Aire-sur-la-Lys

Coat of arms

Aire-sur-la-Lys

Location within Hauts-de-France region

Aire-sur-la-Lys

Coordinates: 50°38′N 2°24′E / 50.64°N 2.40°ECoordinates: 50°38′N 2°24′E / 50.64°N 2.40°E

Country

Pays Aire

Government

• Mayor (2014-2020)

Jean-Claude Dissaux

Area¹

33.38 km² (12.89 sq mi)

Population (2014)²

9,900

• Density

300/km² (770/sq mi)

Time zone

CET (UTC+1)

• Summer (DST)

CEST (UTC+2)

INSEE/Postal code

62014 /62120

Elevation

16–48 m (52–157 ft)
(avg. 22 m or 72 ft)

¹ French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

²Population without double counting: residents of multiple communes (e.g., students and military personnel) only counted once.

¹ French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

Aire-sur-la-Lys (Dutch: Ariën-aan-de-Leie) is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in northern France.

The commune is located 10 miles (16 km) southeast of Saint-Omer, at the junction of the N43 with several departmental roads, by the banks of the Leie (French: Lys) and the Laquette rivers.

Aire-sur-la-Lys is mentioned for the first time in 857. It developed around a fort or castrum built by Baldwin II, Count of Flanders in response to the Norman invasions. More growth followed with the establishment of the Collegiate church of Saint-Pierre by Baldwin V, Count of Flanders.
The town was laid siege ten times between 1127 and 1710. It was separated from the County of Flanders and attached to the County of Artois in 1196. Subsequently ruled by the Burgundians then by the Spanish.
The town was besieged in 1676 by Vauban and retaken for France, although it remained a Spanish possession until 14 April 1713, when, by the Treaty of Utrecht, it finally became a part of France.
Vauban’s stronghold, which was a strategic position, was dismantled in 1893.

The church is one of the most important monuments, with its imposing style, in Artois. It has all the characteristics of a cathedral, but in the absence of a bishop, it cannot claim that title. Witness to the splendour of the city, the collegiate church of Saint-Pierre is of Romanesque style. Built between 1492 and the eighteenth century, one can see both on the inside and the outside of the building carving that details the 400 years progress. It has been the parish church since 1802. The tower, completed in 1624, collapsed soon after. Ten years later, the damage was repaired. The top of the tower was again restored between May 2005 and April 2007. The ground floor, the nave, choir and high arches are essentially Gothic.

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Wikipedia