Dunkirk

Dunkerque was first mentioned in documents in the 7th century as a fishing settlement. Thanks to its strategic location at the entrance to the English Channel, the town developed rapidly: a town wall was built in 960 and the first town hall in 1233. For centuries, an important branch of Dunkirk's economy was herring fishing and later cod fishing off Iceland.

On the other hand, the city's location has always aroused covetousness. In the course of its history, the "Dütsch"-speaking (Lower Franconian and Dutch) inhabitants first belonged to Flanders, Burgundy and the Spanish Netherlands. In 1646, Dunkirk was conquered by France and the Netherlands after a month-long siege, and fell to England in the Anglo-Spanish War after the Battle of the Dunes in 1658. Finally, the city was sold by the English King Charles II to the French King Louis XIV for five million livres on 17 Octoberjul/27 October 1662greg^. From then on, the city was surrounded with strong fortifications under Vauban. In the 17th and 18th centuries Dunkirk was a base for the French corsairs. In the 19th century, the city rose to become the third largest port in France.

During the First World War, the city was the target of German bombardments and offensives, such as the First Battle of Flanders.

During World War II, in the spring of 1940, Dunkirk was largely destroyed in the fighting between the German Wehrmacht and the encircled British Army in the Battle of Dunkirk. In Operation Dynamo, the Royal Navy was able to rescue most of the French and British troops that had fled to the town to Britain. From 1940, the navy maintained a naval hospital in the town. After Operation Overlord, Dunkirk was declared an Atlantic fortress by the Wehrmacht in 1944, defended until the end of the war, and not occupied by the Allies until 9 May 1945, the day after the surrender.

On 9 December 2010, the previously independent municipalities of Saint-Pol-sur-Mer (21,783 inhabitants, as of 1 January 2008) and Fort-Mardyck (3563 inhabitants, as of 1 January 2008) became districts of Dunkerque. The number of inhabitants thus increased to 93,945.

In the wake of the refugee crisis in Europe, following the evacuation of the Calais Jungle in October 2016, Dunkerque became the destination for numerous refugees and migrants hoping to gain access to the United Kingdom from there. In February 2017, around 2,000 people had already gathered at the camp near Grande-Synthe, where they were living in sometimes precarious conditions.

Population development

See also: List of monuments historiques in Dunkerque

• The Tour du Leughenaer (after the Flemish word for liar, meaning "liar's tower") dates back to the 15th century.
• The chapel Notre-Dame-des-Dunes was built in the 15th century.
• The church of St. Elisius (Dutch: Sint-Eligiuskerk) is a five-nave hall church from the 16th century, its neo-Gothic façade dates from the late 19th century.
• The Belfry of Saint Eloi, also known as the Belfry of Dunkirk, was built in the 15th century by further adding to the city's main watchtower of 1233. Today, the ground floor of the Belfry houses the tourist information office. The top of the tower is accessible and offers a wide view. On the second floor you can visit the carillon consisting of 50 bells.
• The town hall building was built at the beginning of the 20th century.
• The Porte de la Marine is one of the gates of the former city fortifications built by Vauban.
• The statue of the corsair Jean Bart is the work of the 19th century sculptor David d'Angers.
• The Dunkirk Port Museum, located on the Bassin du Commerce right on the edge of the town centre, documents the thousand-year history of the port of Dunkirk and displays three museum ships.
• In the Mémorial du Souvenir you can learn many details about the Battle of Dunkirk, the retreat of the British and French troops in 1940 and their evacuation to England, Operation Dynamo.
• The Museum of Fine Arts displays ancient art, as well as some ethnographic and archaeological pieces from its rich collection.
• The Lieu d'Art et Action Contemporaine (LAAC) museum is nestled in a sculpture park and houses a collection of modern art from 1940 to 1980.
• The FRAC Nord-Pas de Calais in Dunkerque is one of the 23 French Fonds régionaux d'art contemporain, FRAC for short. The institution is housed in the port in a large shipyard hall, next to which an exhibition building with five levels has been erected in the same cubature. A collection of contemporary art and exhibitions of current artists are on display.