Par Cynthia Lherondel
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We all know Auchan Mers-les-Bains (Somme), once Mammoth and in an even more distant past Delta. But who remembers the site before construction?
A tribute to the past
Froideville is the name of a locality located at the entrance to Mers-les-Bains where its history began.
Froideville, in Latin, is called Frigida Villa. This etymology makes it possible to affirm that it is about a citation gallo-romaine. The presence was attested by vases and pottery debris found during excavations carried out at 19e century.
This “Froideville gate”, materialized by two brick pillars, is a reconstruction.
It represents the entrance to the farm who was here before Delta was built. There was a vast square-shaped traditional Picardy farmhouse, with a central pond, surrounded by outbuildings.
The “new door” was inaugurated on September 15, 2012 in order to perpetuate the memory of this place.
“Cradle of the Seas”, Froideville has become one of three mersois fiefdoms with Blengues and Rompval.
The first Lord of Froidevillenamed Mython, appeared in 1573. Richard Mython, second of the name, was ennobled in 1620. He then made it known by having a sculpture of his coat of arms enhanced with various decorative elements.
It will be the stone of Froideville, saved in extremis from destruction in 1990, and which to this day, the oldest known element of Mers heritage.
Once upon a time… long before Auchan
Well before our era and the installation of Auchan in Mers-les-Bains, the legend of Froideville was born at the entrance to the Froideville farm. A former estate, the farm inspired Paul Sonniès and his book “Les Serments du Baron de Froideville”.
Having never been published, the legend of Froideville was revealed in 1891 in the work “Lettre sur Mers” by Octave Thorel.
Written in old French, the legend takes us back to the Middle Ages at the heart of a love story with a tragic destiny.
After the death of his wife, Baron de Froideville left the estate to confront the Saracens in Palestine. Not wishing to remain alone in mourning, with the governess for simple company, the Baron’s daughter, Giselle, asked him if her playmate, a young page called Raimbault, could stay with her. The baron accepted and the page therefore remained at the estate. But after long months of being together, Giselle and Raimbault ended up getting closer and became lovers. They then swore to adore each other until death.
For his part, the baron, not being in a good position against the Saracens, received help from a gentleman from Limosin, called Pompidou. In thanks, the baron offered him the hand of his daughter. Barely returned from Palestine, the baron broke the news to his daughter.
Distraught, poor Giselle went to meditate in the chapel while her lover, Raimbault, was busy accompanying the Limosin under the baron’s order. The two men ended up killing each other. To escape the Baron’s wrath, Raimbault joined his lover in the chapel, where they made the decision to commit suicide so as not to be separated.
Died of grief, overwhelmed by the tragic death of his only daughter, the Baron vowed to live in the greatest poverty, to drink only water, and to eat only Rompval cabbage, herbs and roots. . The manor of Froideville soon fell into ruins.
A copy of this stone bearing the coat of arms was embedded in the left pillar from Porte de Froideville, the original being at the town hall.
THE coat of arms break down as follows: Azure a fess Or accompanied by two silver roses and at the top of a crescent supported by two unicorns and surmounted by a helmet stamped with a unicorn.
They form the lower left part of the official city coat of armsadopted in 1962.
One of the pillars also includes an anchor of the facade of the Froideville farm.
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2023-05-21 17:32:32
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