50°17N 2°46E, pop (2000e) 44 600. Old frontier town and capital of Pas-de-Calais department, N France, between Lille and Amiens; formerly famous for its tapestries; railway; bishopric; agricultural equipment, engineering, sugar beet, vegetable oil, hosiery; town hall (16th-c), cathedral (18th-c); birthplace of Robespierre; many war cemeteries nearby; Vimy Ridge memorial, 10 km/6 mi N.
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Commune of Arras Petite Place in Arras |
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| Location | |
| Longitude | 02° 46' 51" E |
| Latitude | 50° 17' 23" N |
| Administration | |
|---|---|
| Country | France |
| Région | Nord-Pas de Calais |
| Département | Pas-de-Calais (préfecture) |
| Arrondissement | Arras |
| Canton | Chief town of 3 cantons |
| Intercommunality | Communauté urbaine d'Arras |
| Mayor |
Jean-Marie Vanlerenberghe (2001-2008) |
| Statistics | |
| Altitude |
52 m–99 m (avg. 72 m) |
| Land area¹ | 11.63 km² |
|
Population² (1999) |
40,590 |
| - Density (1999) | 3,490/km² |
| Miscellaneous | |
| INSEE/Postal code | 62041/ 62000 |
| ¹ French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > | |
Arras (Dutch: Atrecht) is a town and commune in northern France, préfecture (capital) of the Pas-de-Calais département. For many centuries, Arras was on the border between France and the Low Countries 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.
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.
Ecclesiastical history
Bishopric of Arras (Atrebatum)
The diocese comprises the Department of Pas-de-Calais. On the occasion of the Napoleonic Concordat, the three Dioceses of Arras, Saint-Omer and Boulogne were united to make the one Diocese of Arras.
At the beginning of the sixth century St. Remi (Remigius), Archbishop of Reims, placed in the See of Arras St. Vedastus (St. Vaast) (d. After the death of the latter, the See of Arras was transferred to Cambrai, and it was not until 1093 that Arras again became a diocese.
Among the bishops of Arras are Cardinal Antoine Perrenot de Granvelle, Councillor of the emperor Charles V, Bishop of Arras from 1545 to 1562, later Archbishop of Malines and Viceroy of Naples;
The Diocese of Arras at the end of 1905 contained 955,391 inhabitants, 52 parishes, 690 churches of the second class, and 53 vicariates formerly with state subventions.
Councils of Arras
In 1025 a council was held at Arras against certain Manichaean (dualistic) heretics who rejected the sacraments of the Church.
The old cathedral of Arras, constructed between 1030 and 1396, and dedicated to St. Vaast, was one of the most beautiful Gothic structures in northern France.
Miscellaneous
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)Births
Arras was the birthplace of:
Audefroi le Bâtard, trouvère who flourished at the end of the 12th century Adam de la Halle (1237?-1288) trouvère, poet and musician, was probably born in Arras Matthias of Arras (1290?-1352), architect, famed for his work on St. Vitus Cathedral in Prague Antoine de Févin (c.1470-1511 or 1512), composer of the Renaissance. Councils A lot of information and pictures about Arras Arras city council website Visiting Arras Demographic statistics of Arras
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