Stavelot Ståvleu (Walloon) Stablo (German) | |
|---|---|
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 Flag  Coat of arms | |
Location of Stavelot  | |
  Stavelot Location in Belgium Location of Stavelot in the province of Liège  | |
| Coordinates:50°23′N5°56′E / 50.383°N 5.933°E /50.383; 5.933 | |
| Country |  Belgium |
| Community | French Community |
| Region | Wallonia |
| Province |  Liège |
| Arrondissement | Verviers |
| Government | |
| • Mayor | Thierry de Bournonville (MR) |
| • Governing party/ies | Liste du Bourgmestre |
| Area | |
• Total | 85.14 km2 (32.87 sq mi) |
| Population (2018-01-01)[1] | |
• Total | 7,145 |
| • Density | 84/km2 (220/sq mi) |
| Postal codes | 4970 |
| NIS code | 63073 |
| Area codes | 080 |
| Website | www |
Stavelot (French pronunciation:[stavlo]ⓘ;German:Stablo[ˈʃtablo];Walloon:Ståvleu) is a town andmunicipality ofWallonia located in theprovince of Liège,Belgium.
The municipality consists of the following districts:Francorchamps and Stavelot.
It is best known as the home ofSpa-Francorchamps Circuit and theLaetare de Stavelot carnival.
In 2006, Stavelot had a population of 6,671 and an area of 85.07 km2 (32.85 sq mi), giving apopulation density of 78 inhabitants per square kilometre (200/sq mi).
The town grew up around the Abbey of Stavelot, foundedca 650, out of what had been avilla, bySaint Remaclus (Saint Remacle). The villa's lands occupied the borderland between the bishoprics ofCologne andTongeren. The Abbey of Stavelot was secularized and demolished at the time of theFrench Revolution: of the church just the west end doorway remains, as a free-standing tower. Twocloisters — one secular, one for the monks — survive as the courtyards of the brick-and-stone 17th-century domestic ranges, now housing the Museum of the Principality of Stavelot-Malmedy, and museums devoted to the poetGuillaume Apollinaire, who was a long-term resident, and to the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps. The foundations of the abbey church are presented as a footprint, with walls and column bases that enable the visitor to visualize the scale of theRomanesque abbey.
AbbotWibald (ruled 1130–58) was one of the greatest patrons of the arts in the 12th century; theStavelot Triptych of gilded copper and enamels, which contained two fragments of theTrue Cross, was produced for the Abbey during his rule (about 1156). The binding of the Stavelot Bible, and the remaining fragments from theretable (altar screen) at Stavelot are also high points of medieval art.
In the 16th century, the monkJean Delvaux claimed to have seen witches and demonic rituals, as he accused several other church officials of engaging in these rituals.
Stavelot was the seat of thePrincipality of Stavelot-Malmedy, a small independent region of theHoly Roman Empire, ruled by the abbots of Stavelot. The principality was dissolved in 1795 during the French Revolution. At theCongress of Vienna in 1815, Stavelot was added to theKingdom of the Netherlands whileMalmedy was added to thePrussian Rhineland. In 1830 it became part ofBelgium. (Malmedy would also become a part of Belgium, but not until 1919.)
The town'scoat of arms, granted in 1819, is partedfesswise between Stavelot's founding bishop, and the wolf which in Stavelot's founding legend carried bricks for the building of the Abbey.[2]
During theBattle of the Bulge inWorld War II, the city was the scene of severe fighting. From December 18–20, 1944, soldiers belonging toSixth Panzer Army'sKampfgruppe Peiper armored battle group murdered more than 100 civilians, including women and children, as well as American prisoners of war, in Stavelot and the surrounding area. Peiper and some of his officers were after the wartried and convicted for thiswar crime along with others perpetrated during the same period.[citation needed]
Stavelot is home to theCircuit de Spa-Francorchamps, the famous venue of theFormula OneBelgian Grand Prix and theSpa 24 Hours endurance race.
Stavelot also has a traditional carnival, theLaetare des Blancs-Moussis. OnLaetare Sunday, the fourth Sunday ofLent, some 200 local men clad in white and masked with long red noses — theBlancs-Moussis — parade through town throwingconfetti and beating bystanders with driedpig bladders.
Stavelot has anoceanic climate influenced by its high elevation and inland position towards a more continental type by Belgian standards. Being located at a lower elevation than neighbouring villageMalmedy at the other end of the original layout of the Spa-Francorchamps race track, Stavelot is slightly milder, drier and sunnier than Malmedy year round.
| Climate data for Stavelot (1981–2010 normals; sunshine 1984–2013) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 3.4 (38.1) | 4.6 (40.3) | 8.5 (47.3) | 12.5 (54.5) | 16.7 (62.1) | 19.4 (66.9) | 21.7 (71.1) | 21.3 (70.3) | 17.4 (63.3) | 12.9 (55.2) | 7.3 (45.1) | 4.2 (39.6) | 12.6 (54.7) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 0.9 (33.6) | 1.2 (34.2) | 4.4 (39.9) | 7.4 (45.3) | 11.6 (52.9) | 14.4 (57.9) | 16.6 (61.9) | 16.2 (61.2) | 12.9 (55.2) | 9.3 (48.7) | 4.7 (40.5) | 1.7 (35.1) | 8.5 (47.3) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | −1.8 (28.8) | −2.1 (28.2) | 0.4 (32.7) | 2.4 (36.3) | 6.4 (43.5) | 9.4 (48.9) | 11.5 (52.7) | 10.9 (51.6) | 8.1 (46.6) | 5.4 (41.7) | 2.0 (35.6) | −0.7 (30.7) | 4.4 (39.9) |
| Averageprecipitation mm (inches) | 115.1 (4.53) | 97.6 (3.84) | 105.0 (4.13) | 78.8 (3.10) | 89.9 (3.54) | 96.5 (3.80) | 100.9 (3.97) | 95.7 (3.77) | 97.0 (3.82) | 97.3 (3.83) | 103.3 (4.07) | 120.0 (4.72) | 1,197.1 (47.13) |
| Average precipitation days | 15.1 | 13.1 | 15.1 | 11.8 | 12.5 | 12.6 | 12.5 | 11.7 | 12.1 | 12.5 | 14.9 | 15.9 | 159.8 |
| Mean monthlysunshine hours | 45 | 69 | 113 | 159 | 185 | 181 | 197 | 188 | 133 | 102 | 49 | 34 | 1,453 |
| Source:Royal Meteorological Institute[3] | |||||||||||||
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Municipalities in theprovince of Liège,Wallonia | ||
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| Huy |  | |
| Liège | ||
| Verviers | ||
| Waremme | ||
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| International | |
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| National | |
| Geographic | |
| Other | |
