Editing Fleurus

{{Short description|Municipality in Hainault Province, Belgium}}
{{For|the battles|Battle of Fleurus (disambiguation){{!}}Battle of Fleurus}}
{{Infobox Belgium municipality
|name            = Fleurus
|native_name     = {{native_name|wa|Fleuru}}
|picture         = Belgique - Fleurus - Église Saint-Victor - 01.jpg
|picture-legend  =
|map             = Fleurus Hainaut Belgium Map.svg
|map-legend      = Location of Fleurus in Hainaut
|arms            = Blason ville be Fleurus (Hainaut).svg
|flag            = 
|region          = {{BE-REG-WAL}}
|community       = {{BE-FR}}
|province        = {{BE-PROV-HT}}
|arrondissement  = [[Arrondissement of Charleroi|Charleroi]]
|nis             = 52021
|population=22594
|pyramid-date=
|0-19=
|20-64=
|65=
|foreigners=
|foreigners-date =
|mayor           = Loïc D'Haeyer ([[Parti socialiste belge|PS]])
|majority        = [[Socialist Party (Belgium)|PS]] - [[DéFI]]
|postal-codes    = 6220-6224
|telephone-area  = 071
|web             = [http://www.fleurus.be/ www.fleurus.be]
|coordinates     = {{coord|50|29|N|04|32|E|region:BE|display=inline,title}}
}}
'''Fleurus''' ({{IPA|fr|flœ.ʁys|-|LL-Q150 (fra)-Manestra-Fleurus.wav}}; {{langx|wa|Fleuru}}) is a city and [[Municipalities of Belgium|municipality]] of [[Wallonia]] located in the [[Hainaut Province|province of Hainaut]], [[Belgium]]. It has been the site of four major battles.

The municipality consists of the following districts: [[Brye]], [[Heppignies]], Fleurus, [[Lambusart]], [[Saint-Amand, Fleurus|Saint-Amand]], [[Wagnelée]], Wanfercée-Baulet (wa: ''Wanfercêye-Bålet''), and [[Wangenies]].

==History==

Traces of agriculture dating back to the [[Neolithic Age]] were found in area known as Fleurjoux and Neuve Baraque. Later the site saw the construction of the Chaussée Brunehaut, a road network of uncertain origin, perhaps attributable to the [[Roman Empire]].

In October 1155, [[Henry IV of Luxembourg]], also [[Marquis of Namur|Count of Namur]] enfranchised the municipality which became the city of Fleurus. Henry IV had a castle in Heppignies.

The town has given its name to three battles fought in the area :

*The [[Battle of Fleurus (1622)]] in the [[Thirty Years' War]].
*The [[Battle of Fleurus (1690)]] in the [[Nine Years' War]].
*The [[Battle of Fleurus (1794)]] in the [[French Revolutionary Wars]].

Two days before the [[Battle of Waterloo]] in 1815 [[Napoleon I]] defeated the Prussians in what is known as the [[Battle of Ligny]], although the pivotal action took place just north of Fleurus.

The battles have been commemorated in ship names of the countries involved, which in turn has led to [[Fleurus Island]] in [[Antarctica]] being named after [[HNoMS Thorodd|SS ''Fleurus'']],<ref name=gnis>{{cite gnis | type = antarid | id = 5040| name = Fleurus Island | access-date = 3 December 2013}}</ref> a Norwegian trawler operated between the [[Falkland Islands]] and the whaling station on South Georgia in the 1920s.  The "Rue de Fleurus" is on the Left Bank in Paris.

In World War II, the only fighting near Fleurus was a tank battle southwest of the town at Vieux Campinaire in September 1944.

{{convert|0.1|km²|acres|2|abbr=on}} was added to the municipality's area in the early 2000s.

==Economy==
Children's publisher [[Proost (company)|Proost]] is a major local employer. The Institut national des radioéléments produces radioactive isotopes for medical use.

==Historical population==

{| class="wikitable"
! Year !! Population !! Density !! Area
|-
| January 2002 || 22,324 (10,626 males and 11,698 females) || 377.22/km<sup>2</sup> || 59.18&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>
|-
| January 2004 || 22,209 (10,619 males, 11,590 females) || 374.64/km<sup>2</sup> || 59.28&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>
|}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* {{Commons category-inline}}

{{Geographic location
|Centre = Fleurus
|N  = [[Villers-la-Ville]] ([[Walloon Brabant|WBR]])
|E  = [[Sombreffe]] ([[Namur (province)|WNA]])
|SE = [[Sambreville]] ([[Namur (province)|WNA]])
|S  = [[Châtelet, Belgium|Châtelet]], [[Farciennes]]
|SW = [[Charleroi]]
|W  = [[Les Bons Villers]]
}}
{{Hainaut}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Fleurus| ]]
[[Category:Cities in Wallonia]]
[[Category:Municipalities of Hainaut (province)]]
[[Category:Battle of Ligny locations]]