June 29, 2004
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Le moulin à vent
The windmill
English version after the picture
Je me demande pourquoi je suis attiré par les moulins à vent et particulièrement par ceux construits en pierre . Peut - être parce que je n ' ai toujours vu que des murs en ruines , restes de ces moulins d ' autrefois . Les moulins à vent étaient nombreux et couvraient tout notre territoire . Quelqu 'un me demandait ce qui me fascinait . Beaucoup de choses , y compris les moulins à vent !!
Un de ces moulins en pierre a été rénové complètement ( y compris le mécanisme à l ' intérieur ) à Eaucourt un village situé à 40 km d ' Amiens , le ville où je vis . J ' ai fait le déplacement exprès pour le photographier . Malheureusement les ailes ne tournaient pas ce jour là . La toile rouge était repliée comme les voiles d 'un navire au repos . Cependant j ' ai enfin pu voir un de ces moulins .
Autrefois le meunier habitait dans son moulin . La partie supérieure est un toit tournant en bois qu 'on bouge avec une grosse poutre actionnée par un treuil à main de façon à placer les ailes face au vent .
Ce moulin est le témoin d ' une époque révolue , le temps des " lampes à huile et de la marine à voile " comme disait le Général de Gaulle . Mais la seule énergie utilisée était le vent . Ou l ' eau pour les moulins à eau ! Il n' y avait pas de pollution en ce temps - là , un temps qui dura .des siècles .
Ah ! Meunier , que ta farine de blé était belle et que le pain fleurait bon !
Le moulin à vent d ' Eaucourt Eaucourt windmill Photo taken by Michel Fauquet April 2004
I wonder why I am attracted by the windmills and especially by those built with stones . Perhaps , because I always seen only walls in ruins of those windmills of the past . The windmills were numerous and were scattered over all our region . Someone asked me what fascinates me .: many things including the windmills !!
One of those windmills has been entirely renovated ( including the mechanism inside ) in Eaucourt , a village situated to 40 km from Amiens , the town where I live . I drove especially to Eaucourt to picture the windmill . Unfortunatly on this day the sails were not rotating. The red sailclothe was folded like the sails of a sailing boat at rest . However I could see one of those windmills at last !
In the past the miller lived in his mill with his family . The upper part is a revolving roof in wood that one moves with a balk winched at hands in order to put the sails in front of the wind .
This mill is the witness of a disappeared time , the " oil lamp and sailing boats time ' as the General de Gaulle said . But the only one energy used was the wind . Or the water for the watermills . There was not pollution at this time , a time that lasts over centuries .
Ah ! Miller , yes indeed , your weathen flour was good and the bread was fragrant !
Comments (117)
I love windmills. We used to visit this little tourist town in Northern California called Solvang... it was kind of Dutch and Danish... they had shops and churches and windmills and I would sit and stare at them
Depuis que j'ai lu Don Quichotte, les moulins à vent me fascinent (en voici une utilisation), je n'en ai malheureusement jamais vu d'authentique. Même en Espagne, il n'y en avait aucun à la Mancha.
Il va falloir que je vienne un jour à Amiens.
Toute mon amitié.
Clara
windmills remind me of don quixote...i've never seen a real windmill up close. must be amazing.
I love Windmills. They are so beautiful. I have been inside many of them in the Netherlands. In dutch, it is called wind molen and the miller is called a molinaar.
That really is beautiful! Who knows, maybe we should go back to simpler times...
*molenaar
no wind mills here. I must see one in person one day.
Not surprising that people were smarter about the use of the land back then than they are now. Can you imagine living in a mill? I think I would have nightmares. I'm not sure why.
In my lifetime, I have yet to see a windmill. Though I plan on taking my dream vacation in France one day. I hope to partake on many adventures, and finding a windmill would make for a nice adventure.
The picture that you have shared with us is amazing. I find the story behind the windmill exciting.
Have a wonderful week, Michel! God bless.
I do love windmills, but living in a strange little town overly committed to its Dutch heritage, and being surrounded by cheap, fake windmills, has made shaky on them, which isa shame.
This one, though, is beautiful. Thank you for sharing once again.
How lovely! Those were the days...
I visted a workign windmilll as a child. It's not too far away. My mother in law has taken at least one of my boys there. Maybe I should take them this summer.
There are a lots of windmills in our county of Lincolnshire, parts of which used to be called "Parts Of Holland" because a lot of it's farms and mills were once in Dutch hands. Some of the windmills have been restored, got photos somewhere will have to find one and post it to here!
Fascinant, en effet!
No windmills here, either. C'est interessant!
Amitie, Kelly xx
I love windmills too, Michel. When I visited Berlin last year, we went to Potsdam where they have a beautiful one there. With all the problems with out dependency on oil, those windmills may not be such a thing of the past.
Windmills have a magical feeling about them , I love watching them . Following on what Neil said here we are having more wind farms to provided power . There is a wind farm on the River Mersey
so often you have such beautiful pictures posted here! and this is no exception
Here in America a different sort of windmill was used for many things on the farms. What with electricity and gas run motors and such, they too were replaced. Like you say, there was no polution with the wind. In Wyoming, they are back to using wind for things. Even to generate electricity.
En effet, c'est bien étrange, mais très agréable aussi. C'est ça l'Internet, les distances sont abolies. Tu sais très bien que ton Anglais est très bon; c'est généralement la langue de Molière qu'on qualifie de difficile.
"Meunier, tu dors, ton moulin va trop vite. Meunier, tu dors, ton moulin va trop fort."
(C'est ça, non?)
Passe une agréable semaine.
Clara
Michel, I too love windmills, although they are fast approaching extinction....there is one not far from me, I will have to take a picture...many years ago, a man from Holland settled in French Valley near me & built a village, with windmill...in a commune sitting. Now, they have sold all the land for new homes, in the $4-$600,000 (us) price range but the windmill remains!!
As with EnglishJuls comment, we have multiple wind farms sprouting up, which only makes sense...along with solar energy. We probably have 355 days a year of continous sunshine, I would rather try to produce energy that way then be so dependent on oil!!
Hope you have a wonderful week!!
the times were tougher in many ways, but the rest was good after the hard work, and the products produced were good for us.. I like these sturdy things from the past too.. pollution and the fast speed of life now makes life less healthy.. great windmill
I love windmills. Probably because my heritage is Dutch. My hometown here in Illinois has their own windmill imported from Holland. I've always loved them myself. I love the connection they have to my heritage.
That is beautiful. My mom is very fond of lighthouses. My favorite type of buildings are, of course, castles!
Hope you are having a wonderful day!
That is beautiful. It's a work of art. I've never seen one. Thank you for this picture.
Les moulins sont tres jolis! J'aime toujours vos photos.
Have a nice day!
Quand je vois le moulin à vent, je pense toujours au noble Don Quixote!
J'aime des moulins à vent également : comme ces derniers ici ou les petits moulins à vent de jouet. Cette image est belle! 
I can understand your fascination with windmills, Michel, I'm the same way!
The one you have pictured here is a really beautiful example. 
Quel beau moulin ! C'est vrai que ces symboles du passé nous touchent ! Peut-être non seulement par leur beauté mais aussi parce qu'ils sont reliés à la farine donc au pain ...
Michel, s'il te plaît, me permettras-tu d'emprunter ton image et de la poster sur fotolog ?
Amitiés
I love windmills as well. Even the modern ones that are simple and sleek. Seeing the power of the wind in the spinning propeller is beautiful.
what a beautiful reminder of times gone by, but also of all that we have yet to restore! thank you again, michel! i am enjoying looking at the picture and remembering what it was like the first time i saw a windmill up close-i think i felt and looked much like your granddaughter did when peering at the shark
i also adore lighthouses; do you have the chance to visit many close to Amiens?
Wonderful romance with the windmill. I have never seen one. Oh, we have these big metal poles with blades on them near Palm Springs, California. But nothing as romantic as one windmill. I like lighthouses about the same as you do windmills.
What a beautiful windmill I too like them and as you say then there was no pollution and the flour so much nicer, wish they would bring them back even if only to help the enviroment
Angela
Hi there, I saw your name on Liviatasia's site and I thought I would come on over and say hi
Windmills remind me of the netherlands, well the picture of the windmill you have up here ... When I go on long roadtrips I count how many windmills I see from the time I leave till the time I get to my destination
If you had a sword would you have started a fight with the windmill as don Quijote?
Old Windmills are fascinating. Did they use for making flower or also for other things.
In Italy we had mills to make oil, bread, even beans.
In Holland they use them to control the waters too in the polders.
Amitié
Carlo
Aren't these beautiful. The windmill has always fascinated me. We had one in Delaware that had been renovated, not far from where I used to live.
There are still quite a few in Holland, but not as many as I expected.
yes...witness of a disappeared time. that is why we love things like that....we were there before...
namaste
Windmills are a memory of a better slower time preserved in stone.
Yes, my mother and father are from the Netherlands. They married after WW2. All of my relatives are in the Netherlands and in Switzerland. My parents are the first to come to the US, also my father's brother came to California.
His daughter, Diane de Leeuw ice.skated in the 1976 Innsbruck Olympics and won Silver! I will put a picture of me soon!
j'aime bien les moulins a vent et les phares!
ils inspirent l'imagination.
comment dit-on, "to spark the imagination" en francais? merci en avance.
About 30 miles from my home is the village of Solvang. It was settled by Danish people about 100 years ago. Solvang means sunny valley in Danish. There are 2 working windmills in Solvang. They are not made of stone, but of plaster and timber. Whenever I visit the village I enjoy seeing them with their arms slowly moving. I do not think they serve any useful purpose now. They remain to be enjoyed as a reminder of a different time.
After reading this entry of yours..i agree...there are endless things in this world that fascinates each of us...sometimes the smallest of things...ie. an ant making itz way across the ground
Suddenly made to think...i've never seen a wind/water mill..it would be nice to see one.=) Thatz what i mean by traveling Michel...travelling to see all those things i've never seen before!^_^
Beautiful photograph. I can see why you are so fascinated. Here in Texas many are equally fascinated with our metal version but yours are much more striking.
i have always loved windmills. unfortunately, around here they have become a thing of the past.
I would enjoy seeing that windmill. It reminds me a little of the lighthouse I will be including in my next blog.
Thank you for the good wishes for my vacation and also for your very kind comment on my blog about the situation in Iraq.
Michel,
Quelle photo!!! C'est vraiment perfecte!!! Je crois que je l'aime le mieux sauf les photos de toi quand tu etais un bebe -- quel mignon!
Je vais ecrire plus.
Windmills, re:Cervantes, Don Quixote -- peut-etre?
Amities,
Clementine
that picture is lovely =)
That picture is quite astoundingly beautiful. So peaceful, so serene. I love it. Lighthouses are a big fascination that run in my family. I have miniture ones all over my house!
Nina
There is something very romantic about windmills...it would be lovely to picnic by one.
Love and Hugs
I love it. I hadn't realized how large windmills like that are until I see it in your picture with a person in the shot to show clearly the scale. Oh, I want to come visit with my own camera.
Beautiful picture!
Merci beaucoup...
I also love windmills. Especially those old ones that you write about. Thank you for sharing such a beautiful picture!
Like you I have never seen a windmill working but I like to look at them ,when i see one i think of that song "Windmills of my Mind" and i sometimes think my mind works like that. i have had a 3 day virus and Matt playing up, hopefully now we have settled him down to patiently wait to be transferred, as if he keeps causing bother, no one else will take him and apparently according to my doctor who i saw yesterday ,these places do communicate with each other. Sorry to hear the moths have been at your produce, I was really referring to the magnificent butterflies that are a joy to see, not those small white cabbage moths ,good luck with your vegetables however. Love Marjie
We have lost so much with advancement and gained so much. Our pollution of the world was much less and we could have maintained our atmopshere longer. We are doing our world in with our advancements...and the beauty is gone in many ways...how graceful and magnificent were the windmills. The air ground the wheat and it was good
Lovely Michel 
I love the photo. I like windmills too, although I can't explain why. It must be strange to live in one, though. I can imagine there would be a constant creaking in the night as the night winds may move the sails ever so slightly even if the sailcloth were not unfurled. There would very little light, isn't it? I see but that oen window on the side and a smaller one at the top.
I love old buildings too. Windmills... Lighthouses... colonial houses... I think they remind us of the good, old days where there's less pollution, less noise, less concrete! Hmm... I long for the new heaven and new earth.
Windmills are beautiful. They are a "thing of the past" yes...nostalgic...they make me smile. I think of the cookies shaped like windmills that my gradmother used to get for us...thank you for sharing this beautiful picture...huggs...love Sassy
is that french or spanish? random prOpz!
you know - with world oil reserves being depleted it really is a time for alternative energy sources - or it soon will be - i think the time of windmills lies behind us AND ahead of us ! perhaps in a different form or shape - but the importance of the windmill will rise... i think!
What charm in the photos and your words! MMM bread if we only knew the labor of love! @-}-}-
Thank you for remembering me!
I have not been on Xanga for so long I miss my adventures here with you and all the other Xanga friends!
Love
Karolyn
@-}-}-
That is really neat! I have never seen a windmill that big in person.
Michel Bonjour
bb_am
il faudra que tu viennes visiter ton joli moulin qui tourne aujourd'hui aux bons vents de fotolog
Eaucourt - d'accord !
Aucourt me faisait penser à Audincourt, un lieu situé près de la frontière suisse
amitiés
Everytime I see a picture like this from the past, I am filled with the beauty of it. I find it so hard to understand how they built things so beautiful back then, when they had so much less to work with.
A lot of things built today just does not hold such beauty for me. Maybe I am just a little old fashioned and should have lived in those days of yore.
Very beautiful and interesting photo, Michel. Enjoy your weekend.
Love
Edie Rose
xalyth , I am sorry . I have deleted your comment unadvertandly in clicking at the side of your name .
every thing you share here is good and fragaent. thank you for letting us peak inside your world. a very kind and beautiful world.
What a beautiful picture.
Life is but a windmill.
Have a great weekend.
I feel the same way about lighthouses.
i hope to see a lighthouse someday. I've dreamt of it and wonder when i will.
Thank you for your kind words Michel, and thankyou for understanding without being told. That itself counts for a lot.
warm regards
anu
Merci Michel pour ta commentaire sur mes photos.
Cette histoire de moulin à vent est très touchante! Et merci bien pour y allez exprès pour prendre le photo. C'est une photo excellente! Quelle nostalgie du temps "qui duras des siècles" et du temps de la farine de blé pure!
That windmill looks so large close-up. And has hardly any windows! I do wish the world would relearn to use wind & other means of power that is less damaging to the earth. Thank you for sharing your fascination with us.
hey michel,
i wish i could see a windmill one day! it'll be amazing..
Michel, merci pour le souhait d'anniversaire =) C'est vrai, je ne suis pas devin moi-même mais n'a-t'on pas tous qq chose de divin en nous? ("Divine Thing" est en fait le titre d'une chanson du groupe écossais Soup Dragons).
On a malheureusement perdu la Coupe d’Europe et c’est quand même difficile à vivre en tant que vrai supporter. Désolé pour la France. Santini n’aura pas tenu les promesses de fraîcheur tactique qu’il semblait proposer avec les recrutements de nouveaux joueurs aussi potentiels que Rothen et Pedretti. Bravo aux Grecs qui ont combattu avec tant de rigueur ! Je trouve leur parcours sensationel !
En parlant de choses fascinantes, cette photo du moulin me fascine. La musique me fascine, la nature et sa grandeur me fascine, pleines de choses me fascinent ! Je pense aussi aux femmes, toutes proportions gardées naturellement, ainsi qu’à l’histoire de l’humanité, ses vestiges, et la technologie aussi (et même les serpents !)...
L’énergie éolienne est souvent reconsidérée tant elle polue moins notre atmosphère mais jusqu’à présent on ne l’utilise que de façon limitée. Certaines choses n’ont plus leur place dans le décor moderne car les échelles changent ; certes, l’important étant que ce qu’il reste nous soit bénéfique.
Je vous souhaite un bon weekend, et pour moi la Finale Grèce – Portugal reste une affiche très alléchante.
This photograph is particularly impressive to those of us who have never seen a windmill. They are wonderful as are the lighthouses here.
windmills r the combination of art + science.
but they remind me of story books...
Je toujours ai aimé les moulins à vent, aussi. Il y a quelque chose beau dans leur utilité simpliste.
The three-Headed Sarahs' are taking the merde out of you on their site.
Happy 4th
These structures are elegant in both form and function.
You were right about the plants pictured on my website, it was a typographical error. They are digitalis (2nd year foxglove)
Love and Hugs
Michel! I was just thinking of you when I read the comment you just posted on my xanga! I was thinking, hmm, I haven't heard from Michel for some time! And Ta-Da! I saw your name on my blog!
Well, I am awaiting my visa to australia. I will be entering university there in about 2 weeks! I am quite excited but a little scared too!
Take care, Michel!
It is amazing the way you describe things, Michel...I can almost feel what it is like to be in a place like that. Soon, maybe
Meanwhile, I thank you for your posts, my friend
Le spiderman est un film typique d'action basé sur un livre comique. Je suggère voir le premier film de spiderman puis le deuxième spiderman. Je n'ai pas un email ou un commentaire sur mon xanga de vous dans un long temps. Comment allez-vous ?Spiderman is a typical action movie based on a comic book. I suggest seeing the first spiderman movie then the second spiderman. I have not gotten an email or a comment on my xanga from you in a long time. How are you?
happy sunday
Hi again!
Merci pour ta visite aujourd'hui.
Tu as mentionné le pain et immédiatement je pense au pain frais que ma grand-mère nous préparait quand j'étais petite fille...
I wanted to thank you for giving me the link to liviatasia. We have subscribed to one another, and I find her site absolutely divine. Thank you for sharing that with me. You are right. I do enjoy her site immensely.
You are a great friend. Have a great day, Michel!
oh Windmills....i think of farms at once! so peaceful and relaxing, such an European style..i love it so much
and talking about the cafe i am working at, it's in Hong Kong but it uses French as its name...actually it's quite common to take French as a shop's name here
yay i love French =)
I too love windmills. Not living in windmill country, however, my admiration goes to lighthouses up and down the coast. An abandoned one is only about 15 miles from where I live. I go to visit and walk the park grounds occasionally.
abandoned lighthouse
only the tourist’s face
from the reflector
You've got to love those Millers!
You know I've never seen a windmill in person either and that truly surprises me. I'm going to add this to my list of things to do - they're very beautiful.
Thank you Michel for always checking in on me! It absolutely means the world to me.
i was going to comment that windmills remind me of don quixote, and then i read a few comments and realized i was not so original after all. i enjoyed reading/stumbling through the french portion of your entry, 6 years of french and it's still quite awkward.
How absolutely breathtaking!!! I am another one of those who have never seen a real Windmill. It really is very fascinating to look at. To imagine it back centuries ago with a miller and his family. It is fascinating to think of everything it has seen and will continue to see. It is obviously a book mark for time.
Obviously it was worth the drive to set your eyes apon its structure again. Very Beutiful, Michel.
Sarah
...I, too, share your enthusiasm for windmills. However, I know why - I'm captivated with anything engaging the wind.
I share your regret with the sails being folded. How very colourful it must be when in full place.
MuSe
...my dear friend, no apology needed. You are always timely, you're much better at it than I. Thanks so much for stopping by - always a pleasure reading you. Hugs,
I love the picture with the windmill.
Bonjour Michel! This is Savannah, I have a new xanga site
It's pretty much the same thing as the last one, only a new name. I hope you like it.
I also love windmills! The one in the picture is beautiful. Someday, I hope to move to a place with a windmill nearby, as there are none close to me
Dear Friend, I am sorry to have not communicated for so long. How I love the picture and blog you have on today! Here in St. Louis, Missouri, we have a famous landmark restaurant called Bevo Mill, which has a windmill in the corner of its building. We have enjoyed several wonderful meals there. Violinists stroll through it and play tunes requested by patrons. I love what you said about no pollution being emitted by wind or water energy. I recently purchased a new car that is known as a hybrid because it is powered by electricity, not just gasoline (petrol). The only sad thing is that here I am, nearly age 54, and only in the past two years of my life have these cars been available on the mass market. I was only 19 the first year that "Earth Day" was celebrated. We have really been slow to embrace conservation of the environment in the USA. That is really an understatement! Look at all the years we wasted driving big, inefficient, polluting automobiles! God forgive us. God bless you! Hugs, Claudia
Wonderful photo and sentiments Michel. Ive never seen one.. but I liken them to Americas lighthouses.
My friend, you will be missed. I hope this means you and your wife are having a vacation. I would wish you better weather than you have been having. Our weather is between 70F and 75F degrees. Overcast in the mornings, but sunny by noon.
Carol
You always have the most wonderful pictures on your website and I really enjoy reading about them and your feelings towards them. It's always a treat.
Thank you
sincerely thanks ...
B Hope all is well with you and yours . Love and Hugs
Passe de bonnes vacances, Michel. Prends plein de photos pour tes futurs blogs.
Amuse-toi bien.
Clara
Michel perhaps you have a bit of Don Quixote in your heart! Of course it's like the wonderful romance in his soul. Which of course I mean in the nicest way. I have a similar feeling about light houses. Just image all that the old light houses have seen over many years.
Il y a une grande vide dans xange les prochaines deux semaines.
Bonnes vacances,
Carlo
a bientot alors
I hope whatever you are doing on your break is something good.
Beautiful and I love that you have written in both languages.
Félicitations, Michel! Je viens de lire que ton site a été élu 3ème meilleur dans son ensemble (Overall favorite.)
Clara
Hi Michel! =) How are you? I hope everything's fine! Thank you so much for all the e-mails. I am always so happy to hear from you!
The windmill you show us here is really beautiful! I never knew there were numerous windmills in France (I used to think only Holland has windmills....=P). I hope I can visit it your home region later! I have addicted to travelling, hehehe...=P
j'ai passé en revue tes entrées précédentes. il est évident que vous vous soyez amusés avec tes petits-enfants. le moulin à vent me fascine aussi. mais je me rappelle, la toute première chose qui m'a fasciné qu'était l'eau. j'ai voulu comprendre pourquoi les gens ne pourraient pas respirer sous l'eau. et pourquoi nous ne pouvons pas marcher là-dessus tandis que quelques insectes peuvent.
So much history, culture and civilization embedded in this picture. I wonder what it is about windmills (among other sceneries like the sea, the light towers, etc.) that make us feel nostalgic.
Ah! The simple life ! Windmills in the sun!
@-}-}-
love that pic...i love coming here to visit...
hugs,
rubymoon
No pollution! And so very charming. Lets bring them back!
Indeed nice to see some one who understands the meaning of All Saints Day! Greeting from Canada with changing seasons and snow to come soon!
Windmills are so beautiful and love this photo.
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