Carvin

"This article refers to a French commune. For the guitar manufacturer see Carvin Corporation."French commune
name= Carvin
region=
departement=
arrondissement=
canton= Carvin (chef-lieu)
insee=62215
cp=62220
maire=Philippe Kemel
mandat=2008-2014
intercomm=communauté d'agglomération d'Hénin-Carvin
longitude=2.95888888889
latitude=50.4938888889
alt moy=28 m
alt mini=17 m
alt maxi=42 m
hectares=2103
km²=21,03
sans=17891
date-sans=2005
dens=845|

Carvin is a commune and chief town of a canton in the Pas-de-Calais "département" in the Nord-Pas-de-Calais region of France.

Geography

An ex-coalmining commune, now a light industrial and farming town, situated some convert|14|mi|km|1 northeast of Lens, completely encircled by the N17 and D919 ring road.

History

Major excavations have recently revealed occupation going back to Neolithic times. This settlement is linked to the existence of the vast wet depression around the now-disappeared castle of Epinoy.
In the early 12th century, the hamlet of Épinoy, now the east part of the commune, was the home of the hermit Saint Druon of Sebourg.
The history of this market town, located on the road between Arras Lille and Tournai, was then marked by coalmining, starting in the mid-nineteenth century and ending in 1975. One of the smaller mining companies had its headquarters in Carvin. At nationalization, the pits and mining facilities were consolidated within the Oignies group.
During World War I, from October 1914 to October 1918, Carvin was occupied by the Germans. Located at the rear of the front as a garrison town for both German military and civilians. The bodies of over 6,000 soldiers are laid to rest in one of the largest German cemeteries in the Nord-Pas-de-Calais region. Carvin was awarded the Croix de Guerre on September 28, 1920.
In May 1940, during the German invasion of France, Carvin’s town centre was the scene of a major battle that allowed the bulk of British and French troops to get to Dunkirk and freedom. Once the allies had gone, the troops of the Wehrmacht delivered fierce reprisals on the population of the towns of mining pit 4: Carvin, Courrières and Oignies. Following the miners' strike in May and June 1941 which spread throughout the Nord-Pas-de-Calais, many miners (mostly communists) were arrested and executed at Arras.
In 1947, Carvin lost nearly a third of its territory with the separation of the commune of Libercourt, which claimed its independence. The town lost much of its industry during the years 1970 to 1990. Mining, construction and engineering were all reduced in size. Much of the railway network was dismantled in the early 1990s. Today it is mostly a services and residential commune for the regional capital, Lille.

Population

Places of interest

* The church of St.Martin, dating from the 18th century.
* Two 19th century churches, of St.Druon and St.Barbe.
* The Commonwealth War Graves Commission cemetery.

People with links to the town

* Jacques Secrétin, international table tennis player, was born in Carvin in 1949.

Twin towns

*flagicon|POL Klodzko, Poland
* flagicon|ITA Carvico, Italy

See also

*Communes of the Pas-de-Calais department

External links

* [http://www.carvin.fr/ Website of the Mairie de Carvin] fr
* [http://www.agglo-henincarvin.fr/ Website of the Communauté d'agglomération d'Hénin-Carvin] fr
* [http://www.cwgc.org/search/cemetery_details.aspx?cemetery=33801&mode=1The website of the CWGC graves in the communal cemetery] fr
* [http://www.quid.fr/communes.html?mode=detail&id=26713&req=Carvin Carvin on the Quid website] fr

Notes

*"This article is based on the equivalent article from the French Wikipedia, consulted on July 31st 2008."