Dunkirk: Guide

Dunkirk (pronounced or ; commune in the northernmost part of Nord, 10 kilometres (6 Mile|mi) from the Belgium|Belgian border.
Population of the city (commune) at the 1999 census was 70,850 inhabitants (71,300 inhabitants as of February 2004 estimates). Population of the whole metropolitan area (aire urbaine) was 265,974 inhabitants at the 1999 census.

Its name is derived from Dutch language|Dutch "duin" (dune) and "kerke" (church). Until the middle of the 20th century the city was situated in the Dutch language area; today the local Dutch dialect (West Flemish) still can be found but has been largely replaced by French.

Administration

The commune has grown substantially by absorbing several neighbouring communes:

1970: Merger with Malo-les-Bains (which had been created by being detached from Dunkerque in 1881)
1972: Fusion with Petite-Synthe and Rosendaël (the latter had been created by being detached from Téteghem in 1856)
1980: Fusion-association with Mardyck (which became a commune associée, with a population of 372 in 1999)
1980: A large part of Petite-Synthe is detached from Dunkerque and included into Grande-Synthe
2003: Project of fusion with Saint-Pol-sur-Mer (commune created by its territory being detached from Petite-Synthe in 1877). On December 19, 2003, the municipal councils of Dunkirk and Saint-Pol-sur-Mer decided in favour of a fusion-association, which would create a new entity with a population of 94,187. The préfet requested a referendum, although this procedure was not mandatory (it became mandatory on January 1, 2005). The referendum took place on December 5, 2004, actually covering 3 communes: Dunkerque, Saint-Pol-sur-Mer and Fort-Mardyck. Although the yes won with 54 % of the votes, it did not gather 25% of the potential electorate, as requested by the law. The préfet rejected the fusion proposal as a consequence.

History

Dunkirk was first mentioned in Dutch: “Church of the Dunes”). The area was much disputed between Charles II of England sold it to France for £40,000 on 17 October 1662. During the reign of Louis XIV of France|Louis XIV, a large number of commerce raiders had again their base at Dunkirk; Jean Bart was the most famous, known for attacking Dutch ships. The Man in the Iron Mask was also arrested in Dunkirk.

Dunkirk in World War II

In World War II, heavy fighting took place around Dunkirk during the German invasion in 1940, but a lull in the action unexpectedly allowed a large number of French and British soldiers to escape to England. Only 50,000 or less were expected to escape but amazingly 338,226 men were evacuated amidst constant bombing (the miracle of Dunkirk, as Winston Churchill called it). It took over 900 vessels to evacuate the British and French soldiers and more than 40,000 vehicles were abandoned. The British evacuation of Dunkirk through the English Channel was codenamed Operation Dynamo.

The city was again contested in 1944, and the Second Canadian Division attempted to liberate the city in September, as Allied forces surged northeast after their victory in the Battle of Normandy. German forces refused to relinquish their control of the city, which had been converted into a fortress, and the garrison there was "masked" by Allied troops. The fortress eventually surrendered in May 1945. During the war, Dunkirk was largely destroyed by bombing.

Postwar Dunkirk

On Bahamian-registered Kariba and sank off Dunkirk harbour, causing a hazard to navigation in the English Channel.

Economy

Dunkirk is the third largest harbour in France, after Le Havre and Marseille. It is also an industrial city, heavily dependent on the steel, food processing, oil refining, ship building and chemical industry|chemical industry|industries.

Tourist attractions

The Musée Portuaire hosts exhibits images about the history and presence of the port.
The Musée des Beaux-Arts has a large collection of Flemish, Italian and French paintings and sculptures.
The Carnival of Dunkirk

Miscellaneous

Transport

Dunkirk has a ferry connection with Dover, England|Dover in England.

Sport

The Quatre Jours de Dunkerque (or Four Days of Dunkirk) is an important elite professional road bicycle racing event.

Twin towns

Dunkirk is twinned with:
Krefeld, Germany since June 15, 1974
Middlesbrough, United Kingdom since April 12, 1976

Dunkirk has cooperation agreements with:
Dartford (borough)|Dartford district, United Kingdom since March 1988
Thanet (district)|Thanet district, United Kingdom since June 18, 1993

External links

(in French)

This "Travel Guide" section is drawn from the Wikipedia article "Dunkirk". We hope you will edit and improve it. It is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License.