Bec-de-Mortagne
Encyclopedia
Bec-de-Mortagne is a commune
in the Seine-Maritime
department in the Haute-Normandie
region
in northern France
.
, some 19 miles (30.6 km) northeast of Le Havre
, at the junction of the D69 and the D28.
word for stream, together with the name of the Mortagne family, seigneurs
of the village.
Bec-de-Mortagne in the Pays de Caux is thought to be the birth-place of Turstin FitzRolf
, standard bearer to William the Conqueror at the Battle of Hastings
in 1066, as he was described by the 12th.c. chronicler Orderic Vitalis
as from "Bec-en-Caux".
Around 1175, Guillaume de Mortagne gave the parish church to the Archbishop of Rouen, ( Willelmi Becco of Moritania) who gave it to the chapter after his death, stipulating that the priest should have a third of the tithes and the canon two-thirds.
A knight, Henri de Soteville, sought possession of the church. He was excommunicated, but having later submitted, the excommunication was lifted.
In the thirteenth century, Bec-Moreteigne had 500 inhabitants and the parish priest was paid 15 pounds .
The year 1562 saw the formal civil status of Bec de Mortagne granted and in 1824 it was joined with the former parish of Baigneville to form the present commune.
Communes of France
The commune is the lowest level of administrative division in the French Republic. French communes are roughly equivalent to incorporated municipalities or villages in the United States or Gemeinden in Germany...
in the Seine-Maritime
Seine-Maritime
Seine-Maritime is a French department in the Haute-Normandie region in northern France. It is situated on the northern coast of France, at the mouth of the Seine, and includes the cities of Rouen and Le Havre...
department in the Haute-Normandie
Haute-Normandie
Upper Normandy is one of the 27 regions of France. It was created in 1984 from two départements: Seine-Maritime and Eure, when Normandy was divided into Lower Normandy and Upper Normandy. This division continues to provoke controversy, and some continue to call for reuniting the two regions...
region
Régions of France
France is divided into 27 administrative regions , 22 of which are in Metropolitan France, and five of which are overseas. Corsica is a territorial collectivity , but is considered a region in mainstream usage, and is even shown as such on the INSEE website...
in northern France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
.
Geography
A farming village situated in the wooded valley of the river Ganzeville, in the Pays de CauxPays de Caux
The Pays de Caux is an area in Normandy occupying the greater part of the French département of Seine Maritime in Haute-Normandie. It is a chalk plateau to the north of the Seine Estuary and extending to the cliffs on the English Channel coast - its coastline is known as the Côte d'Albâtre...
, some 19 miles (30.6 km) northeast of Le Havre
Le Havre
Le Havre is a city in the Seine-Maritime department of the Haute-Normandie region in France. It is situated in north-western France, on the right bank of the mouth of the river Seine on the English Channel. Le Havre is the most populous commune in the Haute-Normandie region, although the total...
, at the junction of the D69 and the D28.
History
The name comes from ‘’Becr’’, a NorseOld Norse
Old Norse is a North Germanic language that was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and inhabitants of their overseas settlements during the Viking Age, until about 1300....
word for stream, together with the name of the Mortagne family, seigneurs
Lord
Lord is a title with various meanings. It can denote a prince or a feudal superior . The title today is mostly used in connection with the peerage of the United Kingdom or its predecessor countries, although some users of the title do not themselves hold peerages, and use it 'by courtesy'...
of the village.
Bec-de-Mortagne in the Pays de Caux is thought to be the birth-place of Turstin FitzRolf
Turstin FitzRolf
Turstin FitzRolf was a Norman magnate, one of the few "Proven Companions of William the Conqueror" who fought at the Battle of Hastings in 1066. As his name indicates, he was the son of a certain Rolf, synonymous with Rou and Rollo . His first name appears as Tosteins, Thurstan and other variants...
, standard bearer to William the Conqueror at the Battle of Hastings
Battle of Hastings
The Battle of Hastings occurred on 14 October 1066 during the Norman conquest of England, between the Norman-French army of Duke William II of Normandy and the English army under King Harold II...
in 1066, as he was described by the 12th.c. chronicler Orderic Vitalis
Orderic Vitalis
Orderic Vitalis was an English chronicler of Norman ancestry who wrote one of the great contemporary chronicles of 11th and 12th century Normandy and Anglo-Norman England. The modern biographer of Henry I of England, C...
as from "Bec-en-Caux".
Around 1175, Guillaume de Mortagne gave the parish church to the Archbishop of Rouen, ( Willelmi Becco of Moritania) who gave it to the chapter after his death, stipulating that the priest should have a third of the tithes and the canon two-thirds.
A knight, Henri de Soteville, sought possession of the church. He was excommunicated, but having later submitted, the excommunication was lifted.
In the thirteenth century, Bec-Moreteigne had 500 inhabitants and the parish priest was paid 15 pounds .
The year 1562 saw the formal civil status of Bec de Mortagne granted and in 1824 it was joined with the former parish of Baigneville to form the present commune.
Population
Places of interest
- The church of St.Martin, dating from the eleventh century.
- Traces of a medieval castle.
- An eighteenth-century presbytery