Dunkirk

Dunkirk (French: Dunkerque, pronounced /dœ̃kɛʀk/ or /dɛ̃kɛʀk/; Dutch: Duinkerke or Duinkerken) is a harbour city in the northernmost part of France, 10 km (6 mi) from the Belgian border.

Dunkirk
Dunkerque

Dunkerque hotel de ville vu port.jpg
Dunkirk Town Hall and port
Flag of Dunkirk
Coat of arms of Dunkirk
Administration
Country France
Region Nord-Pas-de-Calais
Department Nord
Arrondissement Dunkirk
Canton Dunkerque-1 and 2, Grande-Synthe
Intercommunality CU Dunkerque
Mayor Patrice Vergriete
(2014–2020)
Statistics
Elevation 0–17 m (0–56 ft)
(avg. 4 m/13 ft)
Land area1 43.89 km2 (16.95 sq mi)
Population2 90,995  (2012)
 - Density 2,073/km2 (5,370/sq mi)
INSEE/Postal code 59183/ 59140, 59240, 59640
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.
2 Population without double counting: residents of multiple communes (e.g., students and military personnel) only counted once.
Location of Dunkirk in the arrondissement of Dunkirk.
Dunkirk's seafront.

The population of the whole metropolitan area was of 265,974 at the 1999 census.

Until the middle of the 20th century the city was in the Dutch language area; today the local Dutch dialect still can be heard but has largely given way to French.

History

Dunkirk was first mentioned in 1067 as Dunkerk (Dutch: Church of the Dunes).

In World War II, heavy fighting took place around Dunkirk during the German invasion in 1940 (Battle of Dunkirk), but a lull in the action unexpectedly allowed a large number of French and British soldiers to escape to England. The British evacuation of Dunkirk through the English Channel was codenamed Operation Dynamo. During the war, Dunkirk was largely destroyed by bombing.

Postwar Dunkirk

 
Carnival in Dunkirk.

On 14 December 2002, the Norwegian auto carrier Tricolor collided with the Bahamian-registered Kariba and sank off Dunkirk harbour, causing a hazard to navigation in the English Channel.

Communes

Since 9 December 2010, the former communes of Fort-Mardyck and Saint-Pol-sur-Mer were merged into the commune of Dunkirk.[1][2]

Economy

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

Twin towns

Dunkirk is twinned with:

Dunkirk has cooperation agreements with:

Dunkirk Media

References

  1. La Voix du Nord Archived 2011-05-25 at the Wayback Machine 8 December 2010
  2. INSEE

Other websites