The Canal de Saint-Quentin () is a canal in northern France connecting the canalised river Escaut in

Cambrai Cambrai (, ; ; ), formerly Cambray and historically in English Camerick or Camericke, is a city in the Nord department and in the Hauts-de-France region of France on the Scheldt river, which is known locally as the Escaut river. A sub-pref ...

to the

Canal latéral à l'Oise Canals or artificial waterways are waterways or engineered channels built for drainage management (e.g. flood control and irrigation) or for conveyancing water transport vehicles (e.g. water taxi). They carry free, calm surface flo ...

and Canal de l'Oise à l'Aisne in Chauny.

History

The canal was built in two phases, the second much longer than the first. King Louis XIV's ministers Colbert and Mazarin had both proposed linking the rivers

Oise Oise ( ; ; ) is a department in the north of France. It is named after the river Oise. Inhabitants of the department are called ''Oisiens'' () or ''Isariens'', after the Latin name for the river, Isara. It had a population of 829,419 in 2019.< ...

and Somme in the 17th century and this resulted in the Canal Crozat, or Canal de Picardie, between Chauny and Saint-Simon in 1738. The remainder, connecting the Seine Basin with the Escaut was a lengthy process. The original designer, Devicq in 1727, died in 1742. Little was accomplished until Napoléon demanded that work begin again in 1801. He officiated at the opening in April 1810. The canal was such a success that the locks had to be duplicated throughout in the early 20th century, at the same time deepening the channel, enlarging the tunnels, and increasing water supplies. Later improvements included electric barge traction on rails, installed during

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, mechanising locks, and providing public lighting on the busiest sections. Later, the locks were equipped for automatic operation, using remote sensors, and more recently by handheld remote control. By 1878, up to 110 barges were crossing the summit level daily. The Canal du Nord was built as a duplicate route and completed in 1965. The canal carried more freight than any other man-made waterway in France in 1964.

Battle of St Quentin Canal

The Canal in World War I formed part of the

Hindenburg Line The Hindenburg Line (, Siegfried Position) was a German Defense line, defensive position built during the winter of 1916–1917 on the Western Front (World War I), Western Front in France during the First World War. The line ran from Arras to ...

, a German defensive position built during the winter of 1916–1917. The Allied crossing of the St Quentin Canal in 1918 was a significant part of the Hundred Days Offensive that led to the Armistice.

Navigation

This canal is an asset for tourism, boating and on the towpath, especially the northern section in the Escaut valley, the spectacular summit level with its tunnels and the boat harbour in the basin at Saint-Quentin. Commercial traffic declined after opening of the Canal du Nord, and it is now consistently quiet and peaceful, although a few Freycinet barges still use this route.

En route

* PK 0

*PK 11 Masnières *PK 18 Les Rues-des-Vignes *PK 23 Honnecourt-sur-Escaut *PK 28.5-35 Riqueval Tunnel (5670m) Bony *PK 42-43 Tronquoy Tunnel (1098m) Lesdins *PK 53 Saint-Quentin *PK 62 Séraucourt-le-Grand *PK 68 Right Petite Somme: Saint-Simon to Ham, closed 2006 (link to Canal de la Somme), route continues left *PK 80.5 Voyaux *PK 83 Tergnier *PK 85 T-junction left 3.8 km branch to Canal de la Sambre à l'Oise Right continues as Canal de Saint-Quentin *PK 92 Chauny, the canal continues as

towards

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

. Left Canal de l'Oise à l'Aisne

References

External links

Video showing the "Souterrain de Riqueval" and local area

Canal de Saint-Quentin
with maps and details of places, moorings and services (by the author of ''Inland Waterways of France'', Imray)
Navigation details for 80 French rivers and canals
(French waterways website section) {{Authority control Saint-Quentin Canals opened in 1810 Cambrai Transport in Hauts-de-France Landforms of Nord (French department)