Wervicq-Sud (; ) is a

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 the Nord department of northern

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

,INSEE commune file
/ref> near the border with Belgium. Wervicq-Sud is one of the oldest villages still existent, dating back to Roman times. The town is separated from its Belgian Flemish sister town of

Wervik Wervik (; french: Wervicq, ; vls, Wervik; la, Viroviacum) is a city and municipality located in the Belgian province of West Flanders. The municipality comprises the city of Wervik and the town of Geluwe. On January 1, 2014, Wervik had a total p ...

by the river Lys. Located 15 km north of

Lille Lille ( , ; nl, Rijsel ; pcd, Lile; vls, Rysel) is a city in the northern part of France, in French Flanders. On the river Deûle, near France's border with Belgium, it is the capital of the Hauts-de-France region, the prefecture of the N ...

and 20 km south of

Ypres Ypres ( , ; nl, Ieper ; vls, Yper; german: Ypern ) is a Belgian city and municipality in the province of West Flanders. Though the Dutch name is the official one, the city's French name is most commonly used in English. The municipality c ...

Bounding communes

* Comines, west *

Bousbecque Bousbecque (; nl, Busbeke / Boesbeke) is a commune in the Nord department in northern France. Population Heraldry See also * Communes of the Nord department The following is a list of the 648 communes of the Nord department of the Fr ...

, east * Linselles, south

History

The name appears in the form Viroviacum in the Antonine Itinerary and the

Peutinger map ' (Latin for "The Peutinger Map"), also referred to as Peutinger's Tabula or Peutinger Table, is an illustrated ' (ancient Roman road map) showing the layout of the ''cursus publicus'', the road network of the Roman Empire. The map is a 13th-cen ...

of settlements in the 3rd century. It was here that the Roman road from Tournai to Cassel crossed the Lys (a tributary of the

Scheldt The Scheldt (french: Escaut ; nl, Schelde ) is a river that flows through northern France, western Belgium, and the southwestern part of the Netherlands, with its mouth at the North Sea. Its name is derived from an adjective corresponding to ...

). It had a fortified post, of which traces are still visible. It was mentioned by Sanderus in his "Flandria illustrata" in the sixteenth century. For centuries, Werviq-Sud and Wervik were one unified settlement and belonged to the

County of Flanders The County of Flanders was a historic territory in the Low Countries. From 862 onwards, the counts of Flanders were among the original twelve peers of the Kingdom of France. For centuries, their estates around the cities of Ghent, Bruges and Yp ...

, an autonomous but tributary principality to French kings. In 1527 by the Treaty of Madrid it passed under the suzerainty of the Spanish empire. The town was during the sixteenth century the main centre of

tobacco Tobacco is the common name of several plants in the genus '' Nicotiana'' of the family Solanaceae, and the general term for any product prepared from the cured leaves of these plants. More than 70 species of tobacco are known, but the ...

production in Europe. It remained dependent on

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

until

Louis XIV , house = Bourbon , father = Louis XIII , mother = Anne of Austria , birth_date = , birth_place = Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye, Saint-Germain-en-Laye, France , death_date = , death_place = Palace of Ver ...

's conquest in 1667. Subsequently the town passed on to Austrian Empire then back to French. It wasn't until 1713 that Werviq-Sud was finally separated from Wervik when the

Treaty of Utrecht The Peace of Utrecht was a series of peace treaties signed by the belligerents in the War of the Spanish Succession, in the Dutch city of Utrecht between April 1713 and February 1715. The war involved three contenders for the vacant throne ...

led to the river Lys becoming a border splitting the French and Austrian territories in this area. The town's left bank become a part of the Nord department under the name Wervicq-Sud in 1790. There was a small uprising here after the 1830 Belgian Revolution. Locals, together with those in nearby

and a small number from Comines, demanded reunification with their Belgian counterparts on the other side of the Lys. This ended after an intervention of the

Gendarmes Wrong info! --> A gendarmerie () is a military force with law enforcement duties among the civilian population. The term ''gendarme'' () is derived from the medieval French expression ', which translates to "men-at-arms" (literally, " ...

. During

World War I 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 ...

the town was occupied by the Germans. In

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

it was integrated into the

Military Administration in Belgium and Northern France The Military Administration in Belgium and Northern France (german: Militärverwaltung in Belgien und Nordfrankreich) was an interim occupation authority established during the Second World War by Nazi Germany that included present-day Belgiu ...

and reunited with its Belgian counterpart

Heraldry

Population

Economy

Numerous associations located on a local way. Its main activity varies predominantly on textiles.

Points of interests

*'t Wit Kasteel, a Château under communal property *The area of La Montagne with its old property of Dalle-Dumont, a communal property covering 13 hectares and made up of three parts: **The East: A public garden **The Center: An enclosed agricultural pastures with a small bay and favorable to its walkway **The West: By the woods, covers a space of 8 hectares and features a German monuments featuring a few military graves dating from the

First World 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 ...

. It also features several types of trees and plants.