See also: Menin (title)

Menin (in Dutch Menen ) is a common city and Dutch-speaking of Belgium located in Flemish Région in the Province of Western Flanders.

This commune includes the town of Menin and the boroughs of Lauwe and Rekkem. It communicates directly with the common Frenchwoman of Halluin, of which it divides the main street.

Data

• At January first 2004 the population was of 32.141 inhabitants.

• the communal surface is of 33,07 km ²
• the Densité is of 971,92

History of the commune

The history of Menin was written, in French, by Dr. Aimé Louis Rembry-Barth (°1832 - + 1894). This monumental work, " History of Menin" , in four volumes, was republished in 1968 by the editor " Familia and Patria".

The borough of Menin was bought in 1338 by the count of Flanders, Louis de Male, to join together it with its fields. The city followed the fate of the Flanders then and was included in the XVII Provinces (i.e. Belgium, Netherlands and the current Grand Duchy of Luxembourg). In 1575, the king of Spain Philippe II, reigning then on his Flemish possessions, made surround Menin of walls, and the city was still strengthened in 1578 by the baron de Montigny. Taken by Turenne in 1658, it was returned to Spain by the Treaty of Nimègue in 1678. At the time of the ceaseless wars of Louis XIV, this last took the city, and made build a new enclosure by Vauban, flanked several bastions and doors. Taken by the Allies in 1706, it made officially return in 1713 by the Treaty of Utrecht, in the southernmost Netherlands (approximately, current Belgium) which were then Austrian. Louis XV made himself main from there in 1744 but Austria recovered it by the Treaty of Aachen. The French took it again in 1792 and 1794. The city then followed the common fate of the Belgian localities: fastening of Belgium in France, then in the Netherlands, until the Belgian Revolution of 1830.

From the administrative point of view, and under the Old Mode, the town of Menin belonged to one of the five rods (" Roeden" in Dutch) who constituted the châtellenie of Courtrai (" Kasselrij Kortrijk" in Dutch): the rod of Menin (" of Roede van Menen"). The latter counted, in addition to Menin, several localities: Bissegem, Emelgem, Gullegem, Heule, Geluwe, Dadizele, Lendelede, the town of Izegem, Moorsele Wevelgem Kachtem and Winkel-Saint-Eloi. During the French period, the city was located in the Department of the Lily.

Communes

Languages

Dutch is official there and spoken by 56% about the population but French is also spoken daily by 44% about the population. 32% of the population, generally of the tradesmen, are bilingual Dutch French/.

External bonds

• Site of the commune (in Dutch)
• local History and genealogy
• Locks of Menin: