Clemency, Luxembourg
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Clemency ( lb, Kënzeg, german: Küntzig) is a town and a former
commune A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to: Administrative-territorial entities * Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township ** Communes of ...
in south-western
Luxembourg Luxembourg ( ; lb, Lëtzebuerg ; french: link=no, Luxembourg; german: link=no, Luxemburg), officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, ; french: link=no, Grand-Duché de Luxembourg ; german: link=no, Großherzogtum Luxemburg is a small lan ...
. Since 2012, it is part of the commune of
Käerjeng Käerjeng () is a commune in southwestern Luxembourg, in the canton of Capellen. It lies on the border with Belgium. It has an area of 33.67 km2. The commune of Käerjeng was formed on 1 January 2012 from the former communes of Bascharage and ...
. It is part of the canton of
Capellen Capellen ( lb, Cap/Capellen ) is a town in the commune of Mamer, in south-western Luxembourg, 12 km west of Luxembourg City. , the town has a population of 1,336. Despite not having a commune named after it, Capellen lends its name to the ...
, which is part of the district of
Luxembourg Luxembourg ( ; lb, Lëtzebuerg ; french: link=no, Luxembourg; german: link=no, Luxemburg), officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, ; french: link=no, Grand-Duché de Luxembourg ; german: link=no, Großherzogtum Luxemburg is a small lan ...
. , the town of Clemency, which lies in the south-west of the former commune, has a population of 1,823. Clemency is a rural community close to the
Belgian Belgian may refer to: * Something of, or related to, Belgium * Belgians, people from Belgium or of Belgian descent * Languages of Belgium, languages spoken in Belgium, such as Dutch, French, and German *Ancient Belgian language, an extinct languag ...
border.


The old township Clemency

Until 2012, Clemency was in a separate commune similarly named
Clemency A pardon is a government decision to allow a person to be relieved of some or all of the legal consequences resulting from a criminal conviction. A pardon may be granted before or after conviction for the crime, depending on the laws of the ju ...
. But on 1 January 2012, the Commune of Clemency was merged with the Commune of Bascharage with the combined township being named the Commune of
Käerjeng Käerjeng () is a commune in southwestern Luxembourg, in the canton of Capellen. It lies on the border with Belgium. It has an area of 33.67 km2. The commune of Käerjeng was formed on 1 January 2012 from the former communes of Bascharage and ...
. The law creating Käerjeng was passed on 24 May 2011.


Former commune

The former commune consisted of the villages: * Clemency *
Fingig Fingig ( german: Féingig ) is a small town in the commune of Käerjeng, in western Luxembourg. , the town has a population of 322. Nearby is the source of the Eisch The Eisch () is a river flowing through Belgium and Luxembourg, joining the ...
* Schockmillen (lieu-dit) * Nuechtbann (lieu-dit) * Neudrisch (lieu-dit)


Location

The commune is located on the Belgian border at the source of the River Eisch. At an altitude of 395 m, its highest point is in the village of Fingig. Clemency, situated on the junction of the CR 101 and the CR 110 is 21 km west of
Luxembourg Luxembourg ( ; lb, Lëtzebuerg ; french: link=no, Luxembourg; german: link=no, Luxemburg), officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, ; french: link=no, Grand-Duché de Luxembourg ; german: link=no, Großherzogtum Luxemburg is a small lan ...
. It is 5 km from the E25 motorway to Luxembourg and
Brussels Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...
. The area is partly forested but mostly agricultural with mixed farming. There are fishing ponds between Clemency and Fingig as well as a marshy nature reserve, the ''Neidriesch'', where there is a colony of crested newts, a protected species. It is also located near the famous Schon house of Luxembourg.


Celtic tomb

The history of Clemency goes back to the 1st century BC when the
Treveri The Trēverī (Gaulish: *''Trēueroi'') were a Celtic tribe of the Belgae group who inhabited the lower valley of the Moselle from around 150 BCE, if not earlier, until their displacement by the Franks. Their domain lay within the southern fringe ...
, a
Celtic tribe Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to: Language and ethnicity *pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia **Celts (modern) *Celtic languages ** Proto-Celtic language *Celtic music *Celtic nations Sports Fo ...
, inhabited the region around
Titelberg Titelberg ( lb, Tëtelbierg) is the site of a large Celtic settlement or oppidum in the extreme south west of Luxembourg. In the 1st century BCE, this thriving community was probably the capital of the Treveri people. The site thus provides t ...
, a large
oppidum An ''oppidum'' (plural ''oppida'') is a large fortified Iron Age settlement or town. ''Oppida'' are primarily associated with the Celtic late La Tène culture, emerging during the 2nd and 1st centuries BC, spread across Europe, stretchi ...
near
Rodange Rodange (german: Rodingen) is a town in the commune of Pétange, in south-western Luxembourg. It lies next to the border with Belgium, across which is the town of Athus. The town is to the south-west of the town of Pétange and to the west of ...
. A Celtic funeral chamber measuring 4.30 m by 4.20 m, the largest Gallic tomb ever found, was discovered in 1987 at Clemency. From the offerings in the tomb, it was obviously the burial place of a Celtic nobleman. These included at least ten wine
amphora An amphora (; grc, ἀμφορεύς, ''amphoreús''; English plural: amphorae or amphoras) is a type of container with a pointed bottom and characteristic shape and size which fit tightly (and therefore safely) against each other in storag ...
e, an Italic bronze basin, an oil lamp from
Campania Campania (, also , , , ) is an administrative Regions of Italy, region of Italy; most of it is in the south-western portion of the Italian peninsula (with the Tyrrhenian Sea to its west), but it also includes the small Phlegraean Islands and the i ...
, an iron grill and some 30 Gallic pots. There was also a chimney from an iron
smelter Smelting is a process of applying heat to ore, to extract a base metal. It is a form of extractive metallurgy. It is used to extract many metals from their ores, including Silver mining#Ore processing, silver, iron-making, iron, copper extracti ...
in the chamber testifying to the deceased's association with iron production.


An ancient parish

Although today's high-steepled church was built in 1726, records indicate that the community and its parish are far older. Information from the
Pétange Pétange (; lb, Péiteng, ; german: Petingen) is a Communes of Luxembourg, commune and town in south-western Luxembourg. It is part of the Esch-sur-Alzette (canton), canton of Esch-sur-Alzette. Pétange lies on the borders with both Belgium and F ...
tourist office explains how one
Karl Martell Charles Martel ( – 22 October 741) was a Frankish political and military leader who, as Duke and Prince of the Franks and Mayor of the Palace, was the de facto ruler of Francia from 718 until his death. He was a son of the Frankish statesma ...
offered Clemency and Pétange to St. Maximin's Abbey, Trier, in 723. A document dated 1140 reports that Pétange belonged to the parish of Clemency. This apparently continued to be the case for several hundred years.


The old railway

In 1873, the Prince Henri railway was opened. It took passengers and goods from
Pétange Pétange (; lb, Péiteng, ; german: Petingen) is a Communes of Luxembourg, commune and town in south-western Luxembourg. It is part of the Esch-sur-Alzette (canton), canton of Esch-sur-Alzette. Pétange lies on the borders with both Belgium and F ...
to
Steinfort Steinfort ( ) is a commune and town in western Luxembourg. It is part of the canton of Capellen. , the town of Steinfort, which lies in the north of the commune, has a population of 2,184. Other towns within the commune include Hagen, Kleinbet ...
via Clemency. After it was extended in 1880 to run as far as
Ettelbruck Ettelbruck ( lb, Ettelbréck , german: Ettelbrück ) is a commune with town status in central Luxembourg, with a population of inhabitants. History Until 1850, both Erpeldange and Schieren were part of the Ettelbruck commune as well, but both ...
, a total distance of 52 km, it became known as the Attert Line. The railway, which operated until 1967, mainly for transporting iron ore and coke for the mining operations in the region. Today the old line has been converted into a
cycle track A cycle track, separated bike lane or protected bike lane (sometimes historically referred to as a sidepath) is an exclusive bikeway that has elements of a separated path and on-road bike lane. A cycle track is located within or next to the ro ...
.


The castle

Clemency also has a small residential castle located close to the church in the centre of the town, owned by the famous Schon dynasty since 1869. Built in the 1660s,
Clemency Castle Clemency Castle (french: Château de Clemency, german: Schloss Küntzig lb, Schlass Kënzeg) is located in the little town of Clemency which is close to the Belgian border in south-eastern Luxembourg. The small residential castle adjacent to the ...
had fallen into disrepair but in 2009 extensive renovation work was completed. As a result, the castle is now open to the public from time to time.


Clemency today

Clemency continues to be primarily an agricultural community although it has recently been expanding as a residential area in view of its proximity to the E25 motorway. A few small companies have also been established there. It is also a good centre for walking and cycling, particularly as it is on the P12 cycle track from
Lamadelaine Lamadelaine (; ) is a town in the commune of Pétange, Luxembourg Luxembourg ( ; lb, Lëtzebuerg ; french: link=no, Luxembourg; german: link=no, Luxemburg), officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, ; french: link=no, Grand-Duché de Lu ...
to
Colmar-Berg Colmar-Berg ( lb, Colmer-Bierg, german: Colmar-Berg) is a commune and town in central Luxembourg, in the canton of Mersch. It is situated at the confluence of the rivers Attert and Alzette. Colmar-Berg is the site of the Grand Duke of Luxembourg' ...
.Piste cyclable de l'Attert
. Retrieved 26 November 2007.


Twinning

* :
Gaflenz Gaflenz is a market town in the Steyr-Land district of the Austrian state of Upper Austria. It is known for its saws and its gothic-style St. Andreas Parish Church, established in 1494. Population International partnerships Gaflenz is twinne ...
in
Steyr-Land Bezirk Steyr-Land is a district of the state of Upper Austria in Austria. Municipalities Towns (''Städte'') are indicated in boldface; market towns (''Marktgemeinden'') in ''italics''; suburbs, hamlets and other subdivisions of a municipality ...
,
Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...
.


Footnotes

{{Authority control Käerjeng Celtic archaeological sites Archaeological sites in Luxembourg Former communes of Luxembourg Towns in Luxembourg