Ferme d’Hautevalle

Can you imagine a time when elegant manors transformed into working farms? The Ferme d’Hautevalle in Linselles, near Elcourt, stands as a testament to this intriguing past. The Ferme d’Hautevalle, whose porch was inscribed as a historical monument in 1984, whispers tales of bygone eras. Originally, around 1580, Guillaume III de Hangouart acquired this property. It included 22 bonniers of land, rents, and the Hautevalle manor. The land stretched from the Linselles to Halluin road and touched the Meulestrate road. Long before Hangouart, in the 14th century, the de Rocques family controlled the Ferme d’Hautevalle. They held the fief of Rocques in Asq. Records reveal intriguing details about this family. Nicolas de Rocques married Marie Petipas, a widow in 1334. His son, Jean de Rocques, reported on the fief in 1372. The Linselles church held two obits annually for the de Rocques family, paid for with grain from Hautevalle. Alard de Rocques, son of Jean, married Isabeau de Fretin. The church commemorated them with two anniversaries, also funded by Hautevalle’s grain. By 1417, “le canonne de Rocq” held the title of seigneur de Hautevalle. The church received 40 gros annually for an anniversary for Alard de Rocques, canon of Saint-Pierre de Lille, and his brother Martin. Antoine de Rocques, Alard’s son, married Marguerite-Marie Mallet. She was the widow of Michel Des Plancques and sister of a prominent knight. In 1471, Antoine and Marguerite established an anniversary for themselves and their children. Later, the de Rocques heiress married Laurent Vital. He then sold Ferme d’Hautevalle to Guillaume de Hangouart, seigneur de Piettre. Hangouart bequeathed it to his daughters, Madeleine and Jeanne. Madeleine married Pierre Bernard in 1591, and Jeanne married Guillaume Le Loucheur. The Ferme d’Hautevalle remained shared between these families. In 1682, Arnoul Bernard and Jean-François de Popuelle jointly possessed it. Damoiselle Quint de la Tourelle held the title from 1753 to 1767. Interestingly, sometime before the 16th century, the Ferme d’Hautevalle was divided into three parts. Two retained the Hautevalle name, while the third remained nameless. These divisions contributed seven aldermen to the vicomte’s court: two from each named part and three from the larger, unnamed portion. The Ferme d’Hautevalle’s history is a tapestry woven with family legacies, land divisions, and the enduring presence of a structure that has witnessed centuries of change.