Bogny-sur-Meuse (, literally ''Bogny on

Meuse The Meuse or Maas is a major European river, rising in France and flowing through Belgium and the Netherlands before draining into the North Sea from the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta. It has a total length of . History From 1301, the upper ...

'') is a commune in the

Ardennes The Ardennes ( ; ; ; ; ), also known as the Ardennes Forest or Forest of Ardennes, is a region of extensive forests, rough terrain, rolling hills and ridges primarily in Belgium and Luxembourg, extending into Germany and France. Geological ...

department in the

Grand Est Grand Est (; ) is an Regions of France, administrative region in northeastern France. It superseded three former administrative regions, Alsace, Champagne-Ardenne and Lorraine, on 1 January 2016 under the provisional name of Alsace-Champagne-A ...

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as areas, zones, lands or territories, are portions of the Earth's surface that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and ...

of northern

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

. Bogny-sur-Meuse is known for multiple sites linked to the medieval legend of

The Four Sons of Aymon The Four Sons of Aymon (, , ), sometimes also referred to as ''Renaud de Montauban'' (after its main character) is a medieval tale centring around the four sons of Duke Aymon: the knight Renaud de Montauban (also spelt ''Renaut'', ''Renault'', , ...

, such as the Hermitage, the statue of Bayard the horse, and the four peaks symbolizing the four brothers. Situated in the Ardennes mountains, the commune extends along the banks of the

History

upleft, Statue of Bayard the horse Bogny-sur-Meuse came into existence when the villages of Château-Regnault-Bogny, Braux and Levrézy merged in 1967. The fortress of Château-Regnault used to stand at the present site of the statue of Bayard the horse. During the erection of the statue in 1933, some

archaeological Archaeology or archeology is the study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of Artifact (archaeology), artifacts, architecture, biofact (archaeology), biofacts or ecofacts, ...

finds were made: coins, swords, arrowheads, dishes, and some bones of animals. In the 19th and 20th centuries other finds were made at this same site, the nature of which suggested an occupation of the area prior to the

medieval period In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with the fall of the West ...

. The last sovereigns of this principality were François de Bourbon, Prince of Conti and Louise Marguerite of Lorraine. The reign of the prince lasted until 1614. When he died, his wife retained the principality until 1629, when she yielded it to

King Louis XIII Louis XIII (; sometimes called the Just; 27 September 1601 – 14 May 1643) was King of France from 1610 until his death in 1643 and King of Navarre (as Louis II) from 1610 to 1620, when the crown of Navarre was merged with the French crown. ...

. In the 19th century, an industry of

metalworking Metalworking is the process of shaping and reshaping metals in order to create useful objects, parts, assemblies, and large scale structures. As a term, it covers a wide and diverse range of processes, skills, and tools for producing objects on e ...

developed on the banks of the Meuse, with people fashioning bolts and other similar products in

workshops Beginning with the Industrial Revolution era, a workshop may be a room, rooms or building which provides both the area and tools (or machinery) that may be required for the manufacture or repair of manufactured goods. Workshops were the only ...

. This served to industrialise the region, replacing the smaller, more artisan ironmongeries. Contractors Maré and Joseph built a factory which quickly became the most important producer of bolts in the department of

. Its activity ceased almost entirely during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, and the factory closed its doors in 1953. Today, for the most part, this metalworking tradition has disappeared from Bogny-sur-Meuse, although a few residents remain knowledgeable in

metallurgy Metallurgy is a domain of materials science and engineering that studies the physical and chemical behavior of metallic elements, their inter-metallic compounds, and their mixtures, which are known as alloys. Metallurgy encompasses both the ...

Geography

Bogny-sur-Meuse is located within the Ardennes

Massif A massif () is a principal mountain mass, such as a compact portion of a mountain range, containing one or more summits (e.g. France's Massif Central). In mountaineering literature, ''massif'' is frequently used to denote the main mass of an ...

, in a hilly forested area. The

crosses through the town.

Geology

A dividing line between

strata In geology and related fields, a stratum (: strata) is a layer of Rock (geology), rock or sediment characterized by certain Lithology, lithologic properties or attributes that distinguish it from adjacent layers from which it is separated by v ...

of the

Cambrian The Cambrian ( ) is the first geological period of the Paleozoic Era, and the Phanerozoic Eon. The Cambrian lasted 51.95 million years from the end of the preceding Ediacaran period 538.8 Ma (million years ago) to the beginning of the Ordov ...

and

Devonian The Devonian ( ) is a period (geology), geologic period and system (stratigraphy), system of the Paleozoic era (geology), era during the Phanerozoic eon (geology), eon, spanning 60.3 million years from the end of the preceding Silurian per ...

periods runs north-west-south-east through the Hermitage and the quarries of the Pleines Roches above the ''Château Marcadet''. To the north of this limit, the rock is early Cambrian (between 540 and 500 million years), characterised by clear or white

quartzites Quartzite is a hard, non- foliated metamorphic rock that was originally pure quartz sandstone.Essentials of Geology, 3rd Edition, Stephen Marshak, p 182 Sandstone is converted into quartzite through heating and pressure usually related to tectoni ...

, green shales, and grey

phyllite Phyllite ( ) is a type of foliation (geology), foliated metamorphic rock formed from slate that is further metamorphosed so that very fine grained white mica achieves a preferred orientation.Stephen Marshak ''Essentials of Geology'', 3rd ed. I ...

s. To the south, the Devonian rock is represented by grey

schists Schist ( ) is a medium-grained metamorphic rock generally derived from fine-grained sedimentary rock, like shale. It shows pronounced ''schistosity'' (named for the rock). This means that the rock is composed of mineral grains easily seen with a ...

, phyllites and quartzites. Schists and phyllades from this region are often

calcareous Calcareous () is an adjective meaning "mostly or partly composed of calcium carbonate", in other words, containing lime (mineral), lime or being chalky. The term is used in a wide variety of Science, scientific disciplines. In zoology ''Calcare ...

. All these rocks were transformed by

metamorphism Metamorphism is the transformation of existing Rock (geology), rock (the protolith) to rock with a different mineral composition or Texture (geology), texture. Metamorphism takes place at temperatures in excess of , and often also at elevated ...

and folded during two orogenies ( Caledonian, then

Variscan The Variscan orogeny, or Hercynian orogeny, was a geologic mountain-building event caused by Late Paleozoic continental collision between Euramerica (Laurussia) and Gondwana to form the supercontinent of Pangaea. Nomenclature The name ''Variscan ...

Economy

In the 20th century, there was a prolific industry of metalworking in Bogny-sur-Meuse, which largely ceased after World War Two. However, Ateliers des Janves (A.D.J.), a French forgery and stamping company, was established in the industrial zone of Braux in the early 1990s. This was the first autonomous manufacturer of

connecting rods A connecting rod, also called a 'con rod', is the part of a piston engine which connects the piston to the crankshaft. Together with the crank, the connecting rod converts the reciprocating motion of the piston into the rotation of the crankshaf ...

in France and the second in

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

. Bogny-sur-Meuse is part of the Ardennes Free Zone which offers favourable conditions for growth and development.

Population

Notable people

* Jean Rogissart (1894-1961), a writer born in Braux. * (1922-2016), former

senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or Legislative chamber, chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the Ancient Rome, ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior ...

of the Fifth Republic born in Levrézy. * Jean-Baptiste Migeon (1768-1845), born in Braux, represented

Haut-Rhin Haut-Rhin (); Alsatian: ''Owerelsàss'' or '; , . is a department in the Grand Est region, France, bordering both Germany and Switzerland. It is named after the river Rhine; its name means Upper Rhine. Haut-Rhin is the smaller and less pop ...

in the

Chamber of Deputies The chamber of deputies is the lower house in many bicameral legislatures and the sole house in some unicameral legislatures. Description Historically, French Chamber of Deputies was the lower house of the French Parliament during the Bourb ...

from 1827 to 1831.

Sights

*There are four rocky crags on a mountain peak near Bogny-sur-Meuse, which are said to symbolise

the Four Sons of Aymon The Four Sons of Aymon (, , ), sometimes also referred to as ''Renaud de Montauban'' (after its main character) is a medieval tale centring around the four sons of Duke Aymon: the knight Renaud de Montauban (also spelt ''Renaut'', ''Renault'', , ...

. A statue of their magical horse, Bayard, stands nearby. * The

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, headed by a dignitary bearing ...

of Saint-Vivent de Braux is one of the oldest churches in the valley of the Meuse, founded in the 9th century during the

Carolingian era The Carolingian Empire (800–887) was a Frankish-dominated empire in Western and Central Europe during the Early Middle Ages. It was ruled by the Carolingian dynasty, which had ruled as kings of the Franks since 751 and as kings of the Lombard ...

. It was made a ''

monument historique () is a designation given to some national heritage sites in France. It may also refer to the state procedure in France by which national heritage protection is extended to a building, a specific part of a building, a collection of buildings, ...

'' in 1963. * The ''Château Marcadet'' is a large

château A château (, ; plural: châteaux) is a manor house, or palace, or residence of the lord of the manor, or a fine country house of nobility or gentry, with or without fortifications, originally, and still most frequently, in French-speaking re ...

, which was made a ''monument historique'' in 2000. *

Arboretum de la Pipe Qui Fume The Arboretum de la Pipe Qui Fume (4 hectares) is an arboretum located in the Forêt Domaniale des Hazelles at Bogny-sur-Meuse, Ardennes, Grand-Est, France. It is open daily without charge. The arboretum site was founded in 1996 by the Société ...

* The Museum of Minerals and Fossils * * The City Hall of Bogny on Meuse labeled ACR (Remarkable Contemporary Architecture)

Industrial remnants

*The workers' lodgings (on ''rue de l'Echelle''). *The old nursery (on ''rue Bernisseau''). *The former

co-operative A cooperative (also known as co-operative, coöperative, co-op, or coop) is "an autonomous association of persons united voluntarily to meet their common economic, social and cultural needs and aspirations through a jointly owned and democr ...

, now a

butchers A butcher is a person who may slaughter animals, dress their flesh, sell their meat, or participate within any combination of these three tasks. They may prepare standard cuts of meat and poultry for sale in retail or wholesale food establishme ...

(on ''rue Jourdes'').

Gallery

Collégiale Saint-Vivent de Braux 1.JPG, Saint-Vivent de Braux collegiate church Château Marcadet.JPG, ''Château Marcadet'' Musée des minéraux et fossiles - Bogny.JPG, Museum of Minerals and Fossils Mairie Bogny sur Meuse 08.jpg, Bogny-sur-Meuse town hall

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bognysurmeuse Communes of Ardennes (department)