Foncquevillers
Foncquevillers | |
|---|---|
 The church of Foncquevillers | |
 Coat of arms | |
Location of Foncquevillers  | |
  Foncquevillers  Foncquevillers | |
| Coordinates:50°08′55″N2°37′54″E/ 50.1486°N 2.6317°E | |
| Country | France |
| Region | Hauts-de-France |
| Department | Pas-de-Calais |
| Arrondissement | Arras |
| Canton | Avesnes-le-Comte |
| Intercommunality | CC Sud-Artois |
| Government | |
| • Mayor(2020–2026) | Christophe Lagniez[1] |
| Area 1 | 9.3 km2(3.6 sq mi) |
| Population (2021)[2] | 399 |
| • Density | 43/km2(110/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC+01:00(CET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+02:00(CEST) |
| INSEE/Postal code | 62341/62111 |
| Elevation | 138–162 m (453–531 ft) (avg. 150 m or 490 ft) |
| 1French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2(0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries. | |
Foncquevillers(French pronunciation:[fɔ̃kvile]) is acommunein thePas-de-Calaisdepartmentin theHauts-de-Franceregion ofFrance.[3]
Geography
[edit]A farming village situated 12 miles (19 km) south ofArras,at the junction of the D3, D6 and the D28 roads.
Population
[edit]| Year | Pop. | ±% p.a. |
|---|---|---|
| 1968 | 404 | — |
| 1975 | 388 | −0.58% |
| 1982 | 389 | +0.04% |
| 1990 | 383 | −0.19% |
| 1999 | 466 | +2.20% |
| 2007 | 473 | +0.19% |
| 2012 | 465 | −0.34% |
| 2017 | 435 | −1.32% |
| Source: INSEE[4] | ||
Foncquevillers was on the Allied front line during almost all of the period of hostilities between 1914 and 1918 and was almost destroyed as a result. The neighbouring village ofGommecourtto the east, in German hands, was the subject of an assault starting from Foncquevillers on 1 July 1916 which formed the northernmost part of what is known in Britain as theBattle of the Somme.
British troops taking part in that attack came from the46th (North Midland) Division,and many are buried in the Foncquevillers Military Cemetery. After the war Foncquevillers established a friendship with the EnglishEast Midlandscities ofDerbyandNottinghamwhich continues today. TheHotel de Villein Foncquevillers has a plaque dedicated to "Derby, notre marraine" - "to Derby, our Godmother".
Places of interest
[edit]- The church of Notre-Dame, rebuilt after the First World War.
- TheFoncquevillers Military Cemetery,which contains 648 Commonwealth burials of the First World War.[5]There are two graves ofChinese Labour Corps,one of a French civilian, four belong to German prisoners. The remainder are Allied servicemen's graves.[6]
- At the side of the church is a memorial to five Canadian airmen who died when a Halifax bomber crashed near here in June 1944. Parts of the aircraft have been preserved nearby.
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^"Répertoire national des élus: les maires".data.gouv.fr, Plateforme ouverte des données publiques françaises(in French). 9 August 2021.
- ^"Populations légales 2021"(in French).The National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies.28 December 2023.
- ^INSEE commune file
- ^Population en historique depuis 1968,INSEE
- ^Foncquevillers Military Cemetery (CWGC)
- ^Waters, D., "The Chinese Labour Corps in the First World War: Labourers Buried in France", inJournal of the Royal Asiatic Society Hong Kong Branch,Vol. 35, 1995, pp. 199-203
External links
[edit]
- A Foncquevillers website(in French)
- "Gommecourt 1st July 1916" websiteArchived23 August 2009 at theWayback Machine
- Gommecourt Wood CWGC cemetery
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