Soumagne (, wa, Soûmagne) is a
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 Liège,
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 ...
.
On September 1, 2008, Soumagne had a total population of 15,894. The total area is 27.14 km
2 which gives a
population density
Population density (in agriculture: Stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical ...
of 585 inhabitants per km
2.
The municipality consists of the following
districts:
Ayeneux,
Cerexhe-Heuseux,
Évegnée-Tignée,
Mélen,
Micheroux, and Soumagne.
History
From the end of the 19th century until the 1960s, Soumagne was a flourishing municipality with numerous
coal
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock, formed as rock strata called coal seams. Coal is mostly carbon with variable amounts of other elements, chiefly hydrogen, sulfur, oxygen, and nitrogen.
Coal is formed when ...
mines and a large Cooperative factory.
After the end of
coal mining, the mines were cleaned and residences as well as shopping areas were built. Some buildings are kept and transformed into tourism activities (such as "le domaine du Bas-Bois").
During the
German invasion of Belgium at the beginning of
World War I
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 ...
, the
Imperial German Army killed 118 civilians and burned 100 houses in the village as
collective punishment
Collective punishment is a punishment or sanction imposed on a group for acts allegedly perpetrated by a member of that group, which could be an ethnic or political group, or just the family, friends and neighbors of the perpetrator. Because ind ...
for the
Belgian Army
The Land Component ( nl, Landcomponent, french: Composante terre) is the land branch of the Belgian Armed Forces. The King of the Belgians is the commander in chief. The current chief of staff of the Land Component is Major-General Pierre Gérard. ...
’s resistance of the invasion from the nearby
Fort de Fléron
The Fort de Fléron is one of twelve forts built around Liège, Belgium, in the late 19th century. The overall Fortified Position of Liège was a constituent part of the country's National Redoubt. Fort de Fléron was built between 1881 and 18 ...
.
Since 1980, the higher number of people leaving big cities (
Liège and
Verviers
Verviers (; wa, Vervî) is a city and municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Liège, Belgium.
The municipality consists of the following districts: Ensival, Heusy, Lambermont, Petit-Rechain, Stembert, and Verviers. It is also ...
) for more rural municipalities, with the
E40 motorway passing on its territory, Soumagne recovered from the loss of coal mining and the end of the Cooperative. In that period, houses are built due to a new, and young, population settling down in Soumagne. A lot of new shops and commercial centers opened and small companies are emerging.
Attractions
There are a few touristic points in Soumange (among others):
* the Evegnée fountain (natural fountain in a rural landscape)
* Saint-Lambert church (built during the 13th century, burnt in 1694 and rebuilt)
* "Domaine du Bas-Bois" (a former coal mine site)
*
Wégimont Castle (14th century construction changed through the centuries with a park transformed into a family amusement area)
See also
*
List of protected heritage sites in Soumagne
References
External links
*
Domaine Provincial de Wégimont (in French)
Municipalities of Liège Province
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