| Picardy | |
 | |
Location  | |
Coat of arms  | |
| State | France |
|---|---|
| Capital | Amiens |
| Surface | 19,399 km² |
| Inhabitants | 1.911.157 (2009) |
| Tourism site | |
| Institutional website | |
Picardy (Picardie) is one of the regions of the France, sadly known for the key role it played during the First World War, today hosting a large number of cemeteries and memorials.
To know
The term Picardy appeared in 1248, as a derivation from the word "picard", that is, "piocheur", "digger". The Parisians called "diggers" all the farmers who lived north of the forested area of Senlisis and Valois (where the villagers were lumberjacks), and to the north all those who did not speak Flemish were called "Picard". Arras, Boulogne-sur-Mer, Calais, Tournai they were "Picardy" cities; their students formed a Paris it's at Orléans the "Piccarda Nation".
Geographical notes
The territory of the region borders on that of Nord-Pas de Calais north of the Champagne-Ardenne to the east ofÎle-de-France to the south andUpper Normandy to the west, as well as with the Belgium (Wallonia) to the northeast. The northwestern coasts are washed by the English Channel.
Background
Part of Belgian Gaul and originally inhabited by various Celtic populations, including the Amiens, from which the name of Amiens derives, Picardy entered the Kingdom of France with the Treaty of Verdun in 843. In reality, historical Picardy only partially corresponded to the current administrative borders of the region. The present department of the Somme, the north of the Aisne and also the department of Pas-de-Calais (Boulonais), today in the Nord-Pas-de-Calais region, constituted Picardy. On the contrary, the southern part of the Aisne department, as well as most of the Oise territory, were part of the Île-de-France province. Until 1667 Picardy represented the northern border of the Kingdom of France. In that year the French conquered Lille. Given its geographical position, Picardy was at the center of tragic military clashes during the First and Second World Wars.
Spoken languages
In addition to French, in the region, except for the south, a regional language is widespread, the picardo, a neo-Latin language also spoken in much of Nord-Pas-de-Calais and also in Belgium, in Hainaut, where it received official recognition from the Communauté française de Belgique.
Territories and tourist destinations
It is made up of 3 departments:
Picardy: full screen map.Urban centers
- Amiens —
Capital of the region, famous for the largest Gothic cathedral in France. - Abbeville - Small river port on the banks of the Somme River.
- Albert - Municipality located in the Somme department, home to a museum dedicated to the Great War.
- Beauvais - It has an international airport.
- Chantilly - Known for the cream of the same name, its castle and horses.
- Château-Thierry - It is located on the banks of the Marne.
- Compiègne - Municipality located in the Oise department.
- Laon - Capital of the Aisne department.
- Ribeauville - Very small commune located in the Aisne department.
- Saint-Quentin - Located in the Oise department.
- Senlis - Located in the Oise department.
- Soissons - It is one of the oldest cities in France, the ancient capital of the Suessioni.
- Vervins - Located in the Aisne department.
Capital of the region, famous for the largest Gothic cathedral in France.Other destinations
- 1 Oise-Pays Regional Nature Park (Parc naturel régional Oise-Pays de France)
How to get
By plane
You can get to Beauvais, more precisely at Beauvais-Tillé airport, 6 km from the city center, by bus from the Porte Maillot to Paris. The bus does not have fixed schedules, but departs according to the flights at the airport, so there are departures quite often between 6:00 and 19:00 From the airport, there are buses CABARO[link not working] for Amiens.
You can also take a flight that arrives at Paris-Beauvais airport. There are Ryanair, WizzAir or Blue Air flights from Alghero, Alicante, Bergamo, Bologna, Bucharest, Budapest, Cagliari, Cluj-Napoca, Dublin, Girona/ Barcelona, Katowice, Madrid, Marseille, Stockholm, Pisa, Port , Prague, Glasgow, Reus, Rome, Shannon, Timisoara, Trapani, Treviso is Warsaw.
By car
On the motorway, you can take the A16 Paris-Dunkirk, which passes through Beauvais, Amiens is Abbeville. The A1 Paris-Lille, which crosses Senlis is Compiègne. The A4 Paris-Strasbourg, which crosses Château-Thierry. The A26 Reims-Calais, which crosses Laon is Saint-Quentin. The A28 Rouen-Abbeville, which runs through Abbeville. The A29 Amiens-Saint-Quentin, which crosses Amiens and Saint-Quentin.
On the train
You can take the train at Gare du Nord's Paris to reach Amiens, Beauvais, Chantilly, Creil, etc. From Lille, the TER for Saint-Quentin is Laon. There are several trains per day to most cities.
How to get around
By car
It would be better to have a car to drive around Picardy. Car pooling is also growing. The roads or motorways (A16, A1, A4, A26, A28, A29) are numerous and of good quality. However, large cities (and some medium-sized ones) have good urban transport.
In many places, a more original means of transport will be offered by barge.
On the train
Connections between certain cities are not facilitated. The railway axes are almost all oriented north-south. You can then go by train from Soissons to Laon, from Saint-Quentin in Laon, from Hirson in Laon, from Beauvais to Amiens, from Compiègne to Saint-Quentin, from Amiens to Saint-Quentin, from Amiens to Compiègne ...
By bus
You can also get around Picardy by bus. The Oise has lines of CABARO bus[link not working] between cities. In the Aisne there is the Trans'Bus[link not working] and in the Somme there is the Trans'80.
Other means
Trips will also be proposed through the numerous horse farms in the region (horse, pony, sleigh ...) and also on the Aisne, the Oise and the numerous canals previously used for the transport of raw materials to Paris (Canal de l'Ourcq. ..); and in the forests of Retz, Compiègne, Laigue, Saint-Gobain, Halatte, Ermenonville or Chantilly; and in numerous tourist villages where horse farms and pony clubs abound.
What see
What to do
At the table
At the intersection of Île-de-France, Champagne, Normandy is Flanders and overlooking the sea, Picardy offers the visitor a series of refined dishes that borrow purely regional creations from the border regions.
