Barby (French pronunciation: [baʁbi]) is a commune in the Ardennes department in the Grand Est region of northern France.[3]

Barby
The road into Barby
The road into Barby
Location of Barby
Map
Barby is located in France
Barby
Barby
Barby is located in Grand Est
Barby
Barby
Coordinates: 49°31′22″N 4°18′49″E / 49.5228°N 4.3136°E / 49.5228; 4.3136
CountryFrance
RegionGrand Est
DepartmentArdennes
ArrondissementRethel
CantonRethel
IntercommunalityPays Rethélois
Government
 • Mayor (2020–2026) Christian Noizet[1]
Area
1
11.32 km2 (4.37 sq mi)
Population
 (2021)[2]
397
 • Density35/km2 (91/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+01:00 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+02:00 (CEST)
INSEE/Postal code
08048 /08300
Elevation66–142 m (217–466 ft)
(avg. 73 m or 240 ft)
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

The commune has been awarded three flowers by the National Council of Towns and Villages in Bloom in the Competition of cities and villages in Bloom.[4]

Geography edit

 
1935 Map of Barby

Barby is located immediately north-west of Rethel and immediately south-east of Château-Porcien. Access to the commune is by the D926 road from Rethel which passes through the heart of the commune and the village before continuing north-west to Château-Porcien. The D946 from Rethel passes through the north of the commune as it goes north-west to Seraincourt. The commune is entirely farmland.[5][6]

The Aisne river passes through the south-east of the commune forming a small part of the south-eastern border as it flows west to eventually join the Oise at Compiègne. The Vaux river flows south, forming the western border of the commune, to join the Aisne just outside the south-western tip of the commune. The Ruisseau de Bourgeron flows from the north-east through the commune and the village and joins the Aisne on the southern border. The Canal des Ardennes is parallel to and south of the Aisne and forms a small portion of the southern border of the commune.[5]

Climate edit

July and August are very hot and dry with temperatures up to 38 °C. Even so, rainfall is more frequent in summer, but the winters are shorter and less severe. The cold weather lasts only from October to March which favours corn crops and especially Kitchen gardens.

History edit

 
A Wayside Cross on the presumed site of the birthplace of Jean de Gerson

Excavations have uncovered a Bronze Age tomb in Barby and the village is traversed by the old Roman road from Rethel to Château-Porcien.

The village of Gerson was located on the current territory of the commune in the Middle Ages but is now gone. It was at Gerson that Jean Charlier de Gerson, Chancellor of the University of Paris (nicknamed Doctor Christianissimus), was born in 1363. A Wayside cross marks the place which traditionally is his birthplace. The commune named the Rue Gerson after him and the parish built a monument in the church during its construction in 1880 or 1881.

Barby appears as Barby on the 1750 Cassini Map[7] and the same on the 1790 version.[8]

Administration edit

List of Successive Mayors[9]

From To Name
1977 1995 Jean Fequant
1995 2004 Jean-Marie Renard
2004 2005 Louis Tanton
2005 2026 Christian Noizet

Demography edit

The inhabitants of the commune are known as Barbyons or Barbyonnes in French.[10]

Historical population
YearPop.±% p.a.
1793 394—    
1800 478+2.80%
1806 474−0.14%
1821 498+0.33%
1831 546+0.92%
1836 598+1.84%
1841 586−0.40%
1846 593+0.24%
1851 610+0.57%
1866 476−1.64%
1872 398−2.94%
1876 414+0.99%
1881 415+0.05%
1886 383−1.59%
1891 341−2.30%
1896 318−1.39%
1901 308−0.64%
YearPop.±% p.a.
1906 323+0.96%
1911 301−1.40%
1921 263−1.34%
1926 275+0.90%
1931 226−3.85%
1936 240+1.21%
1946 187−2.46%
1954 226+2.40%
1962 234+0.44%
1968 209−1.87%
1975 211+0.14%
1982 347+7.37%
1990 384+1.27%
1999 352−0.96%
2007 369+0.59%
2012 379+0.54%
2017 415+1.83%
Source: EHESS[11] and INSEE[12]
 
The War Memorial

Economy edit

Barby is a rural commune characterised by agriculture. The wheat harvest wheat is a highlight of life in the commune.

Sites and Monuments edit

 
The Church of Saint John the Baptist
  • The Church of Saint John the Baptist dates from 1880. The Church contains many items that are registered as historical objects:
    • A Baptismal font (15th century) [13]
    • 2 Statues: Virgin of Pity and Saints John the Baptist and John the Evangelist (15th century) [14]
    • A Painting: The beheading of Saint John the Baptist (15th century) [15]
    • An Altar and Retable (15th century) [16]
    • A Statue: Saint Barbe (16th century) [17]
    • A Statue: Saint John the Baptist (17th century) [18]
    • A Statue: Saint Hubert (17th century) [19]
    • A Funeral Plaque for Elisabeth la Chardenière, mother of Jean Gerson (16th century) [20]
  • La Crauye, a chalk quarry north of the village.
  • Les Bœufs Blancs (The White Oxen), a beach on the Aisne.

Notable people linked to the commune edit

  • Jean Charlier de Gerson (1363-1429), Chancellor of the University of Paris.
  • Gérard Tène (or Thène), a labourer at Barby in 1644 and his son, Joseph Taine - also a labourer at Barby, were the ancestors of Hippolyte Taine.
  • Eugène Marquigny, a Jesuit and writer born in 1836 at Barby.
  • Guy Féquant, writer, born in 1949 at Barby

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ "Répertoire national des élus: les maires" (in French). data.gouv.fr, Plateforme ouverte des données publiques françaises. 13 September 2022.
  2. ^ "Populations légales 2021". The National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies. 28 December 2023.
  3. ^ INSEE commune file
  4. ^ Competition for Towns and Villages in Bloom website Archived December 10, 2014, at the Wayback Machine (in French)
  5. ^ a b c Barby on Google Maps
  6. ^ Barby on the Géoportail from National Geographic Institute (IGN) website (in French)
  7. ^ Barby on the 1750 Cassini Map
  8. ^ Barby on the 1790 Cassini Map
  9. ^ List of Mayors of France (in French)
  10. ^ Le nom des habitants du 08 - Ardennes, habitants.fr
  11. ^ Des villages de Cassini aux communes d'aujourd'hui: Commune data sheet Barby, EHESS (in French).
  12. ^ Population en historique depuis 1968, INSEE
  13. ^ Ministry of Culture, Palissy PM08000058 Baptismal font (in French)
  14. ^ Ministry of Culture, Palissy PM08000057 2 Statues: Virgin of Pity and Saints John the Baptist and John the Evangelist (in French)
  15. ^ Ministry of Culture, Palissy PM08000056 Painting: The beheading of Saint John the Baptist (in French)
  16. ^ Ministry of Culture, Palissy PM08000055 Altar and Retable (in French)
  17. ^ Ministry of Culture, Palissy PM08000054 Statue: Saint Barbe (in French)
  18. ^ Ministry of Culture, Palissy PM08000053 Statue: Saint John the Baptist (in French)
  19. ^ Ministry of Culture, Palissy PM08000052 Statue: Saint Hubert (in French)
  20. ^ Ministry of Culture, Palissy PM08000051 Funeral Plaque for Elisabeth la Chardenière, mother of Jean Gerson (in French)