Foy-Our-Lady

Foy-Our-Lady (in Walloon Fôye ) is a section of the Belgian city of Dining located in Walloon region in the Province on Namur.

It was a commune with whole share before the fusion of the communes of 1977.

Etymology

The name of Foy-Our-Lady finds its origin in the word fagicola meaning hêtraie . There exists a document Little story of Notre-Dame de Foy and the history was written by the P. Bouille, of the Society of Jesus, in 1620, eleven years after the discovery of the statue miraculous, and republished by him in 1627.

About 1626, the Michel brothers and Jaspar Stilmant (ancestors of the author of this text) carried out the 145 panels of the ceiling of the church of pilgrimage of Foy-Our-Lady, probably the vastest painted ceiling which still remains in Belgium. Another family member Stilmant, Jacques, is him active at the end of the XVIIe century. One preserves his hand a Vierge of pain of 1682 at the Saint-Georges church with Leffe (Dining) and a Résurrection of Christ of 1698 with the Notre-Dame church with Dining. Stilmant associated the painters Guillaume Goblet and Bartholomé.

History

21 lines of 7 square boxes in oak represent, the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin carried to the sky by the angels, the Mysteries of the rosary, the Doctorss of the Church, the four Evangelists, Saint Jean and Saint Denis. The 118 tables for the majority of the ex-votos, remainders represent, in bust, of the saints and happy of various religious orders. It is a kind of assertion of the legitimacy of the worship of the images…

The history of Foy-Our-Lady begins only in 1609 with the discovery by Gilles de Wanlin, carpenter, engaged by dinantais Innocent Delinoy and charged to cut a large oak intended for the construction of a boat. The remainder of the history, everyone knows it. Before this date, Foy is a cultivated ground and a wood making ± 15 ha depend on the seigniory of Boisseilles.

It is indeed in Boisseilles, today hamlet of Foy, that the Romans set up an establishment with the site of the current castle.

Between 862 and 873, grounds of FAY and Germanic radical HULISBAC: Huls meaning any thorny wood and finally Houx > Hubaille were given to the abbey of Stavelot. The monks of this abbey make there build a church, a basilla. This building will give the name to the village > bacelles > Baceille >Boiselles > Boisseilles.

To XIIe century, Boisseilles passes in the field of the canons of Those, is integrated in the parish of Sorinnes and is joined the grounds defended by Prévôté de Poilvache depend on the County of Namur (1357).

The ground of Boisseilles recovers several strongholds which appear in the prerogative of the families of the patriciat of Dining, before being built-in, in February 1737, in the possessions of the Count de Beaufort, lord of Those.

The discovery of the statue of Foy, in 1609, goes, within the framework of the religious revival born from the Counter-Reformation, to give to this ground a destiny as unexpected as international. About 1613, a vault is built by the baron of Those (Vêves) and a first miracle is attested in 1616. In front of the multitude which it caused and following the visit, in 1619, of the Archdukes Albert and Isabelle (the retable of the furnace bridge of the first both vaults is their gift sent of Brussels the shortly after their pilgrimage with Foy), the prince-bishop names the prelate of the abbey of Leffe, Jean Noiret, administrator of the sanctuary and the pilgrimages. The vault is supplemented by a nave and some masonries are set up in order to place the pilgrims. 1626, Boisseilles and Foy are detached from Sorinnes and are set up in parish. The construction of the current church is entrusted to the brothers Stilmant (Michel and Jaspard) of Dining. The dedication takes place on September 8th, 1624, celebrates nativity in front of - we says the Father Jesuit Pierre Bouille - some 12.000 faithful!

(According to the files, one knows that the frame required 233 oaks and that the metal elements represent more than 5 tons, forged in the area.) The development of the worship for the Virgin of Notre-Dame de Foy lies of course within the scope of a popular devotion spontaneous but must be also included/understood in the political interest which it represents. Indeed, in this time when Protestantism exerts its devastations, the order of the Jesuits - in particular - will be seen entrusting the mission of reviving - everywhere where its representatives are - the interest of the Virgin, the worship of the saints and other happy.

The church of Foy-Our-Lady thus becomes, as of its dedication, one of the symbols of the fight against the reform. Two elements attest some:

the coffered ceiling (145) including/understanding the representation of a hundred saints or happy. This choice concerns a concern of the givers who wanted to affirm, against the Protestants and to the iconoclasts, their veneration for the elected officials of God, the legitimacy of their worship and their representation by images. They wanted exalter thus - by this sumptuous demonstration, in this beginning of the XVIIe century - the Mother of God, Reine of the Patriarchs, the prophets, the apostles, the martyrs, the confessors, the virgins and all the saints.

the second proof of this intention resides in the inscription dédicatoire engraved in gold letters on the two sides of the gate vault and which recalls the context in which this church was raised and devoted. This dedication ends in: " … which made the Very Blessed Virgin famous in the whole world for the eternal confusion of the iconoclasts and the strengthening of the faith received from our aïeux.

The year 1626

The Jesuits thus will propagate this worship, like good of others besides. The Father Boil (Dining 1576 - Valencians 1641), witness of the events and Member of the Commission of investigation having to check the veracity of the miracles, will be charged to write the history of Notre-Dame de Foy. One knows a first edition in 1620. Other editions leave printing works inhabitants of Li2ege in 1623; 1627, in 1666. In 1620, a Latin edition is printed in Douai, one in Dutch (1624). In the same spirit, he will write the history of Notre-Dame of Good-Hope (Valencians - 1630) and the history of Notre-Dame de Miséricorde of Marchiennes-with-Bridge. One is the success of this company of " propagande" since in 1939 one counted:

40 Belgian parishes where she was venerated
38 in France
ten in Germany
but also in Austria, Slovakia, Hungary, England, Congo, the United States, Luxembourg, Holland, Switzerland, Tahiti.

The most edifying example is, without question, the creation of the Holy-Foy town of in Quebec on the initiative of the Père Chaumonot, Jesuit French missionary, who established this worship among the Huron Indians lately converted and which founded a sanctuary around whose little by little an agglomeration developed which preserves the name of it.

Foy-Our-lady was thus born from this discovery, altogether, extremely banal. The village little by little will be built around the church but without never really developing more than it is not today (± 40 hearths).

On several occasions, the wars will mark the site and the Virgin, or will be hidden with Dining (1650-74-86) or stolen, as in 1696, by will be confederated Dutch which put the church at bag.

The importance of the worship justifies of a service to the pilgrims that ensure, in turn, the priests of the vicinity. The load becoming such, the ecclesiastical authority imagines to install a monastic chapter or a regular community: Carmelite friars and Dominican are had a presentiment of but without success. Prémontrés de Leffe are about there to install a priory but nothing succeeds. The parish of Foy, whose legal status seems to be insufficiently specified is then the theater of interested competitions. The richnesses which flow there as ex-voto cause covetousnesses and, the incurie or the absence of true managers of such a place hastens their dilapidation. Under pretext of the maintenance costs of such a place (the subsidies granted to the Fabric committees date only from the Legal settlement - 1802), the parts of the treasure are sold with the auction (in quantum: for how much?) often for ridiculous sums (1720). The started decline of the kind will be accentuated during all the XVIIIe century; at most a local worship remains it very modestly (Dining - Rochefort - Houyet and still!). Foy-Our-lady becomes common within the framework of the territorial reorganization which follows the French revolution; Boisseilles will be the hamlet.

End XIXe, it is the work of the priests, Felix Fries (1892-1906) and Charles Petitjean who will regild the blazon of Foy-Our-Lady. The first, by its historical research, will show the exceptional interest of the site and will obtain the classification of the church in 1898 and its restoration by the architect Auguste Van Assche. Following the action of the second, and the support of Mgr. Heylen, bishop of Namur, some 10.000 pilgrims will rejoin the village in 1909. The current of the pilgrimages took again strength. The same priest will organize, in the presence of the Cardinal Van Roey, Primat of Belgium, and the representative of the King, the 25e birthday of the Festivals of crowning in 1934. A procession of 6.000 observers recalls the records of the small village mariale. Twenty-two statuettes coming from churches where the worship of this virgin remained are presented to Foy. More than 30.000 people attend the ceremonies.

Lastly, Foy-Our-Lady undergoes the ultimate sudden starts of the second world war, December 24th and 25th 1944. It is there, indeed, that the soldiers of the offensive Van Rundstedt ended who had broken the American face with height of Buissonville. The posted English with Sorinnes, while the Americans kept Dining, gave the attack lasting this so particular Christmas. If there were no local victim, the 22 houses of the village were damaged. The church suffers only light damage.

Sources and Documents of files: Cities of Dining, Hayot Abbot, pH. Nottet.

Economy

External bonds

Site of the commune of Dining
Site on the Union on the Cities and Communes of Wallonia asbl.

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