Beffroi de Saint-Riquier and Beffroi de l’Hôtel de Ville d’Hesdin

Waypoint introductions and full write-ups

1. 1. Beffroi de Saint-Riquier

   Saint-Riquier is a small village in the Somme, a few kilometres from Abbeville, and it punches far above its weight. In the early Middle Ages it was the site of Centula, one of the most important monasteries of the Carolingian empire, ruled by Angilbert, a courtier and son-in-law of Charlemagne, who made it a centre of learning and prayer with hundreds of monks. The great abbey church you see today is later, a Gothic building with a richly carved facade, but the scale of the place still reflects that history. The belfry, a solid square tower in the village, was a symbol of the townspeople's rights and is one of the belfries listed by UNESCO in Belgium and France.

   Read the complete Beffroi de Saint-Riquier write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Beffroi de Saint-Riquier is where the day begins. Next is Beffroi de Rue.

2. 2. Beffroi de Rue

   Rue is a small town of three thousand people that used to be a seaport, and the belfry in the middle of it is one of the reasons it still feels more important than its size suggests. Over centuries the Baie de Somme silted up and the sea pulled back, leaving Rue stranded a few kilometres inland among salt meadows and polders, but the stone tower that once watched the harbour still stands over the square. It is part of the group of belfries of Belgium and northern France on the UNESCO list, symbols of civic freedom built by towns that wanted the world to know they governed themselves.

   Read the complete Beffroi de Rue write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Beffroi de Rue comes up about 27 km into the recorded legs. Next is Beffroi d’Abbeville.

3. 3. Beffroi d’Abbeville

   Abbeville stands on the river Somme a few kilometres before it widens into its famous bay, and the town has the air of a place that has been knocked about and picked itself up. Much of the old centre was destroyed by bombing in May 1940, in the German advance, and rebuilt in a plain, solid style after the war. The belfry, part of the town hall complex, belongs to the group of belfries of France and Belgium that UNESCO lists, and it stands as a symbol of the town's medieval privileges.

   Read the complete Beffroi d’Abbeville write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   about 55 km into the recorded legs you reach Beffroi d’Abbeville. Next is Beffroi de l’Hôtel de Ville d’Hesdin.

4. 4. Beffroi de l’Hôtel de Ville d’Hesdin

   Hesdin is a small market town in the green valley of the Canche, in the Pas-de-Calais, and it owes its existence to an act of destruction. The original town, a few kilometres upstream, was razed in 1553 by the forces of the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V, and a new fortified town was built here the following year as a strongpoint on the frontier between France and the Habsburg Netherlands. The grid of streets and the large market square still follow that plan. On the square stands the town hall, a former palace of the Habsburg governors, with a beautifully carved Renaissance balcony from which proclamations were read, and its belfry is part of the UNESCO list of belfries in Belgium and France.

   Read the complete Beffroi de l’Hôtel de Ville d’Hesdin write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Beffroi de l’Hôtel de Ville d’Hesdin, about halfway. Next is back through Beffroi d’Abbeville.

5. 5. back through Beffroi d’Abbeville

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Beffroi d’Abbeville write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   back through Beffroi d’Abbeville sits at 143 km, about halfway. Next is back through Beffroi de Rue.

6. 6. back through Beffroi de Rue

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Beffroi de Rue write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   back through Beffroi de Rue comes up about 157 km into the recorded legs. Next is Beffroi de Saint-Riquier.

7. 7. Beffroi de Saint-Riquier

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Beffroi de Saint-Riquier write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Beffroi de Saint-Riquier closes the day.