Fancy a trip to a French commune that’s part of the European Metropolis of Lille? Then welcome to Péronne-en-Mélantois. This is a French commune in the Nord department in northern France. Péronne-en-Mélantois is a small, yet charming, place.
Péronne-en-Mélantois sits in the plain of Mélantois. It is in Roman Flanders. The town is about 10.4 km southeast of Lille.
Let’s talk about the name. According to Paul Decagny, Péronne may come from the Celtic word “piron”. Piron means “goose”. So, Péronne could mean “deserted place where geese are common”. An old name for Péronne was “mons cygnorum” meaning “mount of swans”.
Before the French Revolution, Péronne was the seat of a seigneury. Marguerite de Waringhien married Georges Verdière around 1407. She was the daughter of Guillaume de Warenghien. He was the Lord of Fontaine à Croix. Jeanne de Thumesnil was her mother. Georges Verdière was the origin of the lords of Péronne-en-Mélantois.
The arms of Péronne-en-Mélantois are quite distinctive. They are blazoned as “Azure, 3 martlets argent”. This translates to a blue shield with three silver martlets, a type of bird.
Péronne-en-Mélantois falls under the jurisdiction of several courts. These include the Lille court of instance and the Douai court of appeal. It also includes the Tourcoing commercial court and the Lille administrative court.
The population of Péronne-en-Mélantois is relatively young. In 2018, about 34.4% of people were under 30. This is below the departmental average. In the same year, about 21.1% were over 60.
Péronne-en-Mélantois has several interesting places. The Saint-Nicolas church dates back to the 16th century. It was added to the list of historic monuments in 1969. There is also the Marais de Péronne. The Conseil Général du Nord developed this site. The old Péronne-en-Mélantois castle was destroyed. It was near the current castle. You can still see the old moats. Legend says that during an attack by the Gueux, a treasure was hidden in a tunnel from the old castle.
The commune is drained by the Marque and the Ferme Castel. The Marque is 32 km long. It starts in Thumeries. It flows into the Roubaix canal in Wasquehal. It crosses 25 towns.
The climate in Péronne-en-Mélantois is oceanic. The average annual temperature is 10.6 °C. The average annual rainfall is 687 mm.
In 2022, Péronne-en-Mélantois had 1,001 residents. This is an increase of 10.85% since 2016.
Péronne-en-Mélantois is categorized as an urban belt. It belongs to the urban unit of Templeuve-en-Pévèle. This is an intra-departmental agglomeration. It includes five municipalities. Péronne-en-Mélantois is a suburban commune.
Agricultural areas dominate the land use in Péronne-en-Mélantois. In 2018, they accounted for 39.8%. This is a decrease from 1990. At that time, it was 53.4%.
In 2023, the commune is served by on-demand transport lines 20R and 69R. These are part of the Ilévia network. There is also line 870 of the Arc-en-Ciel 2 interurban network.
Guillaume Verdière built the church of Péronne in 1516. He lived from 1473 to 1551.