Villers-Faucon

Villers-Faucon
Villers-Faucon
Location within Picardy region Villers-Faucon
Coordinates:
Country	France
Region	Nord-Pas-de-Calais-Picardy
Department	Somme
Arrondissement	Péronne
Canton	Roisel
Intercommunality	Canton of Roisel
Government
• Mayor (2001–2008)	André Brouette
Area1	11.42 km2 (4.41 sq mi)
Population (2006)2	673
• Density	59/km2 (150/sq mi)
INSEE/Postal code	80802 / 80240
Elevation	75–144 m (246–472 ft) (avg. 104 m or 341 ft)
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries. 2 Population without double counting: residents of multiple communes (e.g., students and military personnel) only counted once.

Villers-Faucon is a commune in the Somme department in Picardie in northern France.

Geography

The commune is situated 15 miles(24 km) northwest of Saint Quentin, at the D72 and D101 crossroads, in the far east of the département. The commune also includes the hamlet of Sainte-Emilie.

Population

Historical population of Villers-Faucon

Year	1962	1968	1975	1982	1990	1999	2006
Population	904	916	803	704	662	625	673
From the year 1962 on: No double counting—residents of multiple communes (e.g. students and military personnel) are counted only once.

History

According to Abbot Decagny of Roisel, Villers-Faucon was originally Villers-Falcon and previously Villare Falconis, which means,in Latin, villa of the hawks. Villers-Faucon’s original puprpose was that of a falconry, located in the heart of the forest of Arrouaise.
The village was almost totally destroyed in 1916, during the First World War. Following a withdrawal of German troops around the Hindenburg line, the inhabitants were evacuated to the north to Denain, tons of dynamite were set off around all of the buildings in the town (including the sugar refinery at St. Emilie) and all the trees were cut down, to leave the field open for the approach of troops. The village was destroyed, but the cemetery was left untouched.
After the conflict, reconstruction began, which lasted almost a decade, led by a rebuilding cooperative led by Louis Faille.

Sites and monuments

• Notre Dame church was rebuilt in 1932 by architect Louis Faille. It's one of many public buildings completed by the architect in his work during the period of reconstruction of the eastern part of the Somme.

See also

• Communes of the Somme department

References

• INSEE

External links

• Official website of the Communauté de communes du Canton de Roisel (French)
• Villers-Faucon on the Quid website (French)