Vicques
Origin of the name Vicques
Name origin: first mentioned in 866 in the Latin form « Vicum »; old German name « Wix ». The etymology of the name is not explained in the sources consulted.
Founding of Vicques
The territory of Vicques was occupied from Roman times: a large Gallo-Roman farming estate (villa rustica) was built there in the second half of the 1st century AD and occupied until the 4th century; an early medieval cemetery was found nearby. The founder of the medieval village is not known. Mentioned in 866, Vicques appears in several deeds of the 9th and 12th centuries among the possessions of the abbey of Moutier-Grandval. It later belonged to the thirteen « free villages » of the Delémont valley, a lordship of the Bishopric of Basel. Together with the hamlet of Recolaine it forms a long street village and is now part of the municipality of Val Terbi (merger of 1 January 2013).
History of Vicques
Second half of the 1st century AD. The Gallo-Roman villa, a large farming estate, is built.
Around 350. End of the occupation of the villa, used until the 4th century.
Early Middle Ages. A cemetery is established near the villa.
866. First mention: « Vicum », among the possessions of the abbey of Moutier-Grandval.
12th century. Further deeds confirm the possessions of the abbey of Moutier-Grandval at Vicques.
Before 1793. Vicques is one of the thirteen « free villages » of the Delémont valley, a lordship of the Bishopric of Basel.
1793-1814. The village belongs to the French department of Mont-Terrible, then Haut-Rhin.
1815. Vicques is attached to the canton of Bern, to which it belongs until 1978.
1844-1846. First excavations of the Gallo-Roman villa, led by Auguste Quiquerez.
1853. The mixed municipality is created.
1863. The chapel of the Immaculate Conception is built at Recolaine.
1925. The Raiffeisen savings bank is founded.
1935-1938. New excavations of the Gallo-Roman villa, directed by Alban Gerster.
1959-1961. The church of Notre-Dame-du-Rosaire is built.
1960. The Val Terbi secondary school opens.
1971. The old church of Saint-Valère is demolished.
1997. A Jura astronomical observatory is founded.
2000. 71 % of the working population works outside the locality; in 2005 the secondary sector provides 32 % of jobs.
2013. On 1 January, Vicques merges with Montsevelier and Vermes to form the municipality of Val Terbi.
Population of Vicques
| 1770 | 195 |
| 1818 | 327 |
| 1850 | 530 |
| 1900 | 488 |
| 1950 | 839 |
| 2000 | 1'608 |
| 2010 | 1'730 |
| 2012 | 1'795 |
Historic sites in Vicques
Gallo-Roman villa. South-west of the village, the foundations of the main building of the residential part (pars urbana) are visible, protected by modern low walls, with an information pavilion. The building, at first U-shaped, stood in a walled courtyard of about 105 m by 65 m.
Church of Notre-Dame-du-Rosaire. Parish church of daring architecture, built in 1959-1961; it replaced the old church of Saint-Valère, demolished in 1971.
Recolaine chapel. Chapel of the Immaculate Conception, built in 1863 in the hamlet of Recolaine, now used for Reformed worship.
Street village. Together with Recolaine, Vicques forms on the right bank of the Scheulte a long street village lined with many farmhouses, mostly from the 19th century, with open forecourts (devant-huis).
Jura astronomical observatory. Observatory founded at Vicques in 1997.
Remains in Vicques
Gallo-Roman villa rustica. Large farming estate built in the second half of the 1st century AD and occupied until around 350. Excavated in 1844-1846 by Auguste Quiquerez, then in 1935-1938 by Alban Gerster, it included a nine-room bath complex, two rooms of which had hypocaust heating, a mosaic with blue glass tesserae and wall paintings; the site covers at least 375 m by 225 m (to be cross-checked). The finds are kept at the Musée jurassien d'art et d'histoire in Delémont (to be cross-checked).
Early medieval cemetery. Remains of an early medieval cemetery found near the Gallo-Roman villa.
Sources
- Dictionnaire historique de la Suisse, « Vicques » (François Kohler)
- Archeoplus, « Vicques, villa gallo-romaine »
- Ostia-antica.org, « Vicques »
- geo.admin.ch (swisstopo), recherche de lieux « Vicques »
Other villages near Vicques
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