Le Cateau-Cambrésis

Commune in Hauts-de-France, France

Coat of arms

Location of Le Cateau-Cambrésis

(2020–2026) Serge Siméon^[1]Area

27.24 km² (10.52 sq mi)Population

(2021)^[2]

6,929 • Density250/km² (660/sq mi)Time zoneUTC+01:00 (CET) • Summer (DST)UTC+02:00 (CEST)INSEE/Postal code

59136 /59360

Elevation84–157 m (276–515 ft)
(avg. 96 m or 315 ft)Websitelecateau.fr¹ French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

Le Cateau-Cambrésis (French pronunciation: [lə kato kɑ̃bʁezi], before 1977: Le Cateau) is a commune in the Nord department in northern France.^[3] The term Cambrésis indicates that it lies in the county of that name which fell to the Prince-Bishop of Cambrai. Le Cateau station has rail connections to Paris, Maubeuge and Saint-Quentin.

History

The Peace of Cateau-Cambrésis, ending the Italian Wars, was agreed there on 2–3 April 1559.
Until 1678, the city belonged to the Spanish Netherlands (now called Belgium). France conquered the city officially by the treaty of Nijmegen signed in 1678.
On 28 March 1794, allied forces under the prince of Coburg, defeated French forces at Le Cateau.
Le Cateau formed the right wing of the front of II Corps of the British Expeditionary Force at the Battle of Le Cateau on 26 August 1914, during its withdrawal from the Battle of Mons.

Heraldry

The arms of Cateau-Cambrésis are blazoned :
Azure, a 3-towered castle or.

Population

Historical population
Year	Pop.	±% p.a.
1968	9,114	—
1975	8,804	−0.49%
1982	8,256	−0.91%
1990	7,703	−0.86%
1999	7,460	−0.36%
2007	7,102	−0.61%
2012	7,058	−0.12%
2017	6,933	−0.36%
Source: INSEE^[4]

Matisse Museum

The Musée Départemental Henri Matisse installed in the Palais Fénelon in the center of Le Cateau boasts the third largest collection of Matisse works in France.

Notable people

Births:

Henri Matisse, artist
Marshal Mortier
Pierre Nord
Raymond Poïvet, one of the creators of the French science fiction comics Les Pionniers de l'Espérance

Pierre Mauroy was a high school student in Le Cateau, and later its representative at the general council for the Nord department.

Gallery

References

^ "Répertoire national des élus: les maires" (in French). data.gouv.fr, Plateforme ouverte des données publiques françaises. 13 September 2022.
^ "Populations légales 2021". The National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies. 28 December 2023.
^ INSEE commune file
^ Population en historique depuis 1968, INSEE