Beuvry

Beuvry
Commune
The town hall of Beuvry

Coat of arms
Beuvry
Location within Hauts-de-France region
Beuvry
Coordinates: 50°31′14″N 2°40′49″E / 50.5206°N 2.6803°E / 50.5206; 2.6803Coordinates: 50°31′14″N 2°40′49″E / 50.5206°N 2.6803°E / 50.5206; 2.6803
Country France
Region Hauts-de-France
Department Pas-de-Calais
Arrondissement Béthune
Canton Beuvry
Intercommunality CA Béthune-Bruay, Artois-Lys Romane
Government
 • Mayor (2008–2014) Nadine Lefebvre
Area1 16.85 km2 (6.51 sq mi)
Population (2009)2 8,856
 • Density 530/km2 (1,400/sq mi)
Time zone UTC+1 (CET)
 • Summer (DST) UTC+2 (CEST)
INSEE/Postal code 62126 /62660

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.

Beuvry is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in the Hauts-de-France region in northern France.

Geography

A suburban town immediately southwest of Béthune, 23 miles (37.0 km) southwest of Lille, at the junction of the D945, D72 and N41 roads. Light industry and a little farming have replaced the coal mining of the past.

History

The town's name comes from beaver (in Old French, bièvre) and underwent variations on this over the centuries: Berri; Beuvri; Bevery; Bouvry and finally Beuvry.

Meusnier's dirigible built and flown by the Robert brothers from Paris to Beuvry in 1784

On September 19, 1784 the Robert brothers (Anne-Jean Robert and Marie-Noël Robert) plus M. Collin-Hullin flew their hydrogen balloon, La Caroline, on request of Philippe III Alexandre, 1st Prince de Ghistelles for 6 hours 40 minutes, covering 186 km from Paris to Beuvry. La Caroline owed its design to the work of professor Jacques Charles and Jean Baptiste Meusnier and achieved the world's first ever flight over 100 km.[1][2] In the Ville de Beuvry a stone monument was erected to commemorate the 200th anniversary landing of the brothers in La Caroline on September 19, 1784.[3] A celebration ball la ducasse "du Ballon" is now held at the end of every September.[3] The town has been awarded the Croix de guerre twice: after World War I and again, after World War II.

A coal-mining town for about 100 years, the last pit closed in the 1960s.
The town was merged with the nearby city of Béthune at the end of 1993. However, many of the Beuvrygeois voiced their dissatisfaction with the decision at the time, which resulted in the municipal elections of 1995, petitions in 1995 and 1996 and the creation, in October 1996, of a special commission to give an opinion on draft amendments to the territorial limits of the city of Béthune for the re-creation of a separate town of Beuvry. The municipal election in September 1997 led to a de-merger and Beuvry became an independent full-fledged town again in November 1997.

Population

Historical population
YearPop.±%
19627,749—    
19687,907+2.0%
19758,147+3.0%
19828,840+8.5%
19908,744−1.1%
19999,175+4.9%
20098,856−3.5%

Sights

  • The church of St. Martin, dating from the sixteenth century.
  • An old windmill
  • The Prévôté building (once belonging to an abbey)..
  • The sixteenth-century Manor of l'Estracelles.
  • An eighteenth-century chateau.
  • The Commonwealth War Graves Commission cemetery.

International relations

Beuvry is twinned with:

See also

References

  1. ↑ Federation Aeronautique Internationale, Ballooning Commission, Hall of Fame, Robert Brothers. Archived May 16, 2008, at the Wayback Machine.
  2. ↑ Federal Aviation Administration - F.A.Aviation News, October 2001, Balloon Competitions and Events Around the Globe, Page 15
  3. 1 2 Ville de Beuvry, Robert brothers monument Archived July 21, 2011, at the Wayback Machine.
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