Dunkirk

Dunkirk (French: Dunkerque, pronounced /dœ̃kɛʀk/ or /dɛ̃kɛʀk/; Dutch: Duinkerke or Duinkerken) is a harbour city in the northernmost part of France, 10 km (6 mi) from the Belgian border.

Dunkirk Dunkerque
Subprefecture and commune
Dunkirk Town Hall and port
Flag Coat of arms
Location of Dunkirk
Dunkirk Dunkirk
Coordinates: 51°02′18″N 2°22′39″E
Country	France
Region	Hauts-de-France
Department	Nord
Arrondissement	Dunkirk
Canton	Dunkerque-1 and 2, Grande-Synthe
Intercommunality	CU Dunkerque
Government
• Mayor (2014–2020)	Patrice Vergriete
Area 1	43.89 km2 (16.95 sq mi)
Population  (2012)	90,995
• Density	2,100/km2 (5,400/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+01:00 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00 (CEST)
INSEE/Postal code	59183 /59140, 59240, 59640
Elevation	0–17 m (0–56 ft) (avg. 4 m or 13 ft)
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

Location of Dunkirk in the arrondissement of Dunkirk.

Dunkirk's seafront.

The population of the whole metropolitan area was of 265,974 at the 1999 census.

Until the middle of the 20th century the city was in the Dutch language area; today the local Dutch dialect still can be heard but has largely given way to French.

History

Dunkirk was first mentioned in 1067 as Dunkerk (Dutch: Church of the Dunes).

In World War II, heavy fighting took place around Dunkirk during the German invasion in 1940 (Battle of Dunkirk), but a lull in the action unexpectedly allowed a large number of French and British soldiers to escape to England. The British evacuation of Dunkirk through the English Channel was codenamed Operation Dynamo. During the war, Dunkirk was largely destroyed by bombing.

Postwar Dunkirk

Carnival in Dunkirk.

On 14 December 2002, the Norwegian auto carrier Tricolor collided with the Bahamian-registered Kariba and sank off Dunkirk harbour, causing a hazard to navigation in the English Channel.

Communes

Since 9 December 2010, the former communes of Fort-Mardyck and Saint-Pol-sur-Mer were merged into the commune of Dunkirk.

Economy

Dunkirk has the third largest harbour in France, after those of Le Havre and Marseille. It is also an industrial city, heavily dependent on the steel, food processing, oil refining, ship building and chemical industries.

Tourist attractions

• The Musée Portuaire hosts exhibits images about the history and presence of the port.
• The Musée des Beaux-Arts has a large collection of Flemish, Italian and French paintings and sculptures.
• The Carnival of Dunkirk

Miscellaneous

Transport

Dunkirk has a ferry connection with Dover in England.

Twin towns

Dunkirk is twinned with:

• Krefeld, Germany since June 15, 1974
• Middlesbrough, United Kingdom since April 12, 1976

Dunkirk has cooperation agreements with:

• Dartford district, United Kingdom since March 1988
• Thanet district, United Kingdom since June 18, 1993

Other websites

• City council website Archived 2011-05-03 at the Wayback Machine
• Tourist office website