Arras

From Free net encyclopedia

Template:French commune Arras is a town and commune in northern France, préfecture (capital) of the Pas-de-Calais département.

1 History
2 Sights
3 Transportation
4 Miscellaneous
- 4.1 In literature
- 4.2 Births
5 External links

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History

Originally settled by the Celtic tribe of the Atrebates, it later became a Roman garrison town known as Atrebatum.

It is located in the former Dutch and French province of Artois. For many centuries, Arras was on the border between France and the Netherlands and it frequently changed hands before firmly becoming French in the late 17th century, the fortifications upgraded by Vauban helping keep it in French hands. The town was closely linked to the trade of Flanders and later became an important centre for sugar beet farming and processing as well as a prosperous market centre.

The Union of Atrecht was signed here in January 1579 by the states of the Low Countries that were loyal to king Philip II of Habsburg; it provoked the declaration of the Union of Utrecht later the same month.

Image:Arras france 1919.jpg

During the First World War, Arras was near the front and a long series of battles fought nearby are known as the Battle of Arras in which a series of medieval tunnels beneath the city, unknown to the Germans, became a decisive factor in the French holding the city. The city, however, was heaviliy damaged and had to be rebuilt after the war. In the Second World War the town was occupied by the Germans and 240 suspected French Resistance members were executed in the Arras citadel.

See also: Battle of Arras, for a list of battles so named.

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Sights

Image:Arras-Position.png The centre of the town is marked by two large squares. The Grande Place and the Place des Heros. These are surrounded by buildings restored to the pre-war conditions. Most notable are the gothic town hall and the cathedral.

Vimy Memorial is a memorial just north of the town honouring a major WW I Canadian battle.

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Transportation

Arras is served by the LGV Nord high speed railway.

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Miscellaneous

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In literature

Arras is a setting in several famous works of French literature:

In Edmond Rostand's play Cyrano de Bergerac, the fourth act takes place during the French siege of Arras in 1640 during the Thirty Years' War
In Victor Hugo's novel Les Misérables, Arras is the scene of Champmathieu's trial
Antoine de Saint-Exupéry wrote a story called Pilote de Guerre (English title: Flight to Arras)