Vimy | |
|---|---|
 Vimy city hall | |
.svg) Coat of arms | |
 Location of Vimy | |
  Vimy  Vimy | |
| Coordinates:50°22′24″N2°48′41″E / 50.3733°N 2.8114°E /50.3733; 2.8114 | |
| Country | France |
| Region | Hauts-de-France |
| Department | Pas-de-Calais |
| Arrondissement | Lens |
| Canton | Liévin |
| Intercommunality | CA Lens-Liévin |
| Government | |
| • Mayor(2021–2026) | Christian Sprimont[1] |
Area 1 | 11.33 km2 (4.37 sq mi) |
| Population (2022)[2] | 4,281 |
| • Density | 377.8/km2 (978.6/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC+01:00 (CET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+02:00 (CEST) |
| INSEE/Postal code | 62861 /62580 |
| Elevation | 49–146 m (161–479 ft) (avg. 71 m or 233 ft) |
| 1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries. | |
Vimy [Flemish: Wimi[3]](/ˈviːmi/ or/ˈvɪmi/;French pronunciation:[vimi]) is acommune in the Frenchdepartment ofPas-de-Calais.[4] Located 3.8 kilometers (2.4 mi) west of Vimy is theCanadian National Vimy Memorial dedicated to theBattle of Vimy Ridge and the Canadian soldiers who were killed during the First World War. The Memorial is also the site of two Canadian cemeteries.[5]
Vimy is a farming town, situated some 10 kilometers (6 miles) north of Arras, at the junction of the D51 and theN17 roads. It is situated on the crest of Vimy Ridge, a prominent feature overlooking the Artois region.
The town was first mentioned in 1183 asViniarcum and was the scene of much fighting during the fourteenth, seventeenth and eighteenth centuries among the French, English, Dutch and Spanish forces.
The ridge was the scene of fierce fighting in the First World War. Seized by the Germans in 1914, it was the subject ofa French assault in 1915. In 1917 the Battle of Vimy Ridge took place southeast of Vimy and was an important battle of the war for Canadian military history. The town was practically destroyed during the fighting in the area.
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Set on the highest point of Vimy Ridge, theCanadian National Vimy Memorial is the largest of Canada's war monuments.[6] In 1922, use of the land for the battlefield park which contains the memorial was granted, in perpetuity, by the French nation to the people of Canada in recognition of Canada's war efforts.[7] 100 hectares (250 acres) of the former Vimy Ridge battlefield is preserved as part of the memorial park which surrounds the monument. The grounds of the site are still honeycombed with wartime tunnels, trenches and craters, closed off for public safety.
The project took designerWalter Seymour Allward 11 years to see built. (The total cost was $1.5 million, which is over $20 million in present terms.) KingEdward VIII unveiled it on 26 July 1936 in the presence of French PresidentAlbert Lebrun and a crowd of over 50,000 including over 6200 Canadian veterans and their families.[8]
Following an extensive multi-year restoration, QueenElizabeth II re-dedicated the monument on 9 April 2007 at a ceremony commemorating the 90th anniversary of the battle. A new $10 million visitor center was completed before the 9 April 2017 commemoration of the 100th anniversary of the battle.[9] The event was anticipated to be attended by as many as 30,000 people.[10] The official ceremony included comments by Canadian Prime MinisterJustin Trudeau, Governor GeneralDavid Johnston as representative of theMonarchy of Canada,Prince Charles as representative of theMonarchy of the United Kingdom,Prince William, Duke of Cambridge,Prince Harry, the President of FranceFrançois Hollande, and the Prime Minister of FranceBernard Cazeneuve.[11][12]
The territory of the commune or local authority of Vimy is urban. It had 4,265 inhabitants in 2017. Historic sites within its boundaries include:
| Year | Pop. | ±% p.a. |
|---|---|---|
| 1968 | 3,272 | — |
| 1975 | 3,316 | +0.19% |
| 1982 | 3,621 | +1.26% |
| 1990 | 4,581 | +2.98% |
| 1999 | 4,675 | +0.23% |
| 2007 | 4,468 | −0.56% |
| 2012 | 4,252 | −0.99% |
| 2017 | 4,265 | +0.06% |
| Source: INSEE[13] | ||
The ridge runs in a direction from Givenchy-en-Gohelle in the north-west to Farbus in the south-east.
The ridge runs in a direction from Givenchy-en-Gohelle in the north-west to Farbus in the south-east.
