Misplaced Pages

#514485

36-620: The municipality lies in the Vulkaneifel , a part of the Eifel known for its volcanic history, geographical and geological features, and even ongoing activity today, including gases that sometimes well up from the earth. Roughly 150 people live in Neichen. The name “Neichen” derives from a 14th-century description of the place as the hof von den Eichen (“Estate of the Oaks”), from which arose

72-897: A popular tourist destination. The region takes its name from the vast ancient forest known as Arduenna Silva in the Roman Period . Arduenna probably derives from a Gaulish cognate of the Brythonic word ardu- as in the Welsh : ardd ("high") and the Latin arduus ("high", "steep"). The second element is less certain, but may be related to the Celtic element *windo- as in the Welsh wyn / wen ("fair", "blessed"), which tentatively suggests an original meaning of "forest of blessed/fair heights". The Ardennes likely shares this derivation with

108-639: A population of about 200,000. The following volcanoes belong to the Eifel, sorted by height in metres (m) above sea level ( Normalhöhennull , NHN) : Of particular note is the volcanic caldera known as Laacher See , the site of an eruption around 12,900 years ago that had an estimated VEI of 6. The tephras deposited by past eruptions of the Volcanic Eifel are lithological deposits that are radiometrically dateable via argon-argon dating of K-feldspar grains. These have in turn been utilised to ascertain

144-788: A rapid passage through the Ardennes to attack a relatively lightly defended part of France. The Ardennes became the site of three major battles during the world wars—the Battle of the Ardennes (August 1914) in World War I, and the Battle of France (1940) and the Battle of the Bulge (1944–1945) in World War II. Many of the towns of the region suffered severe damage during the two world wars. Allied generals in World War II believed that

180-619: A result, in 1839, the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg ceded the westernmost 63% of its territory (being also the main part of the Ardennes) to the new Kingdom of Belgium , which is now its Luxembourg Province . In the 20th century the Ardennes was widely thought by leading military strategists to be unsuitable for large-scale military operations, due to its difficult terrain and narrow lines of communications. However, in both World War I and World War II , Germany successfully gambled on making

216-543: A rising magma plume . This activity does not imply an immediate eruptive danger, but might suggest an increase in volcanic and seismic activity in the region. 50°17′N 7°00′E  /  50.283°N 7.000°E  / 50.283; 7.000 Ardennes The Ardennes ( French : Ardenne [aʁdɛn] ; Dutch : Ardennen [ɑrˈdɛnə(n)] ; German : Ardennen ; Walloon : Årdene [ɑːʀdɛn] ; Luxembourgish : Ardennen [ɑʁˈdænən] ), also known as

252-443: A yearly custom in which farmers would fetch water consecrated to Saint Brigid – Brigittenwasser – in little bottles from the church and take it home to put in sick livestock's fodder as needed. This was supposed to help the animals. This custom, however, is no longer practised. The Drees , a mineral spring , gushes forth from the ground at the village's outskirts. The water is sour and contains iron and carbonic acid . The spring

288-480: Is a product of the now mostly extinct volcanic activity that gives the Vulkaneifel its name. The springwater is definitely an acquired taste, but its fanciers swear by their daily glass of Drees even today. Since there is only one business in the village, a honey wholesaler's, most people work in the bigger places in the surrounding area, like Daun or Mayen . Vulkan Eifel The Volcanic Eifel or Vulkan Eifel ( German : Vulkaneifel ), also known as

324-566: Is divided into three natural regions: The centre of the Volcanic Eifel is the region around Daun and Manderscheid and the areas within the Mayen-Koblenz district . The landscape of the Volcanic Eifel is dominated by recent volcanism. Volcanic craters, thick pumice and basalt layers and maars create a diverse landscape that clearly witnesses to very recent events in geological terms. The entire Volcanic Eifel covers an area of about 2,000 km (770 sq mi) and as of 2007 has

360-534: Is important in the history of Wallonia because this former mountain is at the origin of the economy, the history, and the geography of Wallonia. "Wallonia presents a wide range of rocks of various ages. Some geological stages internationally recognized were defined from rock sites located in Wallonia: e.g., Frasnian ( Frasnes-lez-Couvin ), Famennian ( Famenne ), Tournaisian ( Tournai ), Visean ( Visé ), Dinantian ( Dinant ), and Namurian ( Namur )". Except for

396-888: Is still volcanically active today. One sign of this activity is the escaping gases in the Laacher See. The Volcanic Eifel stretches from the Rhine to the Wittlich Depression . It is bordered in the south and southwest by the South Eifel , in the west by Luxembourg and Belgian Ardennes and in the north by the North Eifel including the Hohes Venn . To the east the Rhine forms its geographical boundary, with no volcanicity immediately beyond it. The Volcanic Eifel

SECTION 10

#1732783113515

432-521: The Ardennes department and the former Champagne-Ardenne region ) and geologically into the Eifel (the eastern extension of the Ardennes Forest into Bitburg-Prüm , Germany); most of it is in the southeast of Wallonia , the southern and more rural part of Belgium (away from the coastal plain but encompassing more than half of the country's total area). The eastern part of the Ardennes forms

468-734: The Ardennes Forest or Forest of Ardennes , is a region of extensive forests, rough terrain, rolling hills and ridges primarily in Belgium and Luxembourg , extending into Germany and France . Geologically, the range is a western extension of the Eifel ; both were raised during the Givetian age of the Devonian (382.7 to 387.7 million years ago), as were several other named ranges of the same greater range. The Ardennes proper stretches well into Germany and France (lending its name to

504-664: The East Eifel Volcanic Field ( EEVF ), is a region in the Eifel Mountains in Germany that is defined to a large extent by its volcanic geological history. Characteristic of this volcanic field are its typical explosion crater lakes or maars , and numerous other signs of volcanic activity such as volcanic tuffs , lava streams and volcanic craters like the Laacher See . The Volcanic Eifel

540-617: The Invasion of France . The forest's great size could conceal the armored divisions , and because the French did not suspect that the Germans would make such a risky move, they did not consider a breakthrough there, or considered that it would take at least 15 days for an army to pass through the forest. German forces, primarily under the command of Erich von Manstein , carried out the plan in two days, and managed to slip numerous divisions past

576-635: The Maginot Line to attack France from the north, and rout the French forces. In May 1940 the German army crossed the Meuse , despite the resistance of the French Army . Under the command of General Heinz Guderian , the German armoured divisions crossed the river at Dinant and at Sedan, France . This was a crucial step in the push towards Paris, and France fell on 25 June 1940 . At the other end of

612-708: The Ardennes and is part of the same geological formation, although they are conventionally regarded as being two distinct areas. The Ardennes are the remnants of a mountain range formed during the Hercynian orogeny ; in France similar formations are the Armorican Massif , the Massif Central , and the Vosges . The low interior of such former mountains often contains coal, plus iron, zinc and other metals in

648-724: The Ardennes formed part of the Duchy (since 1815, the Grand Duchy) of Luxembourg, a member state of the Holy Roman Empire, which changed hands numerous times between the powerful dynasties of Europe. In 1793 revolutionary France annexed the whole area, together with all other territories west of the Rhine river. In 1815, the Congress of Vienna , which dealt with the political aftermath of the Napoleonic Wars , restored

684-493: The Tournaisian, all these rocks are within the Ardennes geological area. The Ardennes includes the greatest part of Belgium's Luxembourg Province (not to be confused with the neighbouring Grand Duchy of Luxembourg), the south of Namur Province , and Liège Province , plus a very small part of Hainaut Province , as well as the northernmost third of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, called " Éislek " ( German : Oesling ) and

720-472: The ages of climatic changes such as transitions from glacial to interglacial states during the Pleistocene . There is thought that future eruptions may occur in the Eifel, as: In 2020, Professor Kreemer noted that Eifel was the only region within an area of Europe studied where ground motion happened at significantly higher levels than expected. It is possible that such movements originate from

756-685: The boggy moors of the High Fens region of south-eastern Belgium . The region is typified by steep-sided valleys carved by swift-flowing rivers, the most prominent of which is the Meuse . Its most populous cities are Verviers in Belgium and Charleville-Mézières in France, both exceeding 50,000 inhabitants. The Ardennes is otherwise relatively sparsely populated, with few of the towns exceeding 10,000 inhabitants. (Exceptions include Belgium's Eupen and Bastogne .) The Eifel range in Germany adjoins

SECTION 20

#1732783113515

792-568: The field fructed of two argent and between two oakleaves bendwise of the second likewise fructed. The oakleaves are canting for the municipality's name which, as mentioned above, derives from the German word Eichen (“oaks”) prefixed with a faultily separated dative plural definite article ending. In the village centre stands the small Catholic chapel from 1827 which is consecrated to Saint Brigid , patron saint not only of Ireland but also of, among other things, cattle . This once led to

828-470: The harsh climate of the Ardennes limits the scope for agriculture ; arable and dairy farming in cleared areas form the mainstay of the agricultural economy. The region is rich in timber and minerals, and Liège and the city of Namur are both major industrial centres. The extensive forests have an abundant population of wild game . The scenic beauty of the region and its wide variety of outdoor activities, including hunting, cycling, walking and canoeing, make it

864-461: The honorary mayor as chairman. Neichen's mayor is Peter Annen. The German blazon reads: In Gold ein grüner Schrägrechtsbalken, belegt mit goldenem Eichenblatt und gold-silbernen Früchten, begleitet oben und unten von je einem grünen Eichenblatt mit grün-silbernen Früchten. The municipality's arms might in English heraldic language be described thus: Or a bend vert charged with an oakleaf of

900-535: The magic bay horse which, according to legend, jumped from the top of the rock to the other bank of the Meuse. On their pillaging raids in the years 881 and 882 , the Vikings used the old Roman roads in the Ardennes and attacked the abbeys of Malmedy and Stavelot and destroyed Prüm Abbey in the Eifel . The strategic position of the Ardennes has made it a battleground for European powers for many centuries. Much of

936-599: The main part of the French Ardennes department . Before the 19th century industrialization, the first furnaces in these four Belgian provinces (all in the Wallonia region) and in the French Ardennes used charcoal for fuel, made from harvesting the Ardennes forest. This industry was also in the extreme south of present-day Luxembourg Province (which until 1839 was part of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg), in

972-497: The northernmost third of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, also called " Éislek " ( German : Oesling ). On the southeast the Eifel region continues into the German state of the Rhineland-Palatinate . The trees and rivers of the Ardennes provided the charcoal industry assets that enabled the great industrial period of Wallonia in the 18th and 19th centuries, when it was arguably the second great industrial region of

1008-626: The numerous Arden place names in Britain, including the Forest of Arden . The modern Ardennes region covers a greatly diminished area from the forest recorded in Roman times. A song about Charlemagne, the Old French 12th-century chanson de geste Quatre Fils Aymon , mentions many of Wallonia's rivers, villages and other places. In Dinant the rock named Bayard takes its name for Bayard ,

1044-540: The previous geographical situation, with most of the Ardennes becoming part of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. After the revolution of 1830 , which resulted in the establishment of the Kingdom of Belgium, the political future of the Ardennes became a matter of much dispute between Belgium, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands, as well as involving the contemporary great powers of France , Prussia , and Great Britain . As

1080-674: The region called Gaume . The most important part of the Walloon steel industry, using coal, was built around the coal mines, mainly in the region around the cities of Liège , Charleroi, La Louvière , the Borinage , and further in the Walloon Brabant (in Tubize ). Wallonia became the second industrial power area of the world (after Great Britain) in proportion to its territory and to its population (see further). The rugged terrain and

1116-443: The region was impenetrable to massed vehicular traffic and especially armor, so the area was effectively "all but undefended" during the war. The German Army twice used this region to invade northern France and southern Belgium, via Luxembourg in the Battle of France and the later Battle of the Bulge . The military strategists of Nazi Germany in 1939 and 1940 selected the forest as the primary route of their mechanized forces in

Neichen - Misplaced Pages Continue

1152-443: The river Sambre; Liège Province along the river Meuse. The region the Ardennes are part of has been uplifted further in the last few hundred thousand years by a mantle plume , as measured from the present elevation of old river terraces, with the largest amount of uplift concentrated in the east, where the Ardennes connect with the Eifel, where the same mantle plume is also responsible for volcanic activity. This geological region

1188-492: The shorter form Neichen through faulty separation of the last two words. Until 1970, the municipality belonged to the Verbandsgemeinde of Daun , when it, along with Beinhausen , Boxberg , Brück , Hörschhausen and Katzwinkel , was annexed to the Verbandsgemeinde of Kelberg . The council is made up of 6 council members, who were elected by majority vote at the municipal election held on 7 June 2009, and

1224-581: The sub-soil. This geologic fact explains the greatest part of the geography of Wallonia and its history. In the North and West of the Ardennes lie the valleys of the Sambre and Meuse rivers, forming an arc ( Sillon industriel ) going across the most industrial provinces of Wallonia , for example Hainaut Province , along the river Haine (the etymology of Hainaut); the Borinage , the Centre and Charleroi along

1260-536: The war, the Ardennes area came to prominence again during the Battle of the Bulge . The German Army, which had been forced to retreat for some time, launched a surprise attack in December 1944 in an attempt to recapture Antwerp and to drive a wedge between the advancing British and American forces in northern France. After a fierce battle the Allied forces blocked the German advance on the river Meuse at Dinant. In

1296-470: The world. The greater region maintained an industrial eminence into the 20th century, after coal replaced charcoal in metallurgy . The strategic position of the Ardennes has made it a battleground for European powers for centuries; it was the site of major battles during both World Wars. Much of the Ardennes is covered in dense forests, with the hills averaging around 350–400 m (1,150–1,310 ft) in height but rising to over 694 m (2,277 ft) in

#514485