Le Hamel | |
Commune Status: | Commune |
Image Coat Of Arms: | Blason Le Hamel.svg |
Arrondissement: | Amiens |
Canton: | Corbie |
Insee: | 80411 |
Postal Code: | 80800 |
Mayor: | Stéphane Chevin[1] |
Term: | 2020 - 2026 |
Intercommunality: | Val de Somme |
Coordinates: | 49.8833°N 2.5667°W |
Elevation M: | 83 |
Elevation Min M: | 28 |
Elevation Max M: | 101 |
Area Km2: | 9.12 |
Le Hamel (in French pronounced as /lə amɛl/) is a commune in the Somme department and Hauts-de-France region of northern France.
Le Hamel is situated some 20 km east of Amiens in the valley of the Somme. The surrounding district is the historical Santerre, a lightly wooded and agricultural plateau.
The settlement is first documented in 1184 as belonging to the powerful abbey of Corbie. The name has the same root as hameau ("hamlet"), a small rural settlement.
The town and surrounding countryside was the scene of the Battle of Hamel on 4 July 1918, during World War I. The battle, despite being small in scale, is notable for being the first instance in which combined arms tactics were used in warfare.