Already established as a
Gallic settlement before the
Romans arrived, a
Gallo-Roman cemetery was discovered in 1895 in the area known as
Les Vignes. Known through the ages by various names, in 942 as
Pinquigniacum,
Pinconii castrum in 1066 and
Pinchiniacum in 1110, then as
Pinkeni,
Pinkinei and
Pecquigny . After the defeat of the
Huns at
Lihons-en-Santerre, the inhabitants of
Amiens, who had helped the barbarians, took refuge in the castle of Picquigny, to hide from the vengeance of
Dagobert, where they were then besieged by him. On 17 December 942,
Arnulf I, Count of Flanders and
William I, Duke of Normandy came to Picquigny to sign a peace treaty. They met on a small island in the Somme, having both left their armies behind. After the meeting, William left but was then assassinated by Arnulf's supporters. As early as the 14th century, the town had commune status and a county judge. In 1307, several
Templars were arrested and imprisoned in the dungeons of the château by order of
Philip IV of France, Following
Edward IV of England's invasion of France in 1475 to
claim the French throne,
Louis XI bought off Edward at the
Treaty of Picquigny with a cash payment of an annual sum of fifty thousand
crowns and the promise not to support his domestic enemies. Edward then withdrew his army. In 1547,
Henry II of France established a market, on every second Monday of the month. ==Main sights==