinces of Hainaut, Walloon Brabant, Liège and Luxembourg in Belgium, and the French depart ...
,
Belgium
Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...
. The Philippeville
municipality
A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate.
The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...
includes the former municipalities of
Fagnolle,
Franchimont,
Jamagne
The Jamagne is a short river of , an emissary of the lac de Gérardmer which is its source. It flows into the Vologne as a left tributary at Kichompré.
Etymology
The name Jamagne came from ''Ja-magna'' meaning "already big" by analogy with it ...
,
Jamiolle,
Merlemont,
Neuville,
Omezée,
Roly
Roly is a fictional dog from the BBC soap opera '' EastEnders''. Roly is an apricot coloured Standard Poodle, who appears in the first episode of the programme on 19 February 1985 and remained in the show until 19 October 1993.
Storylines
Roly ...
,
Romedenne,
Samart,
Sart-en-Fagne,
Sautour,
Surice,
Villers-en-Fagne,
Villers-le-Gambon, and
Vodecée.
History
The foundation of Philippeville
At the beginning of the 16th century, the Philippeville region was on the boundary between
Charles V Charles V may refer to:
* Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor (1500–1558)
* Charles V of Naples (1661–1700), better known as Charles II of Spain
* Charles V of France (1338–1380), called the Wise
* Charles V, Duke of Lorraine (1643–1690)
* Infan ...
’s
Burgundian Netherlands
In the history of the Low Countries, the Burgundian Netherlands (french: Pays-Bas bourguignons, nl, Bourgondische Nederlanden, lb, Burgundeschen Nidderlanden, wa, Bas Payis borguignons) or the Burgundian Age is the period between 1384 and ...
and
Francis I Francis I or Francis the First may refer to:
* Francesco I Gonzaga (1366–1407)
* Francis I, Duke of Brittany (1414–1450), reigned 1442–1450
* Francis I of France (1494–1547), King of France, reigned 1515–1547
* Francis I, Duke of Saxe-Lau ...
’s
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 ...
. Fighting around Philippeville did not start, however, until 1554, after
Henry II had succeeded his father on the throne. This area was ideal for an attack as it was covered with forests, sparsely populated and divided among the
County of Hainaut
The County of Hainaut (french: Comté de Hainaut; nl, Graafschap Henegouwen; la, comitatus hanoniensis), sometimes spelled Hainault, was a territorial lordship within the medieval Holy Roman Empire that straddled what is now the border of Belg ...
, that of
Namur
Namur (; ; nl, Namen ; wa, Nameur) is a city and municipality in Wallonia, Belgium. It is both the capital of the province of Namur and of Wallonia, hosting the Parliament of Wallonia, the Government of Wallonia and its administration.
Namu ...
, by now part of
Burgundy
Burgundy (; french: link=no, Bourgogne ) is a historical territory and former administrative region and province of east-central France. The province was once home to the Dukes of Burgundy from the early 11th until the late 15th century. The c ...
, and the
Prince-Bishopric of Liège
The Prince-Bishopric of Liège or Principality of Liège was an Hochstift, ecclesiastical principality of the Holy Roman Empire that was situated for the most part in present-day Belgium. It was an Imperial State, Imperial Estate, so the List of ...
. The medieval forts in the area were taken and pillaged one after the other. The fortress of Mariembourg, close to
Couvin
Couvin (; wa, Couvén) is a city and municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Namur, Belgium.
On 1 January 2018 the municipality had 13,782 inhabitants. Couvin is the second largest municipality of Belgium by surface area, after Tourna ...
, and the town of
Givet
Givet () (german: Gibet Walloon: ''Djivet'') is a commune in the Ardennes department in northern France surrounded on three sides by the Belgian border.
It lies on the river Meuse where Emperor Charles V built the fortress of Charlemont. It ...
soon fell to the French. In 1555, Charles V's new commander,
William the Silent
William the Silent (24 April 153310 July 1584), also known as William the Taciturn (translated from nl, Willem de Zwijger), or, more commonly in the Netherlands, William of Orange ( nl, Willem van Oranje), was the main leader of the Dutch Re ...
, established a new fort in the village of Echerennes, a village known since the 9th century. He garrisoned his troops there as soon as the fort was completed, barely four months after the start of construction.
In 1556, Charles V named his new fortress ''Philippeville'' in honour of his son,
Philip II of Spain
Philip II) in Spain, while in Portugal and his Italian kingdoms he ruled as Philip I ( pt, Filipe I). (21 May 152713 September 1598), also known as Philip the Prudent ( es, Felipe el Prudente), was King of Spain from 1556, King of Portugal from ...
, who would succeed him in the Netherlands – and on the city – the following year.
From 1557 to present
In 1659, the
Treaty of the Pyrenees
The Treaty of the Pyrenees (french: Traité des Pyrénées; es, Tratado de los Pirineos; ca, Tractat dels Pirineus) was signed on 7 November 1659 on Pheasant Island, and ended the Franco-Spanish War that had begun in 1635.
Negotiations were ...
stopped the
Franco-Spanish War (1635–59)
Franco-Spanish War may refer to any war between France and Spain, including:
{{disambig
France–Spain military relations ...
and most frontier cities became French, until
Napoleon
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 ...
’s defeat at
Waterloo. Philippeville itself was
one of the final French fortresses to surrender following Waterloo in 1815. There was then a brief
Dutch interlude until the
Belgian Revolution
The Belgian Revolution (, ) was the conflict which led to the secession of the southern provinces (mainly the former Southern Netherlands) from the United Kingdom of the Netherlands and the establishment of an independent Kingdom of Belgium.
T ...
in 1830.
A treaty drafted in London on 15 November 1831,
[ (Article I)] which the Netherlands refused to sign, was followed by the
Treaty of London (1839)
The Treaty of London of 1839, was signed on 19 April 1839 between the Concert of Europe, the United Kingdom of the Netherlands and the Kingdom of Belgium. It was a direct follow-up to the 1831 Treaty of the XVIII Articles, which the Nether ...
, which created the
Kingdom of Belgium
Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to the ...
. Part of the terms of the treaty required the Philippeville's fortifications, along with those of
Menin,
Ath
Ath (; nl, Aat, ; pcd, Ât; wa, Ate) is a city and municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Hainaut, Belgium.
The municipality consists of the following districts: Arbre, Ath, Bouvignies, Ghislenghien, Gibecq, Houtaing, ...
,
Mons
Mons (; German and nl, Bergen, ; Walloon and pcd, Mont) is a city and municipality of Wallonia, and the capital of the province of Hainaut, Belgium.
Mons was made into a fortified city by Count Baldwin IV of Hainaut in the 12th century. T ...
and
Mariembourg
Mariembourg ( wa, Mariyambour) is a town in the municipality of Couvin in the Province of Namur, Belgium.
The town is named after Mary of Hungary, governor of what was then the Habsburg Netherlands, who ordered the construction of a fortress ...
, to be dismantled. Philippeville's defensive walls were dismantled in 1856 under the reign of
King Leopold I
* nl, Leopold Joris Christiaan Frederik
* en, Leopold George Christian Frederick
, image = NICAISE Leopold ANV.jpg
, caption = Portrait by Nicaise de Keyser, 1856
, reign = 21 July 1831 –
, predecessor = Erasme Lou ...
, in accordance with the terms of the treaty, having been declared superfluous on account of Belgium's
enforced neutrality, and have been replaced by the wide boulevards that circle the city today.
Sights
* Ten kilometres of underground passages dating from the foundation of the city can still be explored under Philippeville. Some sections are open to tourists.
Born in Philippeville
*
Jérôme-Joseph de Momigny, a noted composer and musicologist of the classical/romantic period, was born here on 20 January 1762.
Twin cities
*:
Saulieu
Saulieu () is a rural commune in the Côte-d'Or department in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region in eastern France. Its 2,413 inhabitants (in 2017) call themselves Sédélociens.
Capital of the Morvan, situated within the Morvan Regional Na ...
References
External links
Official website in
FrenchHistorical summary in
FrenchBed and Breakfast in
French
{{Authority control
Cities in Wallonia
Municipalities of Namur (province)