Treasures Lille... Apologies for the French pun (title), I couldn't resist ! And if it was true ? The city conceals a number of wonders indeed. With you to discover them !
The town was born towards 11th century, and knew a disturbed history. At the beginning, as its name indicates it, it's just an island, a fortress surrounded by marshes (medieval name: Lisle, which means "island", so).
The place has a strategic importance, it is targeted by foreign powers, from where many wars: Lille is in turn French, Spanish and Flemish. Conquered ultimate once by the king Louis XIV in 1667, it is definitively attached to France in 1713, following the Treaty of Utrecht (Peace of Utrecht). Many monuments go back to this time, like the Citadelle,
for instance, built by the military architect Sébastien Le Presle, more known under the name of... Vauban !
The city develops considerably, its population grows, from industries are born. After the WW2, however, a change starts, following the decline of traditional industries, primarily the textile.
Lille is today a dynamic metropolis. The inner city counted 185,000 inhabitants in '99, at the time of the last national census (ranking #13 in the country). The Grand Lille (Greater Lille), the whole of the agglomeration, accounts for 1.1 million (#4), and even 1.7 by including the Belgian part. Because the city of the north of France presents this characteristic, that to be a transborder metropolis, in which people speak French and Dutch. Lille is precisely called "Rijsel" in Dutch (pronounced "Rey-ssel"), that is the exact translation of the French word. Well, you know from which my nick comes, now !
The city is directed since strong a long time by the Socialists: Martine Aubry, former Minister for Labour and Solidarity (and daughter of Jacques Delors, president of the European Commission by the past), was elected mayor in 2001. She succeeded Pierre Mauroy (1973-2001), who was appointed Prime Minister for President Mitterrand from 1981 to '84.
Lille was candidate for France at the time of the '04 Olympics. Quickly eliminated, it obtained in compensation the title of "European Capital of Culture", event organized jointly with the city of Genoa, Italy. The city was entirely renovated on this occasion.
What is necessary to see ? There's for all the tastes: Grand'Place with its Flemish architecture, the Vieux-Lille (Old Lille) with small lanes, shops and craftsmen, Wazemmes and its great Sunday market (flea market). The typical estaminets, where you'll be able to obviously taste a good beer with a local speciality (cock with beer, potjevleesch -white meats cooked into cold-, Flemish carbonades -dish containing ox-...).
You surely intended to deal with the annual Braderie, one of the most significant in Europe. It attracts each year more than 2 million visitors, with 200 km of stands. If you already went there, you know the other speciality of the place: mussels-chips. The goal of the play, in the end, is to make the largest heap of shells in front of the restaurants, and the winner gains a price !
If you prefer the modern architecture, go to the directional center of Euralille, new district arranged in 1994, with several hotels, concert, show and exhibition hall, TGV station (high-speed train), and a shopping centre (mall).
The local most known personality is by far Général de Gaulle: he was born there in 1890. Famous for his call to resistance, launched from London on June 18th, 1940. Recalled to the power because of the Algerian crisis, in 1958, he does proclaim the 5th Republic, and remains President until '69. He retires after the failure of the referendum on the country regionalization, and dies one year later, in his property of Colombey-les-Deux-Eglises.
But did you know, for instance, that actor Philippe Noiret was also born in Lille, in 1930 ? I bet that much French people are unaware of it !
Until these last years, Lille had a very bad image, both in France and abroad. People said about it: "it always rains, it's ugly, nothing to see...". Times changed well since, the city is very cosmopolitan: you can intend to speak English, German, Dutch, Spanish, Italian around... And the city is very easy access, as well by the road than by the rail ! Then come to realize on the spot, there are strong chances that you'd be surprised !
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May 8th, 2005
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