Editing Valenciennes (section)

===<FONT COLOR="#FF9900">'''16th and 17th Centuries'''</FONT>===
In 1591, the Jesuits built a school and then the foundations of a church of Sainte-Croix.  In 1611, the facade of the town hall was completely rebuilt in magnificent Renaissance style.  In the seventeenth century the Scheldt was channelled between Cambrai and Valenciennes, benefitting Valenciennes' wool, fabric and fine arts.  To use up flax yarn, women began to make the famous lace. '''In 1677, the armies of Louis XIV of France captured the city''' and in 1678 the Treaty of Nijmegen gave the control of Valenciennes (1678) and the surrounding southern part of County of Hainaut, roughly cutting the former county in half.  The city became one of the main strongholds of northern France, and was fortified by Vauban, who personally visited the town for that purpose shortly after the Treaty.