French Hainaut Historic French province
Map of the County of Hainaut, with the current French-Belgian border in red. French Hainaut is the southern part. French Hainaut (French : Hainaut français [ ɛno fʁɑ̃sɛ] France that form the département du Nord , making up its eastern part. It corresponds roughly with the Arrondissement of Avesnes-sur-Helpe (east), the Arrondissement of Cambrai (south-west) and the Arrondissement of Valenciennes (north-west).[ 1]
Until the 17th century, it was an integral part of the County of Hainaut , ruled by the House of Valois-Burgundy and later by the House of Habsburg . In a series of wars between France and Spain, this southern part of Hainaut was conquered by France, together with the adjacent Cambrésis , or Bishopric of Cambrai , to its south-west, and southern Flanders, which borders the English Channel , to its west. Together, these formed the French province of Flanders which, following the French Revolution , became the new Nord département .[ 1]
Map of the new region Hauts-de-France , with its five départements, colored according to the historical provinces as they existed until 1790 . Apart from the territories mentioned above in the text, tiny amounts of Artois and Picardy also contributed to the Nord département.
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