Some history ...
The house you are staying in is located in what's commonly known as "the Seven Valleys". Our valley is called the Valley of the Canche, the river that flows through the lovely town of Hesdin via Etaples to the North Sea.
This part of France belonged to the ancient County of Flanders. Hence the Dutch name for the river Canche is Kwinte finding its origin in the name Quentovic. Quite a coïncidence since the youngest inhabitant of this retreat is named Quinten (Quentin, Kwinten).
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Quentovic (Vic means neighbourhoud so Quentovic equals neighbourhood, domain or town of Quinten) was a medieval town that no longer exists. It was thought to have been situated near the mouth of the Canche River in what is today the French commune of Étaples. Archaeological discoveries in the 1980s found that the actual location of Quentovic was east of Étaples, in what is now the commune of La Calotterie. It was an important trading place for the Franks and its port linked the continent to England, specifically to the southeastern county of Kent.
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From what we know today, Quentovic was founded by a Neustrian king in the early 6th century. It was one of the two most prominent Frankish ports in the north (the other being Dorestad) until it was abandoned, probably in the 11th century.
Quentovic was also the place where Anglo-Saxon monks would cross the English Channel on their pilgrimage to Rome. A lack of physical evidence, and the sudden disappearance of this emporium, make the town difficult to interpret. Some of the most important historical evidence on Quentovic comes from documents of taxation and especially through the town’s minting of coinage.
The Canche (Kwinte) near Montreuil-sur-Mer
The Fall of Quentovic
It is difficult to determine when Quentovic was completely abandoned. The town was raided by the Vikings in 842. Subsequent raids would follow, but still the town seems to have recovered later in the century despite a possible decline in Carolingian authority during this time.
The continued raiding must have hurt Quentovic’s economy, and slowly merchants left to seek places with better protection.
In the 10th century, Quentovic seems to have been replaced by ports that were accessible to England and better fortified. Places that possibly took on this role include Montreuil-sur-Mer and Saint-Omer. A lack of evidence remains on the actual demise of Quentovic. Archaeological digs have found pottery dated as late as the 10th century. There has also been fragments of potash glass, which is usually dated near the end of the first millennium AD.
Another possible contributor to its decline could be flooding or a rise in sea level. It also may have been difficult for the increasing size of ships to dock at its port. Quentovic’s fall remains a mystery, although it is widely believed that it was a gradual abandonment, which finally concluded in the early 11th century.