Le Bec-Hellouin

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Le Bec-Hellouin
Le village.jpg
Le Bec-Hellouin is located in France
Le Bec-Hellouin
Le Bec-Hellouin
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Location within Upper Normandy region
Le Bec-Hellouin is located in Upper Normandy
Le Bec-Hellouin
Le Bec-Hellouin
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Country France
Region Normandy
Department Eure
Arrondissement Bernay
Canton Brionne
Intercommunality Portes de l'Eure
Government
 • Mayor (2009–2014) Jean-Paul Vittecoq
Area1 9.55 km2 (3.69 sq mi)
Population (2008)2 46
 • Density 4.8/km2 (12/sq mi)
INSEE/Postal code 27052 / 27800
Elevation 46–141 m (151–463 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 Bec-Hellouin is a commune in the department of Eure in the Haute-Normandie region in northern France.

It is best known for Bec Abbey and has recently been voted one of the "most beautiful villages of France". The current mayour is Jean-Paul Vittecoq who replaced Francis Cavelier in 2001.

History

Bec Abbey was founded in 1034 by Herluin, who was a knight at the court of Brionne and a Benedictine. Near to the abbey, in the village, the church, dedicated to Saint-André, was built in 1039. The original church burned down in 1264. It was rebuilt but damaged during the Hundred Years' War (1417). The nave and the bell tower were reconstructed in the 18th century.

In 1791 the abbey was closed because of the French Revolution and the departing monks transferred many statues to the village church; even the tomb of Herluin was moved to the church in 1792. From 1792 to 1794 bells and valuable decorative objects were removed from the church and finally brought to Bernay.

The windows of the church were destroyed during the bombing of Le Bec-Hellouin on 13 August 1944, in the course of World War II. The new windows were made in 1959. The Benedictine monks returned in 1948 and the tomb of Herluin was moved back to the abbey in 1959.

Etymology

Known as Beccensis Ecclesia in 1041 and in Beccus Herlevini 1160. The village takes its name from the Scandinavian word for creek mouth (bekkr). While Hellouin refers to Blessed Herluin, founder of the nearby abbey.[1] whose name is of Germanic origin.[2]

Notable People

Landmarks

Population

Historical population
Year Pop. ±%
1793 710 —    
1800 650 −8.5%
1806 546 −16.0%
1821 650 +19.0%
1841 708 +8.9%
1846 640 −9.6%
1851 680 +6.2%
1856 580 −14.7%
1861 610 +5.2%
1866 727 +19.2%
1872 647 −11.0%
1876 604 −6.6%
1881 686 +13.6%
1886 581 −15.3%
1891 600 +3.3%
1896 563 −6.2%
1901 490 −13.0%
1906 534 +9.0%
1911 401 −24.9%
1921 438 +9.2%
1926 429 −2.1%
1931 436 +1.6%
1936 402 −7.8%
1946 402 +0.0%
1954 450 +11.9%
1962 465 +3.3%
1968 566 +21.7%
1975 439 −22.4%
1982 470 +7.1%
1990 434 −7.7%
1999 406 −6.5%
2008 416 +2.5%

Further reading

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See also

References

File:Vallée du Bec.JPG
Vallée du Bec.
  1. Toponymie générale de la France, Volume 2, Ernest Nègre page 1011.
  2. François de Beaurepaire (préf. Marcel Baudot), Les Noms des communes et anciennes paroisses de l'Eure, (Paris, A. et J. Picard, 1981), p.221.

External links