Longuyon () is a commune in the

Meurthe-et-Moselle Meurthe-et-Moselle () is a department in the Grand Est region of France, named after the rivers Meurthe and Moselle. It had a population of 733,760 in 2019.department in the

Grand Est Grand Est (; gsw-FR, Grossa Oschta; Moselle Franconian/ lb, Grouss Osten; Rhine Franconian: ''Groß Oschte''; german: Großer Osten ; en, "Great East") is an administrative region in Northeastern France. It superseded three former administr ...

region of north-eastern

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

. The inhabitants are called ''Longuyonnais''.

Geography

Longuyon is located at the confluence of the

Chiers The Chiers (; lb, Kuer, german: Korn) is a river in Luxembourg, Belgium and France. It is a right tributary of the Meuse. The total length of the Chiers is aproxamately , of which in France. The source of the Chiers is near Differdange, i ...

and Crusnes rivers and southwest of the commune of

Longwy Longwy (; older german: Langich, ; lb, label= Luxemburgish, Lonkech) is a commune in the French department of Meurthe-et-Moselle, Lorraine, administrative region of Grand Est, northeastern France. The inhabitants are known as ''Longoviciens'' ...

. It is bordered on the north by the Belgian province 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 ...

, and just south of the Belgian city of Grandcourt.

History

left, Saint Agatha's Church and cemetery The town is named after a "long ford" (from the Latin ''longa guada'') that allowed crossing of the Chiers in Roman times. It was known as Longagio (634), Longio (973), Longione (973), monasterri longagionis (10th century), Longion (1030), Longuion (1209), Longuio (1756). Several

Gallo-Roman Gallo-Roman culture was a consequence of the Romanization of Gauls under the rule of the Roman Empire. It was characterized by the Gaulish adoption or adaptation of Roman culture, language, morals and way of life in a uniquely Gaulish context ...

sites were excavated in 1934; they contained the remains of substructures and fragments of painted plaster. A necropolis of the later Roman Empire was excavated in 1843 in Magé. The first mention of Longuyon (as Longagio) dates from 634. At that time there was already a chapel dedicated to Saint Agatha. It was designated as a collegiate church in 1120. In the seventeenth century, it served as a barracks for French soldiers in 1636. The castle of Mussy, first mentioned in 1144, was razed in 1670 by French occupation troops by order of

Louis XIV Louis XIV (Louis Dieudonné; 5 September 16381 September 1715), also known as Louis the Great () or the Sun King (), was List of French monarchs, King of France from 14 May 1643 until his death in 1715. His reign of 72 years and 110 days is the Li ...

. Longuyon was a capital of the Bailiwick of Longuyon from June 1751 to 1789. It was designated as the capital of the Canton of Longuyon until March 2015. In 1914 the town had 2,300 inhabitants. It was devastated on August 23–24 of that year by the invasion of Prussian infantry during the

Great War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. Some 86 inhabitants: men, women, and children, were executed by firing squad. Longuyon has long been an important railroad crossroads. It is located between the iron ore of the Briey basin and the coal mining area of the North. The apartment blocks on the southwestern edge of town, still called "La Cité Canadienne", were home to

Royal Canadian Air Force The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF; french: Aviation royale canadienne, ARC) is the air and space force of Canada. Its role is to "provide the Canadian Forces with relevant, responsive and effective airpower". The RCAF is one of three environm ...

staff and their families in the 1950s and 1960s, when the RCAF had an airbase at nearby Marville. The streets were named after Canadian cities, such as Toronto, Montreal, etc. A traditional First Nations

totem pole Totem poles ( hai, gyáaʼaang) are monumental carvings found in western Canada and the northwestern United States. They are a type of Northwest Coast art, consisting of poles, posts or pillars, carved with symbols or figures. They are usually ...

was erected as a monument to the Canadian presence in Longuyon.

Population

Attractions

The prominent buildings in Longuyon include the Collegiate Church of St. Agatha from the 13th century. The church was mentioned for the first time in 634 in the will of the deacon Adalgisel Grimo. The St. Agatha monastery was converted to a

collegiate church In Christianity, a collegiate church is a church where the daily office of worship is maintained by a college of canons: a non-monastic or "secular" community of clergy, organised as a self-governing corporate body, which may be presided over by ...

in 973 by the Archbishop of Trier, then into a

Benedictine , image = Medalla San Benito.PNG , caption = Design on the obverse side of the Saint Benedict Medal , abbreviation = OSB , formation = , motto = (English: 'Pray and Work') , foun ...

priory A priory is a monastery of men or women under religious vows that is headed by a prior or prioress. Priories may be houses of mendicant friars or nuns (such as the Dominicans, Augustinians, Franciscans, and Carmelites), or monasteries of ...

in the late twelfth century. It was permanently restored as a collegiate church in the early thirteenth century. The current building was built in the late twelfth and early thirteenth centuries; the base of the tower appears to be slightly earlier. The church was fortified in the sixteenth century with a gatehouse above the western portal and defensive elements. Since the

French Revolution The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are conside ...

and suppression of power of the church, St. Agatha has served as a parish church.

Geography

History

Population

Attractions

See also