Bois du Cazier

The Marcinelle mining disaster (French: Catastrophe de Marcinelle) occurred at the Bois du Cazier coal mine at Marcinelle in Hainaut Province, Belgium, on 8 August 1956. One of the largest and most notorious mining disasters in Belgian history, it led to the deaths of 262 miners many of whom were guest workers from Italy. On the morning of 8 August 1956, an accident occurred underground as a result of the attempt to use the hoist mechanism before a coal wagon had been correctly loaded into the lift. Cables were severed, and an electrical fire broke out at a time when there were 274 workers underground. As a result of measures introduced to respond to the labour shortage in post-war Belgium, the majority of the workers were guest workers from Italy and other parts of Europe. Although attempts were made to rescue the workers, 262 miners died of smoke inhalation and carbon monoxide poisoning. Widely covered at the time in newspapers and television reports, the disaster remains prominent in folk memory in Belgium. The Bois du Cazier mine now operates as a museum.

Marcinelle (French pronunciation: [maʁsinɛl]; Walloon: Mårcinele) is a town of Wallonia and a district of the municipality of Charleroi, located in the province of Hainaut, Belgium. Until 1977, it was a municipality of its own. The town of Marcinelle is renowned as the home of comics publisher Dupuis and as the birthplace of the celebrated Marcinelle school of Franco-Belgian comics. Many notable creators in the genre have been based in Marcinelle, lending to its reputation as a hub of comic artists. Marcinelle is also the place where serial killer Marc Dutroux lived, before his arrest.

The N5 is a road in Belgium connecting the small ring in Brussels and Philippeville via Charleroi (commonly named French: Route de Philippeville till the ring of Charleroi). This road could be one of the deadliest of the country. This is not only due to the traffic density and the old fashioned road safety features, but also because many country roads are joining onto a high speed lane, namely the tractors harvesting sugar beet. It has also been part of the history of Belgium in the Battle of Waterloo, during which the Imperial French Army went through this path to join the battlefield of Quatre-Bras/LignyThe N5 crosses or borders 17 municipalities in total. 4 municipalities are located in the Brussels Capital Region, 1 in Flemish Brabant, 5 in Walloon Brabant, 4 in Hainaut and 3 in Namur. Full municipality list below, main municipalities are in bold.

The Battle of Thiméon was a Frankish victory over the Vikings near Thiméon (near modern Charleroi, Wallonia) north of the Sambre in February 880. In 879, Vikings from England settled on the river Scheldt. After celebrating Christmas at Frankfurt am Main that year and signing the Treaty of Ribemont with Louis III and Carloman II of West Francia, Louis the Younger of East Francia marched an army northward on the Viking settlement. The battle was a rout for the Vikings, 5,000 of whom were killed, but the Frankish king also sustained a heavy loss: his only surviving son, the illegitimate Hugh, was killed in action.

The Battle of Charleroi (French: Bataille de Charleroi) or the Battle of the Sambre, was fought on 21 August 1914, by the French Fifth Army and the German 2nd and 3rd armies, during the Battle of the Frontiers. The French were planning an attack across the Sambre River, when the Germans attacked first, forced back the French from the river and nearly cut off the French retreat by crossing the Meuse River around Dinant and getting behind the French right flank. The French were saved by a counter-attack at Dinant and the re-direction of the 3rd Army to the north-west in support of the 2nd Army, rather than south-west.

Dampremy (Walloon: Dårmè) is a town of Wallonia and district of the municipality of Charleroi, located in the province of Hainaut, Belgium. It was a municipality of its own before the fusion of the Belgian municipalities in 1977.

Gilly (French pronunciation: [ʒili], Walloon: Djilî) is a town of Wallonia and a district of the municipality of Charleroi, located in the province of Hainaut, Belgium. It was a municipality of its own before the fusion of the Belgian municipalities in 1977. It houses the base of Fédération des Patros, a youth organisation.During the 1980s and 1990s it was also the home of an international group of Christian missionaries working with Operation Mobilisation.

Charleroi (UK: , US: , French: [ʃaʁləʁwa] ; Walloon: Tchålerwè [tʃɑːlɛʀwɛ]) is a city and a municipality of Wallonia, located in the province of Hainaut, Belgium. The city is situated in the valley of the Sambre, in the south-west of Belgium, not far from the border with France. By 1 January 2008, the total population of Charleroi was 201,593. The metropolitan area, including the outer commuter zone, covers an area of 1,462 square kilometres (564 sq mi) with a total population of 522,522 by 1 January 2008, ranking it as the 5th most populous in Belgium after Brussels, Antwerp, Liège, and Ghent. The inhabitants are called Carolorégiens or simply Carolos.

The Battle of Gosselies or Battle of Charleroi (3 June 1794) saw a Republican French army co-commanded by Jacques Desjardin and Louis Charbonnier try to cross the Sambre River against a joint Dutch and Habsburg Austrian army under William, Hereditary Prince of Orange. The French defeat in the battle marked the third of five attempts by their armies to win a foothold on the north bank of the Sambre during the War of the First Coalition. In 1794, Gosselies was a separate village but is now part of the Charleroi municipality, about 7 kilometres (4 mi) north of the city center. Charleroi is located about 60 kilometres (37 mi) south of Brussels. The spring of 1794 saw bitter fighting in the Austrian Netherlands as the numerically superior French armies mounted continual attacks against the forces of the First Coalition. In trying to cross the Sambre, the French were beaten at Grandreng on 13 May and Erquelinnes on 24 May. Nevertheless, the French recrossed the Sambre on the 26th and laid siege to Charleroi on 30 May. After their defeat and withdrawal on 3 June, the French would make one more failed attempt to cross the Sambre at Lambusart on 16 June before they triumphed in the Battle of Fleurus on 26 June 1794.

Couillet ([kujɛ]; Walloon: Couyet) is a town of Wallonia and district of the municipality of Charleroi, located in the province of Hainaut, Belgium. It was a municipality of its own before the merger of the municipalities in 1977.

Montignies-sur-Sambre (Walloon: Montgneye-so-Sambe) is a town of Wallonia and a district of the municipality of Charleroi, located in the province of Hainaut, Belgium. It was a municipality of its own before the fusion of the Belgian municipalities in 1977.

Charleroi-Central railway station (French: Gare de Charleroi-Central, Dutch: Station Charleroi-Centraal) is the main railway station serving Charleroi, Hainaut, Belgium. It is operated by the National Railway Company of Belgium (SNCB/NMBS). It was formerly called Charleroi-South railway station (French: Gare de Charleroi-Sud, Dutch: Station Charleroi-Zuid) until December 2022.Charleroi-Central is also the main TEC bus station in Charleroi, and a station of the Charleroi Metro.