Coordinates: 50°43′35″N 1°36′53″E / 50.7263888889°N 1.61472222222°E
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Commune of Boulogne-Sur-Mer |
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 Courthouse |
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| Location | |
  Boulogne-sur-Mer
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| Administration | |
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| Country | France |
| Region | Nord-Pas de Calais |
| Department | Pas-de-Calais |
| Arrondissement | Boulogne-sur-Mer |
| Intercommunality | Boulogne Côte d'Opale |
| Mayor | Frédéric Cuvillier (2001–2008) |
| Statistics | |
| Land area1 | 8.42 km2 (3.25 sq mi) |
| Population2 | 44,859 (1999) |
| - Density | 5,328 /km2 (13,800 /sq mi) |
| Miscellaneous | |
| Postal code | 62200 |
| 1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries. | |
| 2 Population sans doubles comptes: residents of multiple communes (e.g., students and military personnel) only counted once. | |
Boulogne-sur-Mer is a city in northern France. It is a sub-prefecture of the department of Pas-de-Calais. The population of the city was 44,859 in the 1999 census, whereas that of the whole metropolitan area was 135,116.
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The name Boulogne was first recorded during the Roman Empire as Bononia, a derivative of the Celtic word bona (meaning "foundation", "settlement", "citadel").[citation needed] This derivation is also found in the name of the Italian city of Bologna.[citation needed] "Sur mer" is French meaning "on the sea".
Originally named Gesoriacum and probably also to be identified with Portus Itius, by the 4th century Boulogne was known to the Romans as Bononia and served as the major port connecting the rest of the empire to Britain. The emperor Claudius used this town as his base for the Roman invasion of Britain, in AD 43, and until 296 it was the base of the Classis Britannica.[citation needed]
In the Middle Ages it was the centre of a namesake county. The area was fought over by the French and the English. In 1550, The Peace of Boulogne ended the war of England with Scotland and France. France bought back Boulogne for 400,000 crowns.
In the 14th century the Cathedral of Notre-Dame was reconstructed by the priest Benoit Haffreingue after he received a call from God to reconstruct the town's ruined basilica. During the Napoleonic Wars, Napoleon amassed La Grande Armée in Boulogne to invade the United Kingdom in 1805. However, his plans were halted by other European matters and the supremacy of the Royal Navy (including thousands of Congreve rockets [1]).
On June 15, 1944, 297 planes (155 Avro Lancasters, 130 Handley Page Halifaxes, and 12 De Havilland Mosquitos) of the Royal Air Force bombed Boulogne harbour to suppress German naval activity following D-Day. Some of the Lancasters carried Tallboy bombs. As a result, the harbour and the surrounding area were completely destroyed. In August, 1944 the town had been declared a "fortress" by Adolf Hitler, but it succumbed to assault and liberation by the 3rd Canadian Division in September. In one incident, a French civilian guided the Canadians to a "secret passage" leading into the walled old town and by-passing the German defenders[2].
To replace the destroyed urban infrastructure, affordable housing and public facility projects in functional, brutalist building styles were carried out in the 1950s and 60s. The harbour therefore sometimes proves to be a disappointment to tourists looking for a typical northern French harbour scene.
Boulogne-sur-Mer is the most important fishing port in France. 7,000 inhabitants derive part or all of their livelihoods from fishing.
IFREMER (the French Research Institute for Exploitation of the Sea) and the Pasteur Institute are located in Boulogne Port.
Certain brands, including Crown and Findus, are based in Boulogne.
In the year 1905 the First Esperanto Universal Congress was held in Boulogne-sur-Mer. L. L. Zamenhof, the creator of Esperanto, was among the attendees. In the year 2005 there was a great anniversary meeting with more than 500 attendees.
| Duration | Name | Party | Particularities |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2008–2014 | Frédéric Cuvillier | PS | Deputy |
| 2004–2008 | Frédéric Cuvillier | PS | Deputy |
| 1996–2004 | Guy Lengagne | PS | Deputy |
| 1989–1996 | Jean Muselet | Conservative | |
| 1977–1989 | Guy Lengagne | PS | Deputy, Minister |
| 1945–1977 | Henri Henneguelle | PS | |
| Past mayors are unknown. | |||
| 1936 | 1954 | 1962 | 1968 | 1975 | 1982 | 1990 | 1999 | 2006 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 52 371 | 34 885 | 49 283 | 49 288 | 48 440 | 47 653 | 43 678 | 44 859 | 43 700 |
Boulogne sur Mer is famous for hosting one of the oldest Universités de l'été - summer courses in French language and culture.
The Saint-Louis building of the University of the Côte d'Opale's Boulogne campus opened its doors in 1991, on the site of the former St. Louis hospital, the front entrance to which remains a predominant architectural feature. Its 6 major specialisms are Modern Languages, French Literature, Sport, Law, History and Economics. The University is situated in the town centre, about 5 minutes from the Boulogne Tintelleries train station.
There is one theatre, the Théatre Monsigny, and two cinemas.
Two health centres are located in Boulogne, the public Hospital Duchenne and the private Clinique de la côte d'opale.
Boulogne-sur-Mer is twinned with:
Constanţa, Romania
Folkestone, England, United Kingdom
La Plata, Argentina
Zweibrücken, Germany - since 1959Boulogne-sur-mer is a city and port in Pas de Calais.
Since the opening of the Channel Tunnel, ferry services from England to Boulogne have been reduced, so the city has fewer visitors passing through it. However, since it is only 20 miles from tunnel, travellers may find Boulogne a more interesting city to visit than Calais.
The A16 motorway passes the city.
From Dover by LD Lines.
The main shopping streets are around Rue Adolphe Thiers, 5 blocks east of the harbour.
There is a large out-of-town shopping centre, including an Auchan hypermarket, near junction 31 on the A16, on the N42 Road to St.Omer.
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BOULOGNE, or Boullongne, the name of a family of French painters. Louis (1609-1674), who was one of the original members of the Academy of Painting and Sculpture (1648), became celebrated under Louis XIV. His traditions were continued by his children: Genevieve (1645-1708), who married the sculptor Jacques Clerion; Madeleine (1646-1710), whose work survives in the Trophees d'armes at Versailles; BON (1649-1717), a successful teacher and decorative artist; and Louis the younger (1654-1733), who copied Raphael's cartoons for the Gobelins tapestry, and besides taking a high place as a painter was also a designer of medals.
Categories: BOS-BOW
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