Longchamps () is a village in the Belgian

Namur Province Namur (; ; ) is a Provinces of Belgium, province of Wallonia, one of the three regions of Belgium. It borders (clockwise from the West) on the Walloon provinces of Hainaut Province, Hainaut, Walloon Brabant, Liège Province, Liège and Luxembourg ...

and a (sub-municipality) of the municipality of

Éghezée Éghezée (; ) is a municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Namur, Belgium. On 1 January 2010 the municipality had 15,169 inhabitants. The total area is 102.81 km2, giving a population density of 146.93 inhabitants per km2. The ...

Characteristics

Geography

The village is about two kilometers south-southwest of the village Éghezée, center of the eponymous municipality. Longchamps is on the

Hesbaye The Hesbaye ( French, ), or Haspengouw ( Dutch and Limburgish, ), is a traditional cultural and geophysical region in eastern Belgium. It is a loamy plateau region which forms a watershed between the Meuse and Scheldt drainage basins. It has b ...

plateau. The area is crossed by two brooks, the Longchamps brook and the Basses Prêles brook.

Economy

The industrial zone of Eghezée is on the territory of the sub-municipality. The Le Clercq company produces Kewlox furniture. The Brichart company has a large depot for

cereal A cereal is a grass cultivated for its edible grain. Cereals are the world's largest crops, and are therefore staple foods. They include rice, wheat, rye, oats, barley, millet, and maize ( Corn). Edible grains from other plant families, ...

s and

fertilizer A fertilizer or fertiliser is any material of natural or synthetic origin that is applied to soil or to plant tissues to supply plant nutrients. Fertilizers may be distinct from liming materials or other non-nutrient soil amendments. Man ...

. The

râperie A râperie is a small factory depending on a central sugar factory. In a râperie sugar beet are grated and the juice is extracted before it is transported to a central sugar factory. By 2023 the Râperie de Longchamps, Éghezée, Longchamps connec ...

de Longchamps is part of the

Wanze Sugar Factory The ''Wanze Sugar Factory'' was founded by the Sucreries Centrales SA. It is located in Wanze and is currently owned by Raffinerie Tirlemontoise. Wanze Sugar Factory is the only European sugar factory that still uses an outlying râperie connect ...

. During the season it processes 12,000 t of

sugar beet A sugar beet is a plant whose root contains a high concentration of sucrose and that is grown commercially for sugar production. In plant breeding, it is known as the Altissima cultivar group of the common beet (''Beta vulgaris''). Together with ...

per day. These are grown on a surface of about 20,000 hectares. The râperie extracts raw juice from the beet. The juice is then transported to the factory in Wanze by pipeline.

Demography

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History

The name Longchamps stems from . In the area: a Roman military camp, Roman side roads () and

tumuli A tumulus (: tumuli) is a mound of Soil, earth and Rock (geology), stones raised over a grave or graves. Tumuli are also known as barrows, burial mounds, mounds, howes, or in Siberia and Central Asia as ''kurgans'', and may be found through ...

were found. In medieval times, Longchamps was an enclave of the

Duchy of Brabant The Duchy of Brabant, a Imperial State, state of the Holy Roman Empire, was established in 1183. It developed from the Landgraviate of Brabant of 1085–1183, and formed the heart of the historic Low Countries. The Duchy comprised part of the Bu ...

in the

County of Namur The County of Namur () was a county of the Holy Roman Empire with its military and administrative capital at the town of Namur (city), Namur, at the merging of the Sambre and Meuse rivers in what is now Wallonia, French-speaking Belgium. Under t ...

. It was part of the barony of

Bierbeek Bierbeek () is a municipality located in the Belgian province of Flemish Brabant. The municipality comprises the towns of Bierbeek proper, Korbeek-Lo, Lovenjoel and Opvelp. On January 1, 2006, Bierbeek had a total population of 9,147. The total ...

, which in turn depended on

Aarschot Aarschot () is a city and municipality in the province of Flemish Brabant, in Flanders, Belgium. The municipality comprises the city of Aarschot proper and the towns of Gelrode, Langdorp and Rillaar. On 1 January 2019, Aarschot had a total popu ...

. In 1652 it became a barony for Hubert de Corswarem. Until 1977 Longchamps was a separate municipality. By the

Fusion of the Belgian municipalities The fusion of the Belgian municipalities (French: ''fusion des communes'', Dutch: ''fusie van Belgische gemeenten'') was a Belgian political process that rationalized and reduced the number of municipalities in Belgium between 1964 and 1983. In 1 ...

it became part of

municipality.

Sights

* The Saint Feuillen church of 1838 was built as an upgrade of the castle chapel after Longchamps became an independent parish in 1837. The tower was built in 1863. The interior of the church has the crypt of the lords of Longchamps. Close to the altar is the epitaph of Hubert de Corswarem (+1671). Hubert de Corswarem became famous for claiming to be a direct descendant from the Counts of Loon. This false claim is reflected on this epitaph. * Le Château de Longchamps was built on the foundations of a Roman villa. At the end of World War II it belonged to Léopold de Marotte de Montigny. It was sold in 1955. Only the lower part of the central building remains of the medieval castle. Two stones with the arms of Selis de Longchamps and Marotte de Montigny have been set in its walls. * The farm Haibe has the year 1739 above its gate. It has been entirely restored and is now house. * The

settling basin A settling basin, settling pond or decant pond is an earthen or concrete structure using sedimentation to remove settleable matter and turbidity from wastewater. The basins are used to control water pollution in diverse industries such as agric ...

s of the râperie are known as a stop for many

migratory birds Bird migration is a seasonal movement of birds between breeding and wintering grounds that occurs twice a year. It is typically from north to south or from south to north. Migration is inherently risky, due to predation and mortality. The ...

. Access is limited.

References

Sources

* * * {{Authority control Former municipalities of Namur (province)