Maubeuge

Maubeuge
Commune
Porte de Mons
Coat of arms
Location of Maubeuge
Maubeuge Show map of France Maubeuge Show map of Hauts-de-France
Coordinates: 50°16′39″N 3°58′24″E / 50.2775°N 03.9734°E / 50.2775; 03.9734
Country	France
Region	Hauts-de-France
Department	Nord
Arrondissement	Avesnes-sur-Helpe
Canton	Maubeuge
Intercommunality	CA Maubeuge Val de Sambre
Government
• Mayor (2020–2026)	Arnaud Decagny[1]
Area 1	18.85 km2 (7.28 sq mi)
Population  (2021)[2]	29,066
• Density	1,500/km2 (4,000/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+01:00 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00 (CEST)
INSEE/Postal code	59392 /59600
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

Maubeuge (French pronunciation: [mobøʒ]; historical Dutch: Mabuse or Dutch: Malbode; Picard: Maubeuche) is a commune in the Nord department in northern France.^[3]

It is situated on both banks of the Sambre (here canalized), 36 km (22 mi) east of Valenciennes and about 9 km (5.6 mi) from the Belgian border.

Maubeuge (ancient Malbodium, from Latin, derived from the Old Frankish name Malboden, meaning "assizes of Boden") owes its origin to Maubeuge Abbey, a double monastery, for men and women, founded in the 7th century by Saint Aldego, the relics of whom are preserved in the church. It subsequently belonged to the territory of Hainaut.

The town was part of the Spanish Netherlands and changed hands a number of times before it was finally ceded to France in the 1678 Treaty of Nijmegen.^[4] As part of Vauban's pré carré plan that protected France's northern borders with a double line of fortresses, it was extensively fortified as directed by Louis XIV of France.

Besieged in 1793 by Prince Josias of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, it was relieved by the victory of Wattignies, which is commemorated by a monument in the town. It was unsuccessfully besieged in 1814, but was compelled to capitulate, after a vigorous resistance, in the Hundred Days.

As a fortress, Maubeuge has an old enceinte of bastion trace which serves as the center of an important entrenched camp of 18 miles perimeter. The fortress was constructed after the War of 1870 but has since been modernized and augmented.

The forts were besieged in World War I by the German Empire. Maubeuge suffered heavily in World War II: 90% of the town centre was destroyed by bombardments in May 1940. Fighting again occurred in early September 1944, in and around the outskirts of Maubeuge, involving units of the U.S. 1st Infantry Division during the American push toward Belgium.^[5][6]

The arms of Maubeuge are blazoned : Or, 4 lions, 2 in bend sable armed and langued gules, 2 in bend sinister gules armed and langued azure, in chief an eagle sable beaked langued membered and armed gules, overall a crozier Or bendwise.

Maubeuge has an oceanic climate (Köppen climate classification Cfb). The average annual temperature in Maubeuge is 10.6 °C (51.1 °F). The average annual rainfall is 880.8 mm (34.68 in) with December as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in July, at around 18.5 °C (65.3 °F), and lowest in January, at around 3.2 °C (37.8 °F). The highest temperature ever recorded in Maubeuge was 37.5 °C (99.5 °F) on 7 August 2003; the coldest temperature ever recorded was −17.5 °C (0.5 °F) on 16 January 1985.

Historical population

Year Pop. ±% p.a. 1793 4,841 —     1800 4,726 −0.34% 1806 5,020 +1.01% 1821 5,736 +0.89% 1831 6,240 +0.85% 1836 6,363 +0.39% 1841 7,431 +3.15% 1846 7,328 −0.28% 1851 7,719 +1.05% 1856 8,663 +2.33% 1861 10,557 +4.03% 1866 10,877 +0.60% 1872 13,234 +3.32% 1876 14,398 +2.13% 1881 17,221 +3.65% 1886 18,329 +1.25% 1891 18,863 +0.58% 1896 19,799 +0.97%	Year Pop. ±% p.a. 1901 20,826 +1.02% 1906 21,520 +0.66% 1911 23,209 +1.52% 1921 21,173 −0.91% 1926 23,338 +1.97% 1931 24,221 +0.75% 1936 23,622 −0.50% 1946 20,859 −1.24% 1954 24,215 +1.88% 1962 27,214 +1.47% 1968 32,028 +2.75% 1975 35,399 +1.44% 1982 36,061 +0.27% 1990 34,989 −0.38% 1999 33,546 −0.47% 2007 32,667 −0.33% 2012 30,994 −1.05% 2017 29,944 −0.69%
Graphs are unavailable due to technical issues. There is more info on Phabricator and on MediaWiki.org.
Source: EHESS[8] and INSEE (1968-2017)[9]

There are important foundries, forges and blast furnaces, together with manufactures of machine tools and porcelain.

The town has a board of trade arbitration, a communal college, a commercial and industrial school.

Being close to the Belgian border, Maubeuge station has two lines to Belgium: one leading North towards Mons, the other Eastbound to Charleroi. Neither have seen passenger service for several years; however, from December 2018 a limited service to Namur via Charleroi was announced.^[10] Trains to the South-West are frequent.

There is an aerodrome in nearby Elesmes but it is purely recreational, with no facilities for commercial air transport of either passengers or cargo.

Maurice Garin, the winner of the inaugural 1903 Tour de France, began his cycling career in 1892 with the local Maubeuge cycling club, when he finished fifth in the 200-kilometre (124 mi) Maubeuge-Hirson-Maubeuge race.^[11] In 2003, on the 100th anniversary of his win, he was commemorated with a street named after him.

• Leandre Griffit, footballer
• Jan Gossaert, painter
• Benjamin Pavard, footballer
• Benjamin Saint-Huile, politician
• Kevin Van Den Kerkhof, footballer
• André Lurçat, architect
• Karl Legris, musician

• Siege of Maubeuge (24 August - 7 September 1914)
• Fortified Sector of Maubeuge
• Communes of the Nord department
• Un clair de lune à Maubeuge

• http://www.lonesentry.com/gi_stories_booklets/1stinfantry/
•  This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Maubeuge". Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 17 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 903.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Maubeuge.

• Official website (in French)
• Webpage about the fortifications