Féchain

Féchain is a common French, located in the department of the Northern (59) and the area Nord-Pas-de-Calais.

Its inhabitants is called the féchinois.

Geography

Féchain is a village located at 15 kilometers in the south-east of Douai and at 10 kilometers in the north of Cambrai.

A Net contrasts landscape characterizes the commune. Indeed, Féchain is located in contact with the valley of the Sensée, forming a depression in the south, and agricultural plate of the Ostrevent in the north, whose altitude rises until nearly 70 meters.

The valley of Judicious represents a natural cut in the south of the communal territory. The latter, presenting bottom of a very broad and very wet valley, is very green: marshy, succession of wood and ponds (for the majority resulting from the extraction of the peat) in which the course of the channel is lost.

History

It is on a territory bordered in north by a relatively high chalky hill, and in the south by the wetland formed by the Sensée and its ponds which the first inhabitants of Féchain found all that it was necessary for them to settle: water, wood, game, fish, and flints essential to the clothes industry of the tools.

Generations followed one another on the territory of 4000 700 av. J. - C. (fine of the Bronze Age). They left there several megaliths, unfortunately destroyed at the time of the First World War. Traces remain nevertheless with in particular the polishing machine, discovered in 1968. Here is probably why Féchain was called formerly Felshen (Germanic name of origin meaning the stone).

Small Gallic farms were set up in Féchain at the time of the second iron age (between 1500 and 400 av. J. - C.). Several Gallic tombs atrébates dating from the Romain Early empire (between Ier and IIIe S.) were also discovered on the territory.

From 400 at the year millet, the frank kings mérovingiens, then Carolingian manages their kingdom by dividing it into counties. The left bank of Judicious then forms part of the county of Ostrevant. The southern bank is distributed between the county of Artois and the county of the Cambrésis.

From 879 to 884, the Vikings plunder the area. They will return regularly until the end of IXe S. In 881, they set fire to Cambrai, Arras and all the monasteries of the Scarpe. Louis III, in vain tries to stop them by strengthening the site of the old Gallic fortress of Etrun - Paillencourt.

In 1200, English destroys the city.

The wars of 15th and 16th S. ruin in their turn all the area. In 1521, François 1st devastates Bouchain and its surroundings.

In 1629, Féchain is managed by Maximilien de Sainte Aldegonde, governor of Bilge.

From 1669 to 1748, Antoine Hyacinthe of Blondel Drouhot is the lord of Féchain and of Barlet and its weapons, sand armorial to the gold band, is always those of the commune.

In 1705, the city is destroyed by a hurricane.

The son of Antoine, Louis Hyacinthe of Blondel, baron de Drouhot and lord of Féchain exiles in Belgium at the time of the French revolution.

Administration

Demography

Places and monuments

In 1968, a polishing machine is discovered with Aubencheul-with-Vat during work of widening of Right Bank of the Judicious one. The megalith is then moved in Féchain.

This polishing machine dates from the Neolithic period (between 6000 with 3000 av. J. - C.). It is about a monolith of which the upper part is dug basins and grooves. It was used for the polishing of the flint axes. The basins are formed by the polishing of the face of the axes and the grooves by the edges.

The polishing machine, largest is most beautiful of the area, is registered with the additional inventory of the historic buildings in 1980. This sandstone which weighs approximately 7 tons, is high of 1,10 Mr. It made party of a 2,00 m broad more important block on 4,00 m length.

Personalities related to the commune

See too

Common of North

External bonds

Official site of the commune of Féchain

Athletic Féchain Club

Féchain on the site of the national geographical Institute
Féchain on the site of INSEE
Féchain on the site of Quid
Localization of Féchain on a chart of France and communes bordering
Plane on Féchain on Mapquest

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