Doullens

Geography

• Abbeville - Arras
• Amiens - Saint-Pol-sur-Ternoise
• Crécy-en-Ponthieu - Bapaume
• Auxi-le-Château - Acheux-en-Amiénois

  History

• Doullens, the ancient Dulincum, was seat of a viscountship under the counts of Vermandois then of Ponthieu and an important stronghold in the Middle Ages.
• In 1225, the town became part of France.
• In 1475 it was burnt by Louis XI for openly siding with the Duke of Burgundy. It received its name Doullens-le-Hardi from its gallant defense in 1523 against the Anglo-Burgundian army.
• In 1595 it was besieged and occupied by the Spaniards, who massacred the entire population. It was restored to France by the Peace of Vervins.
• On 26 March 1918, orders giving General Foch overall command of the allied forces on the western front were signed in a room in the town hall. A link to those orders can be found in the May 22, 1928 edition of 'The Times' of London, found .

  Sites and monuments

• the ruins of Saint-Pierre, partly of the 13th century, used as a barn in the nineteenth century.
• Notre-Dame church.
• the early 17th century brick belfry.
• the citadel, possibly built by Vauban or Jean Errard, which has often served as a state prison, and later, a reformatory for girls.

  Town motto

Population

Notable residents

• The artist Édouard Traviès was born in Doullens in 1809.
• Louis Auguste, Duke of Maine was imprisoned in the Doullens citadel from 1718 until 1720 for his part in the Cellamare conspiracy.
• The nobleman Emmanuel Marie Michel Philippe Fréteau de Saint-Just was imprisoned in the citadel in 1788.

  Gallery