Cap Hornu 🌊 Saint-Valery-sur-Somme

Cap Hornu is a cape located near Saint-Valery-sur-Somme, on the south bank of the Bay of Somme.
The name Cap Hornu comes from the Picard word “hornu”, which means “horned” or “pointed”, and refers to the shape of the cape. The cape was also known as Cap Saint-Valery in the past.The history of Cap Hornu is closely linked to that of Saint-Valery-sur-Somme, which was a strategic port and a medieval town that witnessed many historical events. In 1066, William the Conqueror departed from Saint-Valery-sur-Somme with his fleet to invade England. In 1431, Joan of Arc was imprisoned in Saint-Valery-sur-Somme before being transferred to Rouen. In 1568, a massacre of Huguenots took place in Saint-Valery-sur-Somme after a battle between Catholics and Protestants

The history of the commune dates back to before the era of the Roman invasion when it was a small settlement inhabited by Gauls. The Roman invasion encouraged the small hamlet to grow into a small village and after the Romans left France the village soon came under the power of the Franks. In 611, the monk Gualaric (Walric), also known as Valery, arrived in the area. He installed himself as a hermit on the headland of the site of Leuconaus, now the Cap Hornu.
His virtue and miracles quickly attracted disciples. These disciples formed a primitive abbey. The saint was then buried there in 622 and the Chapelle des marins was erected in 628 by Saint Blimont over his burial place. Clotaire II (King of Neustrie) provided the foundations of the new abbey in 627. The relics of the saint attracted many pilgrims to the abbey which had become known as Saint-Valery. During the 8th and 9th century, the abbey and village were plundered and devastated on several occasions by the Vikings. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint-Valery-sur-Somme#History