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TOURNAI
Tournai (in Dutch: Doornik in Latin: Tornacum) is a municipality located 85 kilometres southwest of Brussels, on the river Scheldt (in French: Escaut, in Dutch: Schelde), in the Belgian province of Hainaut. It is the second oldest city in Belgium and has played an important role in the country's cultural history.
The Tournai municipality includes the old communes of Barry, Beclers, Blandain, Chercq, Ere, Esplechin, Froidmont, Froyennes, Gaurain-Ramecroix, Havinnes, Hertain, Kain, Lamain, Marquain, Maulde, Melles, Mont-Saint-Aubert, Mourcourt, Orcq, Quartes, Ramegnies-Chin, Rumillies, Saint-Maur, Templeuve, Thimougies, Vaulx-lez-Tournai, Vezon, Warchin, and Willemeau.
[edit] History
Tournai existed already in Roman times and came into the possession of the Salian Franks in 432. Under kings Childeric and Clovis, Tournai was the capital of the Frankish empire. In the year 486, Clovis moved the center of power to Paris, but in turn Tournai was made siege of a bishopric that extended over the entire region of Flanders. Its first bishop was Eleutherius, himself a native son of Tournai.
After the partition of the Frankish empire during the early 9th century, Tournai remained in the western part, which would later become France. First being part of the County of Flanders, the city soon became attractive for wealthy merchants. Its drive for independence from the local rulers succeeded in 1187, and the city was henceforth directly subordinated to the French Crown.
During the 15th century, the city's textile trade boomed and it became an important supplier of wall carpets. It was conquered in 1513 by the English king Henry VIII, making it the only Belgian city ever to have been ruled by England. It was also represented in the Parliament of England, see Tournai (constituency). The city was hamded back to French rule in 1519.
In 1521, Emperor Charles V added the city to his possessions in the Low Countries, leading to a period of religious strife and economic decay. During the 16th century, Tournai was a bulwark of Calvinism, but eventually it was conquered by the Spanish governor of the Low Countries, the Duke of Parma, following a prolonged siege in 1581. After the fall of the city, its protestant inhabitants were given one year to sell their possessions and emigrate, a policy that was at the time considered quite humane, since very often religious opponents were simply massacred.
One century later, in 1668, the city briefly returned to France under Louis XIV in the Treaty of Aachen. After the end of the War of Spanish Succession in 1713, the former Spanish Low Countries, and Tournai as part of them, became Austrian through the Treaty of Utrecht. From 1815 on, following the Napoleonic Wars, Tournai formed part of the United Netherlands and after 1830 of newly-independent Belgium.
[edit] Tourist Attractions
Tournai is considered to be one of the most important cultural sites in Belgium. The mixed Romanesque- and Gothic-style cathedral of Notre Dame de Tournai and the belfry, the oldest in Belgium, have been designated by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site. Inside the cathedral, the "Châsse de Notre-Dame", a beautifully ornated 12th-century reliquary, gives witness of Tournai's wealth in the Middle Ages. Other places of interest are the 13th-century Scheldt bridge (Pont-des-Trous) and the Great Market (Grand'Place), as well as several old city gates, historic warehouses, and a variety of museums.
[edit] Festivities
- The "Great Procession" (in French: Grande Procession) has taken place every year since 1092, with the single exception of the year 1566, when the iconoclasts considerably damaged the religious symbols of the city. This historic procession unfolds in the streets every second Sunday of September.
- The first Monday after January 6 is known as "Lost Monday" (in French: Lundi perdu) or "Perjury Monday" (Lundi parjuré). This tradition dates from more than 700 years ago. The wealthier city inhabitants used to prepare fastuous family dinners and elect a king. Today, the family dinners have expanded to wider groups and a rabbit dish is often served.
[edit] Geology
Rocks from near Tournai date from the Carboniferous Period, and have been used to define the Tournasian Age, a subdivision of the Carboniferous lasting from 359.2±2.5 to 345.4±2.1 million years ago.
[edit] People born in Tournai
- Gilles Li Muisis, French chronicler and poet (13th century)
- Roger van der Weyden, Flemish painter (15th century)
- Jacques Daret, Flemish painter (15th century)
- Pierre de La Rue, Franco-Femish composer (15th century)
- Perkin Warbeck, impostor and pretender to the throne of England (15th century)
- Charles Blount, 5th Baron Mountjoy, courtier and patron of learning (16th century)
- Donat Casterman, publisher (18th century)
- Louis Gallait, painter (19th century)
- Jean-Baptiste Moëns, philatelist (19th century)
- Jules Bara, statesman (19th century)
- Georges Rodenbach, Symbolist poet and novelist (19th century)
- Marc Quaghebeur, writer (20th century)
- Xaveer De Geyter, architect (20th century)
[edit] External links
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