Montceau-the-Mines

See also: Montceau

Montceau-the-Mines is a common French, located in the department of Saône-et-Loire and the area Burgundy.

Geography

Montceau-the-mines is installed on the Bourbince and the channel of the Center to 19 km with the SO of the Creusot. It counts in particular a power station (Lucy) coal-fired, producing electrical energy and vapor for the district heating. ()

History

The term of Montceau appears for the first time in 1266 on a title of the files of the Coast-with Or. In 1475 Montceau counts approximately 25 hearts and it is necessary to await 1645 to find trace of the current name: Montceau.

As of the XVIe century one knows the presence of coal to Blanzy. The centuries passing, the common neighbors develop. At the beginning, an inn and some farms form a hamlet. One of the fields being called Montceau , the name of the commune is quickly found.

The construction of the channel of the center between 1783 and 1791 then the installation of the Company of the mines in 1833 are the two principal events involving the birth of the city. Official birth date: the June 24th 1856 .

A law founds the commune of Montceau-the-Mines, community of 1300 inhabitants, on a territory punctured on the communes of Blanzy, Saint-Vallier, Saint-Berain-under-Sanvignes, and Sanvignes-the-Mines. In 1857, the Company of the mines makes build a church then carries out a cemetery. A post office is set up in 1869, a new hospital in 1871 and the town hall is completed in 1876, the currency of the Republic coming to be added to it only in 1996. (See also the article Carboniferous of Blanzy.)

The coal mining makes thrive the city. intense social movements are held there at the end of the 19th century and at the beginning of XXe.

True social Laboratory, Montceau saw an end of XIXe century particularly agitated with its economic and industrial expansion, the commune knows a growth quasi its population, reaching close to: 29000 inhabitants in 1901, a little less: 21000 after the Census of 1999.

19 mayors follow one another in 144 years the head of the commune, of François Leonce Chagot in 1856 with Didier Mathus, mayor since 1995.

Strikes of 1878

In January 1878, Montcelliens elect a republican with the head of the commune, Dr. Jeannin. The pill passed rather badly within the Company. Fifteen minor of republican tendency were laid off in February. At once a Grève was born, with the great surprise of the authorities. The gendarmes intervene a few days later.

The bases of a Syndicat of the minors were thrown. These trade unionists were to hold meeting in the open air or the night, from where the nickname of black band. The anarchistic disorders and attacks which enamelled the years 1882 - 1884 with Montceau were charged to him.

Strikes of 1899

The movement already started successfully in Creusot, with the Faïencerie of Digoin, with the forging mills of Gueugnon and in the metallurgy of Châlon-sur-saône. The June 6th 1899, a group of strikers goes to the Saint-François well and succeeds in discharging his comrades. The operation is reiterated successfully with the Holy-Eugenie well, then Saint-Pierre and Maugrand.

A general Grève is in hand. A strike committee sets up in trade-union office and rejoins: 8000 members.

July 1st, the strikers obtained win, reference of the police force of the mine and recognition of the trade union. Later employers helped with the constitution of dissenting trade unions, made up of workmen won over to their cause. These yellow trade unions transfers the day in 1899 in Creusot then with Montceau. The expression “Yellows” to designate the strikebreakers was born with this occasion. It comes from the color of the oil-paper used to replace the panes of the coffee where they met, regularly broken by the strikers.

Strikes of 1901

The Chagot dynasty yields the place to the Company of the coal mines of Blanzy, public limit company. In 1900, a polytechnician, Mr. Coste, is named director of the mine. Jean Bouveri is elected mayor the May 20th 1900. It is the first mayor resulting from a socialist list elected official in France.

A certain libertarian alarm clock is born among the workmen. The director had decided to reduce manpower in order to increase production and productivity. The workmen were paid according to the value of extracted coal. An identical work did not pay, unfortunately, identical wages. The January 21st 1901, the trade union, which had undertaken negotiations 19, is overflowed by its base. The strike is started. Deputies come to support the minors strikers. The Soup kitchen is installation the February 10th. The collection of the vivres and the food were organized in the back-country. From January in May 1901, a troop which counts up to 25.000 men is deployed with Montceau-the-Mines. The speech of the March 8th to the National Assembly did not have the repercussion discounted by the montcelliens. The strike of 1901 will have been one of longest labor movement: 108 days. She finished the May 10th.

The Black Band

Exit of the first Trade union of the minors, the name was associated with the anarchistic group which agitated the life of Montceau of 1882 to 1885. The first anarchistic fact took place with the Wood of Verne for the Corpus Christi in the night of the 17 to the June 18th 1882. Resting places prepared for a procession were thrown in a pond. The Band was caught some then with the various symbols of the religion. After the attacks with the goods, the group exerted reprisals on the people as of September 1882. In 1883 there were some demonstrations well. The Anarchiste S had succeeded in being made known during these two years.

The Mine with Montceau

The first work of exploitation begins in Blanzy in 1813 and is propagated then in Montceau in 1820. Since 1833 coal was always extracted in basement. In 1884 one counts 6500 minors for a population of 24000 individuals. A big part of this population thus depends directly on the Company, given that the children attend the schools of them.

The employment of the children is regulated. The entry with the mine is done at 12 years. A law of November 2nd, 1892 prohibits the night-work to the children of less than 16 9 hours years of the evening at 5 o'clock in the morning. Underground work is interdict with the women and the girls. As for young people, certain exceptions lead them to work in the galleries, where the work conditions are particularly painful.

The day is 10 a.m. In water, heat, dust, the anguish, the darkness, the cries. The Maladie watches for them all, the Company is very treated on a hierarchical basis. The women work also but not at the bottom. The various explosions and accidents caused nearly 400 deaths of the beginning of the exploitation up to 1882 (see Firedamp explosion). The Great War allows SA Mines of Blanzy to beat records of production (2 786.500 tons) in 1918. The wells Darcy and Plichon are born after the Guerre.

The agglomeration of Montceau-the-Mines counts an important Polish community which, 70 years after the arrival of the Polish minors, is always very active.

Increasingly competed with by the foreign productions, particularly by the coal of the countries of energy source and Eastern Europe other, the production passes under the 2 million tons in 1965 then under the million in 1985. The process of open-cast mining appears in the Eighties like the means of safeguarding employment and of maintaining the extraction of coal in the area. The exploitation site of Darcy ceases any activity the April 30th 1992. There is not consequently more exploitation of the bottom.

Friday December 22nd 2000, the extraction of coal in the field montcellien finishes with the end of the exploitation in discovered of Saint-Amédée with Sanvignes.

Some significant figures of the evolution of manpower of the collieries

  • 1850 - 975 minors

  • 1914 - 6.700 minors
  • 1918 - 12.700 minors
  • 1939 - 8.300 minors
  • 1948 - 12.000 minors
  • 1991 - 651 minors
  • 2001, will see the end of the exploitation of the discoveries.

Mining catastrophes

Sunday February 3rd 1895, a fire is declared in a gallery of the Holy-Eugenie well. A formidable explosion the next morning sweeps the stopping set up to choke the fire and keep silent all those which were there. 21 died, 7 missings, changing to 28 the number of victims of the catastrophe. Two years later another accident in this same well costs the life 4 minors. With each catastrophe the Company seeks a culprit. In the species it appoints the minor having wanted to relight his lamp, whereas a minor delegate had alerted the attention of the persons in charge for more than six months on the absence of safety and the risks of the firedamp.

The January 16th 1958 a Firedamp explosion shakes the well of the Wood of Verne. What much feared is unfortunately produced. It is certainly about the mining catastrophe most outstanding of the XXe century for the area.

In 1881, is built in the center of Montceau a kind of palate school, remarkable building intended to strongly affirm the presence of the public services of the Republic and the importance of the laic instruction in an area controlled up to that point by the family Chagot owner of the Collieries.

Administration

Demography

Places and monuments

  • Town hall.

  • Fossil Museum of the “ S”.
  • Museum of the “house of school”.
  • Park “Maugrand”.
  • Laundrette of the “Chavannes”.

Personalities related to the commune

Sports

Rugby, sport major in years 60/70, saw the RCM (Rugby Montcellien Club) evolving/moving in the 1st national division and the 2nd national division. Football is a major sports activity with Montceau-the-Mines. The Agreement of Montceau evolved/moved during 7 seasons in Division 2 in the years 1980, including 5 of professionalism.

In 2007, it, evolving/moving in bottom of the fourth division (CFA), reaches the semi-finals of the Coupe de France of Football after having eliminated in eighth from finale (by shootings with the goal). In quarterfinals, they eliminated the second from the championship of France of League 1, it (1-0). It was a great surprise and the team is regarded of this fact as the " Tom Thumb " competition. Their course stopped in semi-final vis-a-vis (0-2 after prolongations).

See too

  • Common of Saône-et-Loire

External bonds

  • Official site

  • banks of Burgundy
  • College PARRIAT
  • Montceau-the-Mines on the site of the National Geographical Institute
  • Montceau-the-Mines on the site of INSEE
  • Montceau-the-Mines on the site of Quid
  • Localization of Montceau-the-Mines on a chart of France and communes bordering
  • Plane on Montceau-the-Mines on Mapquest

Famous personalities

  • "Fuet" or Josette Schepens, beauty queen of Montceau-the-Mines in the Thirties was also stimulating capital of Roger Lansac where she sang of a crystalline voice successes of her time, in particular " The pinks blanches" , " My légionnaire" … She also took part in many broadcast emissions of post-war period.

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