Moreuil

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Coordinates: 49°46′31″N 2°29′02″E / 49.7752777778, 2.48388888889

Commune of Moreuil

Location

Administration

Communauté de communes Avre Luce Moreuil

Mayor

Pierre Boulanger
(2001-2008)

Statistics

Elevation

32 m–113 m
(avg. 42 m)

Land area^¹

23,43 km²

Population^²
(1999)

4106

- Density

175/km²

Miscellaneous

INSEE/Postal code

80570/ 80110

¹ French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

² Population sans doubles comptes: residents of multiple communes (e.g. students and military personnel) only counted once.

Moreuil is a commune in the Somme département in the Picardie region of France.

1 Geography
2 Population
3 History
4 Places of interest
5 People with links to the commune
6 See also
7 External links
8 Notes

[edit] Geography

Situated on the D920 and D935 crossroads, some 13 miles southeast of Amiens, on the banks of the Avre River.

[edit] Population

Population Growth
1700	1890	1896	1962	1968	1975	1982	1990	1999
1375	3371	3347	3586	3647	4099	4203	4156	4106
Census count starting from 1962 : Population without double counting

The main square

[edit] History

Known by several names over the years, Morolium (1103), Moroil (1183), Moruel, Moroilum, Moroiel, Moreul (1240), Moureul, Moureuil (1340), Morveul, Morvels and finally Moreuil , the commune has ancient origins. Flint tools have been found here and the presence of tall boundary stones indicates pre-roman settlement. Moreuil comes from a Celtic word meaning ‘sea’. Moreuil is found on the Roman road that links Compiègne, Montdidier and Amiens which explains the number of Gallo-Roman finds in the vicinity.

First mentioned around 800 as a fort and square on the river Avre, it was sacked by the Normans. The lords of Moreuil rendered great service to the Kings of France during the Crusades. One was created a Knight of the Order of Malta. During the Hundred Years War, Moreuil suffered through blood and fire. It was taken, won back and re-taken by the Burgundians.

During the Wars of Religion, it was one of the strongest supporters of the Catholic League In 1574 the towns’s two schools were burnt down, but reconstructed thanks to the benefices of Antoine de Créquy, Cardinal-Bishop of Amiens and abbé of Moreuil. In 1720 hat-making was established in Moreuil. Unaffected to any note by the French Revolution, Moreuil was subject to foreign occupation during 1815 and during the Franco-Prussian War of 1870. During the Great War, the town formed a part of the front line of the Western Front.