Quentovic

Quentovic was a Frankish emporium in the Early Middle Ages, located on the European continent close to the English Channel. The town no longer exists, but 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 by David Hill in the 1980s found that the actual location of Quentovic was east of Étaples, in what is now the commune of La Calotterie. Quentovic was an important trading hub for the Franks and its port linked the continent to the southeastern county of Kent, in England. Quentovic was likely 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. Merchants were drawn to this place because the number of trading posts at the time was limited. Quentovic was also where Anglo-Saxon monks would cross the English Channel when on pilgrimage to Rome.