Anzin-Saint-Aubin () is a commune in the

Pas-de-Calais The Pas-de-Calais (, ' strait of Calais'; ; ) is a department in northern France named after the French designation of the Strait of Dover, which it borders. It has the most communes of all the departments of France, with 890, and is the ...

department in northern

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

.INSEE commune file
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Geography

A suburb located 2 miles (3 km) northwest of

Arras Arras ( , ; ; historical ) is the prefecture of the Pas-de-Calais department, which forms part of the region of Hauts-de-France; before the reorganization of 2014 it was in Nord-Pas-de-Calais. The historic centre of the Artois region, with a ...

, at the junction of the D341, D60 and D64 roads, by the banks of the river Scarpe.

History

Anzin St. Aubin was formed from two villages: Saint Aubin, formerly Saint Aubin in the Marsh, on the road to Arras, by the Scarpe river and Anzin, on the same road, but further east, bordering on Arras.
The parish was created around the 12th century, with the church being built at Saint Aubin (the larger of the two villages).
The name of Anzin (Anzinum) appears around 866-870, that of Saint Aubin (Sancti Albini of Marex) only appears in 1154. In the 16th century, the abbey at Saint Vaast built a watermill at Anzin. This mill (its remains still exist) mostly manufactured oil but also gunpowder and paper.
During the years 1793–1794 the town became "the united brothers" under revolutionary leadership. The commune was first created in 1790 with the election of the first municipal council and the mayor, Noël Douchet, a 56-year-old farmer. All the property of the church was sold.
In the early 19th century, Anzin grew in population and many houses were built along the old

Roman road Roman roads ( ; singular: ; meaning "Roman way") were physical infrastructure vital to the maintenance and development of the Roman state, built from about 300 BC through the expansion and consolidation of the Roman Republic and the Roman Em ...

, the Chausée Brunehaut.
The village was all but destroyed during

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, having served as a base for soldiers and artillery. The church and the chateau were transformed into hospitals.
The population suffered again during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, from 1939 to 1945, as more people died in battle or in captivity, while others participated in the resistance or helping prisoners to escape.
Since 1950, the town has experienced strong growth as the numbers involved in farming declined. The population increased from 1052 inhabitants in 1970 to 2553 in 1990 and nearly 3000 in 2006. This is one of the largest growth rates in the Pas-de-Calais.

Population

Sights

* The church of St. Aubin, dating from the seventeenth century. * The church of Sacré-coeur, dating from the nineteenth century. * The eighteenth-century chateau, nowadays the

mairie In local government, a city hall, town hall, civic centre (in the UK or Australia), guildhall, or municipal hall (in the Philippines) is the chief administrative building of a city, town, or other municipality. It usually houses the city o ...

. * The brightly painted water-tower. * Arras

golf Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various Golf club, clubs to hit a Golf ball, ball into a series of holes on a golf course, course in as few strokes as possible. Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standa ...

course. * The war memorial

References

External links