Villaret card

The Villaret map is named after Jean Villaret, engineer-geographer at the French court and one of its creators. The map was created after one of the French conquests through our territories (1745-48). For a few years, the French took control of our territory. They sent a group of engineer geographers to map the newly conquered areas. Villaret was responsible for the area between Menin-Ghent-Tournai and Maastricht-Liège. The part of the coast and the Westhoek were previously mapped by a colleague between 1729 and 1730. In total, the Villaret card consists of more than eighty map sheets. Because of the sense of detail, they offer a unique view of our regions, some quarter of a century earlier than the famous Ferrari map from 1770-1778. The map gives a rich picture of our cultural landscape and its evolution. This is particularly interesting information for heritage researchers, landscape and monument managers and archaeology offices, among others. Whether it concerns land use, landscape features, abbey domains, habitation, historical roads or toponyms, the map is a new benchmark.The Villaret map was unknown for years and therefore unloved. All versions are in French collections. They were less relevant for French researchers and not easy for Belgian researchers to consult. The recently deceased historian Carl Vandenghoer brought the map back to the attention a few years ago. The rediscovery is his great merit.