Auménancourt

Location

Auménancourt lies about 14 kilometres north-north-east of Reims, at the very northern edge of the Marne département. A short distance away the départements of Aisne and Ardennes begin. Administratively the commune belongs to the arrondissement of Reims and to the Communauté urbaine du Grand Reims. The Suippe runs through the commune from east to west in a broad valley. The centre in Auménancourt-le-Grand sits at about 65 metres above sea level, and to the north the land rises to around 95 metres.

The present commune consists of three parts: Auménancourt-le-Grand, Auménancourt-le-Petit and Pontgivart. In 2023 it had 1,130 inhabitants.

Landscape and farming

Anyone expecting vine-covered slopes will be disappointed. Auménancourt is neither grand cru nor premier cru, and in the sources available to me viticulture plays no role. Around 86 per cent of the land is used for agriculture, mostly arable fields. About 12 per cent is woodland, chiefly along the Suippe. Parts of the area belong to the nature zone known as the "Bois des grands usages à Auménancourt et Pignicourt".

The climate is oceanic. For the years 1971 to 2000 the source gives a mean annual temperature of 10.3 °C and average rainfall of 671 millimetres a year. For champagne lovers, then, the village is interesting above all as a neighbour of the city of Reims, within whose catchment area it lies.

“In 2023 it had 1,130 inhabitants.Landscape and farmingAnyone expecting vine-covered slopes will be disappointed.

History

The name goes back to the Alemanni, combined with the Late Latin "cortem", meaning farmstead. In 1967 Auménancourt-le-Grand, Auménancourt-le-Petit and Pontgivart merged into a single commune.

A charming episode dates from the winter of 1871: on 20 January the balloon "Général-Bourbaki" took off from the Gare du Nord in Paris, which was then besieged by the Prussians. After 162 kilometres it landed in Auménancourt-le-Grand. For their part in the First World War, Auménancourt-le-Grand and Auménancourt-le-Petit were awarded the Croix de guerre 1914-1918 on 1 October 1920.

Krug Champagner

What to see

The village has no major attractions, but a few quiet stops for a break between two appointments in Reims:

• Church of Saint-Firmin in Auménancourt-le-Grand, with origins in the 12th century and reworked after the damage of the First World War
• Church of Saint-Nicaise in Auménancourt-le-Petit
• Church of Sainte-Félicité in Pontgivart
• a medieval bridge

The painter Armand Guéry (1853 to 1912) owned a villa in Pontgivart. His picture "Jardin à Auménancourt" won an award at the Salon des artistes français in 1891 and was bought by the state.

Getting there

The departmental road D 966, formerly the Route nationale 366 from Vervins to Reims, passes the Pontgivart district. A bus line run by Champagne Mobilités links the commune with Saint-Étienne-sur-Suippe and with Reims. From there you can easily reach the houses and vineyards of Champagne.