Le Hamel, Somme

Le Hamel
Commune

Le Hamel
Location within Hauts-de-France region Le Hamel
Coordinates: 49°53′00″N 2°34′00″E / 49.8833°N 2.5667°E / 49.8833; 2.5667Coordinates: 49°53′00″N 2°34′00″E / 49.8833°N 2.5667°E / 49.8833; 2.5667
Country	France
Region	Hauts-de-France
Department	Somme
Arrondissement	Amiens
Canton	Corbie
Intercommunality	Val de Somme
Government
• Mayor (2014–2020)	Stéphane Chevin
Area¹	9.12 km² (3.52 sq mi)
Population (2014)²	510
• Density	56/km² (140/sq mi)
Time zone	CET (UTC+1)
• Summer (DST)	CEST (UTC+2)
INSEE/Postal code	80411 /80800
Elevation	28–101 m (92–331 ft) (avg. 83 m or 272 ft)
¹ French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries. ² Population without double counting: residents of multiple communes (e.g., students and military personnel) only counted once.

Le Hamel is a commune in the Somme department and Hauts-de-France region of northern France.

Geography

Le Hamel is situated some 20 km east of Amiens in the valley of the Somme. The surrounding district is the historical Santerre, a lightly wooded and agricultural plateau.

History

The settlement is first documented in 1184 as belonging to the powerful abbey of Corbie. The name has the same root as hameau ("hamlet"), a small rural settlement.

Like many places in the region, Le Hamel has experienced the ravages of war through the ages, from the conflicts between the French kings and their English, Burgundian, and Spanish adversaries to the battles of the First World War. It was a pivotal place in the latter conflict as the site of the Battle of Hamel which took place on 4 July 1918 and was a prelude to the summer offensive of 8 August later in the same year.

Places of interest

A park commemorating the 1000+ Australian troops who died in the Battle of Hamel was inaugurated on 4 July 1998, exactly 80 years after the date of the event. The site symbolises the friendship between France and Australia.
The lakes of the Somme valley.

The Mairie
The High Street

Population

Historical population of Le Hamel, Somme
Year	1794	1800	1831	1851	1876	1901	1921	1936	1946	1954	1962	1968	1975	1982	1990	1999	2006	2014
Population	595	622	960	1256	961	869	386	466	453	495	448	472	469	451	489	519	526	510
From the year 1962 on: No double counting—residents of multiple communes (e.g. students and military personnel) are counted only once.

References

INSEE

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Le Hamel (Somme).

Le Hamel
Santerre 14-18 : World War I in the Santerre
Le Hamel on the Quid website (in French)

Communes of the Somme department

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