Quiévrain (; ) is a

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...

Wallonia Wallonia ( ; ; or ), officially the Walloon Region ( ; ), is one of the three communities, regions and language areas of Belgium, regions of Belgium—along with Flemish Region, Flanders and Brussels. Covering the southern portion of the c ...

located in the province of Hainaut,

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

. On 1 January 2006, the municipality had 6,559 inhabitants. The total area is 21.22 km², giving a

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing 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 geog ...

of 309 inhabitants per km². The municipality consists of the following districts: Audregnies,

Baisieux Baisieux () is a commune in the Nord department, northern France. It is part of the Métropole Européenne de Lille. Population Heraldry See also *Communes of the Nord department The following is a list of the 647 communes of the Nor ...

, and Quiévrain. Quiévrain is the border crossing point on the old main Paris-Brussels railway line. As a result, Belgians humorously refer to France (and vice versa) as ''outre-Quiévrain'' (''beyond Quiévrain''). In the closing days of the First World War, Quiévrain was liberated by the Canadian Expeditionary Force on November 7, 1918, and marks the starting point of the Canadian Route of Remembrance in Belgium.

Revolutions of 1848

Shortly after the

French Revolution of 1848 The French Revolution of 1848 (), also known as the February Revolution (), was a period of civil unrest in France, in February 1848, that led to the collapse of the July Monarchy and the foundation of the French Second Republic. It sparked t ...

, Belgian migrant workers living in Paris were encouraged to return to Belgium to overthrow the monarchy and establish a republic. Around 6,000 émigrés, coming from Paris, formed the " Belgian Legion". The legion was armed by some of the administrative authorities of

Lille Lille (, ; ; ; ; ) is a city in the northern part of France, within French Flanders. Positioned along the Deûle river, near France's border with Belgium, it is the capital of the Hauts-de-France Regions of France, region, the Prefectures in F ...

, and intended to penetrate into Belgium to "raise the people" and overthrow the Belgian monarchy. It is likely that the revolutionaries had the support of the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the

French Second Republic The French Second Republic ( or ), officially the French Republic (), was the second republican government of France. It existed from 1848 until its dissolution in 1852. Following the final defeat of Napoleon, Napoleon Bonaparte at the Battle ...

, which had only recently been installed and was still very militant. The first group, travelling by train, was stopped and quickly disarmed at Quiévrain on 26 March 1848. The second group crossed into Belgium and was defeated in the Risquons-Tout incident.

References

External links

* Municipalities of Hainaut (province) Belgium–France border crossings {{Hainaut-geo-stub