Bethoncourt
| Bethoncourt | ||
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| region | Bourgogne-Franche-Comté | |
| Department | Doubs | |
| Arrondissement | Montbeliard | |
| Canton | Bethoncourt (main town) | |
| Community association | Pays de Montbéliard agglomeration | |
| Coordinates | 47 ° 32 ' N , 6 ° 48' E | |
| height | 315-410 m | |
| surface | 6.54 km 2 | |
| Residents | 5,647 (January 1, 2017) | |
| Population density | 863 inhabitants / km 2 | |
| Post Code | 25200 | |
| INSEE code | 25057 | |
 Town Hall ( Hôtel de ville ) |
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Bethoncourt is a French commune with 5,647 inhabitants (as of January 1 2017) in Doubs in the region Bourgogne Franche-Comté .
geography
Bethoncourt is 330 m above sea level, about three kilometers north of the city of Montbéliard (as the crow flies). The village extends in the gently undulating landscape north of the Montbéliard basin, in the wide valley of the Lizaine .
The area of the 6.54 km² municipal area comprises a section of the undulating landscape north of Montbéliard. The western part of the area is occupied by the valley of the Lizaine, the flat bottom of which is 0.5 to 1 kilometer wide. The Lizaine, which meanders through the lowland, but is straightened in the southern part, ensures drainage to the south to the Allan and thus to the Doubs . To the northeast, the community area extends to the hills, partly with meadow, but mostly with forest, which separate the valleys of Savoureuse and Lizaine. The forest areas of the municipality include the Bois de la Voiranne and the Grands Bois . In the latter, the highest point of Bethoncourt is reached at 410 m.
The city of Bethoncourt consists of the following districts:
- Grand Bethoncourt (327 m) on the left (east) side of the Lizaine
- Petit Bethoncourt (321 m) on the right (western) side of the Lizaine
- Champvallon (360 m) on the hill to the east of the Lizaine valley
- Les Cités Nouvelles (350 m) west of the Lizaine
- Les Chaseaux (330 m) west of the Lizaine
The neighboring communities of Bethoncourt are Brevilliers in the north, Châtenois-les-Forges and Grand-Charmont in the east, Montbéliard in the south and Héricourt in the west.
history
Bethoncourt was first mentioned in a document in 815 under the name Betonis curte . Probably the origin of the place goes back to the Burgundian period (5th to 7th century) and means something like court of Betho . Over time, the spelling changed from Bethonis Curte (10th century), Betoncourt (1181), Boethoncourt (1196), Klein Bethoncourt and Gross Bethoncourt (1616) to Bethoncourt (since 1717).
Bethoncourt, which has been part of the Duchy of Alsace since the 10th century , was sold by the Murbach Monastery to the Counts of Montbéliard in 1274 . In 1541 the Lutheran Reformation was introduced; Bethoncourt, however, was parish until the first church was built (1730) after Sainte-Suzanne and Vyans . When the Guisen invaded (1587/88) and during the Thirty Years War (1633 and 1635) the village was plundered and set on fire. With the annexation of the county of Montbéliard , Bethoncourt finally came into French hands in 1793. During the Franco-Prussian War , Bethoncourt was one of the scenes of the Battle of the Lizaine , which lasted from January 15-17 , 1871.
Iron ore was mined near Bethoncourt during the 19th century. Towards the end of the century, industrialization began with the establishment of a watch factory, which was in operation until 1910. The cotton mill, which provided work for up to 600 people, was founded in 1908. So Bethoncourt gradually developed into the suburb of Montbéliard. Construction of the Champvallon settlement began in 1958. Within a short time, numerous five- to eight-story apartment blocks were built on an area of almost 1 km², in which mainly workers from the Peugeot factories ( Sochaux , Montbéliard) settled with their families. This led to an increase in the population of 9,000 people within 10 years.
With the closure of the Bethoncourt textile factory (1973) and the decline in the number of employees in the Peugeot factories, the decline of Champvallon began after the mid-1970s. The economic crisis and the restructuring of the industry in the Pays de Montbéliard from 1983 to 1990 led many families to leave the settlement, so that now numerous apartments were vacant. Some of the now dilapidated apartment blocks were demolished after 1989 or replaced by new buildings adapted to the changed needs. Today Bethoncourt is part of the Pays de Montbéliard Agglomération municipal association .
Attractions
Bethoncourt Lutheran Church (temple) was built in the classical style from 1775 to 1778 as one of twenty churches in the county and once-dependent territories that were rebuilt or renovated on behalf of Charles Eugen during his long reign. A church building from the pre-Reformation period gave way to it. It has been extensively restored several times since then. The catholic chapel Sainte-Thérèse dates from 1953. The Catholic Church of St. Paul in the Champvallon district was built in a modern style. The castle built in the 18th century stands slightly elevated above the old village. The L'Arche cultural center (built from 1992 to 1993) is part of modern architecture.
Lutheran Church 
St. Paul Church
population
| Population development | |
|---|---|
| year | Residents |
| 1962 | 6442 |
| 1968 | 10,996 |
| 1975 | 10,592 |
| 1982 | 9751 |
| 1990 | 7448 |
| 1999 | 6848 |
| 2006 | 6271 |
| 2016 | 5702 |
With 5647 inhabitants (January 1, 2017), Bethoncourt is one of the larger municipalities in the Doubs department. After the population had grown only slowly in the first half of the 20th century, the establishment of Champvallon in 1960 saw a marked increase in population. The population quintupled in just under 10 years, and in 1967 the 10,000-person mark was exceeded. With a little over 11,000 inhabitants, the peak was reached at the beginning of the 1970s. After that, there was initially a slow decline in population from 1983 onwards. The downward trend continues to this day. Since the peak, Bethoncourt has lost nearly 5,000 residents, a decrease of 43%. Today the settlement area of Bethoncourt has grown together with that of Montbéliard.
Economy and Infrastructure
Since the late 19th century, Bethoncourt was a community characterized by industry and commerce, with a watch factory first and then the textile factory (cotton spinning) being important. With the establishment of Champvallon, Bethoncourt quickly developed into the residential suburb of Montbéliard. Today there are various small and medium-sized businesses in the community, including those in the precision engineering and metalworking sectors. There are also numerous retail shops for daily needs. However, many workers are commuters who work in the other municipalities of the Montbéliard agglomeration.
With the Arche, Bethoncourt has a center in which cultural events (mainly for the younger generation) are held. Bethoncourt is home to a college, a Lycée professionnelle and a training center for mechanics.
The village is well developed in terms of traffic. It is located on the main road from Montbéliard via Héricourt to Lure . The closest connection to the A36 motorway is around four kilometers away. There are other road connections with Grand-Charmont and Sochaux. The railway line from Montbéliard to Belfort runs through the municipality , but there is no train station in Bethoncourt. Bethoncourt is connected to the city of Montbéliard and its train station by a bus line.
Parish partnership
Bethoncourt has a partnership with the Silmiouglou community in Burkina Faso .
literature
- Le Patrimoine des Communes du Doubs. Volume 2, Flohic Editions, Paris 2001, ISBN 2-84234-087-6 , pp. 695-697.
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ Georges-Frédéric Goguel, Précis historique de la Réformation et des églises protestantes dans l'ancien comté de Montbéliard et ses dépendances , Paris: Marc-Aurel frères, 1841, p. 148.
- ↑ See "Béthoncourt: le temple", on: Les temples ou églises luthériennes de France - [Recherche alphabétique: B], accessed on January 23, 2016.