Stavelot
Encyclopedia
Stavelot is a Walloon municipality
located in the Belgian
province of Liège
. On January 1, 2006, Stavelot had a total population of 6,671. The total area is 85.07 km² which gives a population density
of 78 inhabitants per km².
The town grew up around the Abbey of Stavelot, founded ca 650, out of what had been a villa
, by Saint Remaclus (Saint Remacle). The villa's lands occupied the borderland between the bishoprics of Cologne
and Tongeren. The Abbey of Stavelot was secularized and demolished at the time of the French Revolution
: of the church just the west end doorway remains, as a free-standing tower. Two cloister
s — 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 poet Guillaume 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 the Romanesque
abbey.
Stavelot was the seat of the Principality of Stavelot-Malmedy
, a small independent region of the Holy Roman Empire
, ruled by the abbots of Stavelot. The principality was dissolved in 1795 during the French Revolution. At the Congress of Vienna
in 1815, Stavelot was added to the Kingdom of the Netherlands
while Malmedy
was added to the Prussian Rhineland. In 1830 it became part of Belgium
. (Malmedy would also become a part of Belgium, but not until 1919.)
Abbot Wibald
(ruled 1130–58) was one of the greatest patrons of the arts in the 12th century; the Stavelot Triptych
of gilded copper and enamels, which contained two fragments of the True Cross
, was produced for the Abbey during his rule (about 1156). The binding of the Stavelot Bible, and the remaining fragments from the retable
(altar screen) at Stavelot are also high points of medieval art.
The town's coat of arms
, granted in 1819, is parted fess
wise between Stavelot's founding bishop, and the wolf which in Stavelot's founding legend carried bricks for the building of the Abbey.
During the Battle of the Bulge
in World War II
, the city was the scene of severe fighting. From December 18-20, 1944, soldiers belonging to Kampfgruppe (armored battle group) Joachim Peiper's
Sixth Panzer Army murdered more than 100 civilians, including women and children, in Stavelot and the surrounding area. Peiper and some of his officers were after the war tried and convicted
for this war crime along with others perpetrated during the same period.
, the famous venue of the Formula One
Belgian Grand Prix
and the Spa 24 Hours
endurance race.
Stavelot also has a traditional carnival, the Laetare des Blancs-Moussis. On Laetare Sunday
, the fourth Sunday of Lent
, some 200 local men clad in white and masked with long red noses — the Blancs-Moussis — parade through town throwing confetti
and beating bystanders with dried pig bladder
s.
Municipality
A municipality is essentially an urban administrative division having corporate status and usually powers of self-government. It can also be used to mean the governing body of a municipality. A municipality is a general-purpose administrative subdivision, as opposed to a special-purpose district...
located in the Belgian
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
province of Liège
Liège (province)
Liège is the easternmost province of Belgium and belongs to the Walloon Region. It is an area of French and German ethnicity. It borders on the Netherlands, Germany, Luxembourg, and in Belgium the provinces of Luxembourg, Namur, Walloon Brabant , and those of Flemish Brabant and Limburg . Its...
. On January 1, 2006, Stavelot had a total population of 6,671. The total area is 85.07 km² which gives a population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
of 78 inhabitants per km².
History
Villa
A villa was originally an ancient Roman upper-class country house. Since its origins in the Roman villa, the idea and function of a villa have evolved considerably. After the fall of the Roman Republic, villas became small farming compounds, which were increasingly fortified in Late Antiquity,...
, by Saint Remaclus (Saint Remacle). The villa's lands occupied the borderland between the bishoprics of Cologne
Cologne
Cologne is Germany's fourth-largest city , and is the largest city both in the Germany Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia and within the Rhine-Ruhr Metropolitan Area, one of the major European metropolitan areas with more than ten million inhabitants.Cologne is located on both sides of the...
and Tongeren. The Abbey of Stavelot was secularized and demolished at the time of the French Revolution
French Revolution
The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...
: of the church just the west end doorway remains, as a free-standing tower. Two cloister
Cloister
A cloister is a rectangular open space surrounded by covered walks or open galleries, with open arcades on the inner side, running along the walls of buildings and forming a quadrangle or garth...
s — 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 poet Guillaume Apollinaire
Guillaume Apollinaire
Wilhelm Albert Włodzimierz Apolinary Kostrowicki, known as Guillaume Apollinaire was a French poet, playwright, short story writer, novelist, and art critic born in Italy to a Polish mother....
, 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 the Romanesque
Romanesque architecture
Romanesque architecture is an architectural style of Medieval Europe characterised by semi-circular arches. There is no consensus for the beginning date of the Romanesque architecture, with proposals ranging from the 6th to the 10th century. It developed in the 12th century into the Gothic style,...
abbey.
Stavelot was the seat of the Principality of Stavelot-Malmedy
Principality of Stavelot-Malmedy
The Principality of Stavelot-Malmedy was a principality of the Holy Roman Empire. Princely power was exercised by the Benedictine abbot of the imperial double monastery of Stavelot and Malmedy, founded in 651. At , it was the second-smallest territory in the Empire, after the Duchy of Bouillon at...
, a small independent region of the Holy Roman Empire
Holy Roman Empire
The Holy Roman Empire was a realm that existed from 962 to 1806 in Central Europe.It was ruled by the Holy Roman Emperor. Its character changed during the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period, when the power of the emperor gradually weakened in favour of the princes...
, ruled by the abbots of Stavelot. The principality was dissolved in 1795 during the French Revolution. At the Congress of Vienna
Congress of Vienna
The Congress of Vienna was a conference of ambassadors of European states chaired by Klemens Wenzel von Metternich, and held in Vienna from September, 1814 to June, 1815. The objective of the Congress was to settle the many issues arising from the French Revolutionary Wars, the Napoleonic Wars,...
in 1815, Stavelot was added to the Kingdom of the Netherlands
Kingdom of the Netherlands
The Kingdom of the Netherlands is a sovereign state and constitutional monarchy with territory in Western Europe and in the Caribbean. The four parts of the Kingdom—Aruba, Curaçao, the Netherlands, and Sint Maarten—are referred to as "countries", and participate on a basis of equality...
while Malmedy
Malmedy
Malmedy is a municipality of Belgium. It lies in the country's Walloon Region, Province of Liège. It belongs to the French Community of Belgium, within which it is French-speaking with facilities for German-speakers. On January 1, 2006 Malmedy had a total population of 11,829...
was added to the Prussian Rhineland. In 1830 it became part of Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
. (Malmedy would also become a part of Belgium, but not until 1919.)
Abbot Wibald
Wibald
Wibald was a 12th century Abbot of Stavelot and Malmedy, both in present-day Belgium, and of Corvey in Germany.-Biography:...
(ruled 1130–58) was one of the greatest patrons of the arts in the 12th century; the Stavelot Triptych
Stavelot Triptych
The Stavelot Triptych is a medieval reliquary and portable altar in gold and enamel intended to protect, honor and display pieces of the True Cross. Created by Mosan artists—"Mosan" signifies the valley of the Meuse river—around 1156 at Stavelot Abbey in present-day Belgium...
of gilded copper and enamels, which contained two fragments of the True Cross
True Cross
The True Cross is the name for physical remnants which, by a Christian tradition, are believed to be from the cross upon which Jesus was crucified.According to post-Nicene historians, Socrates Scholasticus and others, the Empress Helena The True Cross is the name for physical remnants which, by a...
, was produced for the Abbey during his rule (about 1156). The binding of the Stavelot Bible, and the remaining fragments from the retable
Retable
A retable is a framed altarpiece, raised slightly above the back of the altar or communion table, on which are placed the cross, ceremonial candlesticks and other ornaments....
(altar screen) at Stavelot are also high points of medieval art.
The town's coat of arms
Coat of arms
A coat of arms is a unique heraldic design on a shield or escutcheon or on a surcoat or tabard used to cover and protect armour and to identify the wearer. Thus the term is often stated as "coat-armour", because it was anciently displayed on the front of a coat of cloth...
, granted in 1819, is parted fess
Fess
In heraldry, a fess or fesse is a charge on a coat of arms that takes the form of a band running horizontally across the centre of the shield. Writers disagree in how much of the shield's surface is to be covered by a fess or other ordinary, ranging from one-fifth to one-third...
wise between Stavelot's founding bishop, and the wolf which in Stavelot's founding legend carried bricks for the building of the Abbey.
During the Battle of the Bulge
Battle of the Bulge
The Battle of the Bulge was a major German offensive , launched toward the end of World War II through the densely forested Ardennes mountain region of Wallonia in Belgium, hence its French name , and France and...
in World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, the city was the scene of severe fighting. From December 18-20, 1944, soldiers belonging to Kampfgruppe (armored battle group) Joachim Peiper's
Joachim Peiper
Joachim Peiper , more often known as Jochen Peiper, was a field officer in the Waffen-SS during World War II, convicted of war crimes in Belgium and accused of war crimes in Italy. He was Reichsführer-SS Heinrich Himmler's personal adjutant . In 1945, he was an SS-Standartenführer, the Waffen-SS's...
Sixth Panzer Army murdered more than 100 civilians, including women and children, in Stavelot and the surrounding area. Peiper and some of his officers were after the war tried and convicted
Malmedy massacre trial
The Malmedy massacre trial was held in May–July 1946 in the Dachau concentration camp to try the German Waffen-SS soldiers accused of the Malmedy massacre of December 17, 1944. The highest-ranking defendant was the former SS general, Sepp Dietrich...
for this war crime along with others perpetrated during the same period.
Miscellaneous
Stavelot is part of the original course of the Circuit de Spa-FrancorchampsCircuit de Spa-Francorchamps
The Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps is the venue of the Formula One Belgian Grand Prix and the Spa 24 Hours endurance race. It is also home to the all Volkswagen club event, 25 Hours of Spa, run by the Uniroyal Fun Cup. It is one of the most challenging race tracks in the world, mainly due to its...
, the famous venue of the Formula One
Formula One
Formula One, also known as Formula 1 or F1 and referred to officially as the FIA Formula One World Championship, is the highest class of single seater auto racing sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile . The "formula" designation in the name refers to a set of rules with which...
Belgian Grand Prix
Belgian Grand Prix
The Belgian Grand Prix is an automobile race, part of the Formula One World Championship....
and the Spa 24 Hours
Spa 24 Hours
The Total 24 Hours of Spa is an endurance racing event held annually in Belgium at the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps. Conceived by Jules de Their and Henri Langlois Van Ophem just one year after the first 24 Hours of Le Mans, the race was run under the auspices of the Royal Automobile Club Belgium...
endurance race.
Stavelot also has a traditional carnival, the Laetare des Blancs-Moussis. On Laetare Sunday
Laetare Sunday
Laetare Sunday , so called from the incipit of the Introit at Mass, "Laetare Jerusalem" , is a name often used to denote the fourth Sunday of the season of Lent in the Christian liturgical calendar...
, the fourth Sunday of Lent
Lent
In the Christian tradition, Lent is the period of the liturgical year from Ash Wednesday to Easter. The traditional purpose of Lent is the preparation of the believer – through prayer, repentance, almsgiving and self-denial – for the annual commemoration during Holy Week of the Death and...
, some 200 local men clad in white and masked with long red noses — the Blancs-Moussis — parade through town throwing confetti
Confetti
Confetti is a multitude of pieces of paper, mylar or metallic material which is usually thrown at parades and celebrations, especially weddings . Confetti is made in a variety of colors, and commercially available confetti is available in imaginative shapes...
and beating bystanders with dried pig bladder
Pig bladder
Pig bladder is the bladder of a domestic pig, similar to the human urinary bladder. Today, this hollow organ has various applications in medicine, and in traditional cuisines and customs...
s.
External links
- Museum of the Stavelot-Malmedy Principality, Stavelot
- Philippe George, "Un moine est mort: sa vie commence" in Le Moyen Age, 2002/3–4 Abbot Poppon
- The Stavelot Reliquary
- Medieval Sourcebook: Abbey of Stavelot: corvéeCorvéeCorvée is unfree labour, often unpaid, that is required of people of lower social standing and imposed on them by the state or a superior . The corvée was the earliest and most widespread form of taxation, which can be traced back to the beginning of civilization...
of labour