| Forest of Compiègne French:Forêt de Compiègne | |
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%2c_carrefour_des_Princesses_1.jpg) Saint-Jean-aux-Bois within the Forest of Compiègne | |
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| Geography | |
| Location | Compiègne, Oise, France |
| Coordinates | 49°22′48″N2°53′00″E / 49.38003°N 2.8834°E /49.38003; 2.8834 |
| Elevation | 30 to 148 metres (98 to 486 ft) |
| Area | 14,414 hectares (35,620 acres) |
| Administration | |
| Status | Protected underNatura 2000 andSite of Community Importance |
| Events | Armistice with Germany (WWI) Armistice with France (WWII) |
| Governing body | National Forests Office (France) |
| Ecology | |
| Dominant tree species | Oak,Beech |
TheForest of Compiègne (French:Forêt de Compiègne,French pronunciation:[fɔʁɛdəkɔ̃pjɛɲ]) is a largeforest in theregion ofPicardy,France, near the city ofCompiègne and approximately 80 kilometres (50 mi) north ofParis.[1]
The forest is notable as the site of theArmistice of 11 November 1918 betweenthe Allies andGermany which marked the end of fighting inWorld War I, as well as theArmistice of 22 June 1940 after theBattle of France inWorld War II.
The forest of Compiègne is roughly circular with a diameter of about 14 kilometres (9 miles);[2] it is approximately 93 kilometres (58 miles) in circumference[3] and its area is roughly 14,414 hectares (35,620 acres).[4] The forest is lushly irrigated, being adjacent to the riversOise andAisne, as well as many smaller tributaries and streams.[5]: 749
On its northwest, the forest hugs its small namesake city, and to its north and northeast, beyond the Aisne, lies the large nationalforest of Laigue (Forêt Domaniale de Laigue). Around its remaining perimeter, it contains or is adjacent to numerouscommunes includingVieux-Moulin,Lacroix-Saint-Ouen,Saint-Sauveur,Béthisy-Saint-Pierre,Saint-Jean-aux-Bois, andPierrefonds.[6] On its south it borders theForest of Halatte.
Just outside the city of Compiègne, a grand entrance to the forest begins at the resplendentChâteau de Compiègne, a former royal residence on the city's western edge. Stretching forward from the château, theAvenue de Beaux Monts scales the heights of the same name, providing a scenic promenade into the woods.[7]: 101
The forest of Compiègne is famous for its picturesque natural attractions, with its arrays of oak and beech trees projecting a "noble and ordered beauty".[5]: 749
The most prominent tree species are oak (Quercus robur), beech (Fagus sylvatica) and hornbeam (Carpinus betulus).[8][9]: 776 Much of the oak was heavily harvested over the centuries but was replanted aggressively in the nineteenth century when fears of deforestation began to be addressed.[10] Since the late twentieth century, the North American black cherry tree (Prunus serotina) has spread vigorously throughout the forest, eliciting mixed reactions from local arborists.[11]
Numerous flowering plants thrive in the woods,[5]: 749 notably large numbers ofLily of the Valley (Convallaria majalis).[12]: 92 Small lakes, ponds, brooks and springs abound throughout the forest,[5]: 749 including the Spring of Saint-Sauveur,[13]: 131 which is actually a pair of therapeutic mineral water springs running both hot and cold.[14]
The forest sustains a great number of game animals including deer, rabbit and wild boar,[15] and the varied terrain – plateaus cut by valleys and gorges, hills, streams and ponds – makes for challenging hunting. For centuries the Compiègne forest has been a prized hunting ground for virtually all thekings of France.[7]: 101 Some 350 roads and pathways cross it[3] adding up to over six hundred miles of trail[15] with stately vintage signposts marking most of the intersections.[2] The oldest ones include a small red mark which shows the direction to the château, relics of an imperial order given during theSecond French Empire after theEmpress Eugénie found herself lost in the thick woods.[2]
The forest of Compiègne is a popular destination for all types of tourists. Horse-riders and bicyclists particularly enjoy the forest;[16] a long-running bicycle event, the Paris-Roubaix race,[17] has an established path through the forest.[18]
The forest of Compiègne area shows evidence of prehistoric habitation,[19] and continuous forest cover has been definitively proven since at least the end of theRoman Empire.[20]Gallic-Roman edifices have been discovered there, and it is traversed on its south and east sides by an ancientRoman road[19] now called by the French theChaussée Brunehaut.[21] During theGallic Wars,Julius Caesar won a decisive victory in the forest, defeating one of the larger tribes of north-easternGaul, theBellovaci.[22] A multitude of the forest's classical-era artifacts are on display at the Château's museum.[23]
The earliest Frankish kings established the forest as their privileged hunting grounds,[21]: 356 andClothaire the Great built the first royal residence there in the 7th century,[21]: 357–358 and there he died of a fever.[24] The small palace, fitted cozily among the trees, was named Cusia and for some time thereafter the forest itself went by the nameForêt de Cuise[21]: 357–358 that is memorialized in the village ofCuise-la-Motte that lies to the east of the forest boundaries. A battle between theMerovingian-era kingdoms ofAustrasia andNeustria took place in the forest in the year 715.[21]: 358
As Empress Eugénie's signposts attest, the thick and heavy forest can be a disorienting and potentially fatal place. In the twelfth century, at the age of fourteen, the future KingPhilip II of France found himself lost in the forest: he came so close to tragedy that his father,Louis VII, felt compelled to make a pilgrimage to the shrine ofSt. Thomas of Canterbury inEngland to offer thanks for his recovery.[7]: 98 In the sixteenth century, KingFrancis I commanded the construction of eight hard-surfaced roads through the forest, all of which converge on a single point called the King's Well (Puits du Roi).[21]: 358
Further avenues connected by an octagonal ring were opened through the woods for the formal hunting parties ofLouis XIV, and under the Ancien Régime the number of rides was increased to 200. Napoleon opened the avenue of Beaux-Monts (illustration).[25] Prior to theIndustrial Revolution, the lush woodlands provided lumber for a thriving woodworking community around Compiègne.[26] One of the most popular products supplied by the forest was beech oil, used for cooking and folk medicines: it was bottled in prodigious quantities and sold worldwide from Compiègne through the 19th century, until its marketshare was supplanted by newer, more refined oils.[27]
The forest of Compiègne witnessed much activity during the reign of theEmperorNapoleon III, for whom the abundant forest was a personal favorite retreat.[28] The Emperor was an avid huntsman, and he reconstituted the forest as grand hunting grounds, even going so far as to revive the age-old office ofGrand Veneur to oversee it.[29] The Emperor had a deep affection for the forest and frequently organized his hunting parties at the King's Well.[30]: 321 In addition to hunting parties and competitions, the forest of Compiègne was the scene of extravagant receptions, parties and even theatrical performances.[19]
The forest of Compiègne was the site of theArmistice betweenthe Allies andGermany which marked the end of fighting inWorld War I on 11 November 1918.[31] The French commander-in-chiefMarshal Foch convened the armistice talks deep in the forest beside the tiny village ofRethondes,[32]: 261 with an eye towards secrecy because he wanted to shield the meeting from intrusive journalists,[33] as well as spare the German delegation any hostile demonstrations by French locals.[34]
DuringWorld War II, a second treaty was signed in the forest, this time arranging theArmistice between France andNazi Germany (22 June 1940).[35] With an unmistakable desire to humiliate his defeated enemy,[34] German dictatorAdolf Hitler gave orders that the surrender should be received in exactly the same spot, even thesame railway car, where the Germans had surrendered in 1918.[34]
A memorial site calledClairière de l'Armistice ("Glade of the Armistice", or "Armistice Clearing") covers the historic treaty area. Additions include a statue of Marshal Foch and the largeAlsace-Lorraine Memorial, which depicts anAllied sword pinning down anImperial German eagle. A famous memorial tablet placed at the precise location of the cease-fire signing reads (in French), "Here on the eleventh of November 1918 succumbed the criminal pride of the German Reich... vanquished by the free peoples which it tried to enslave."[36]: 50 The original tablet was destroyed by the Nazis, but a new one was emplaced after the war.[37]
For bringing the German delegation to the 1918 meeting, the French had assembled the train with a specialsaloon car which had once belonged to Napoleon III. The car was decorated with old Imperial emblems, redolent of past glories and mutely confirming the resurgence of French power after its defeat in theFranco-Prussian War in 1870.[33] The two sides then met in a newer railcar, supplied byCompagnie Internationale des Wagons-Lits, to sign the armistice. After thefall of France in World War Two, this same railway carriage was specifically used by the Germans for the armistice of 1940; it was remanded to Germany where it was eventually destroyed by SS troops inCrawinkel,Thuringia, in 1945, and the remains were buried.[15] In 1950, a faithful replica of this original railcar was installed at the site.[38] Decades later, some vestiges of the original car were discovered in Germany and returned to France: the pieces were added to the memorial display in 1995.[38]
The Armistice Clearing remains open to the public six days a week.[38] Visitors routinely leave photographs and other mementos to be displayed or stored in the museum, making it "an ever-changing place of pilgrimage".[15]
Compiègne Forest history.
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Battle of Compiègne +forest.
flora of Compiègne Forest.
spring of Saint-Sauveur Oise.
Compiègne Forest.
flora of Compiègne Forest.
{{cite book}}:ISBN / Date incompatibility (help){{cite book}}:ISBN / Date incompatibility (help)| International | |
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