Givenchy-en-Gohelle (, ; ) 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 the

Hauts-de-France Hauts-de-France (; ; ), also referred to in English as Upper France, is the northernmost region of France, created by the territorial reform of French regions in 2014, from a merger of Nord-Pas-de-Calais and Picardy. Its prefecture is Lille. ...

region of

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 ...

. The village was destroyed during World War I but was rebuilt after the war.

Geography

Givenchy-en-Gohelle is a large farming village situated north 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 D51 and the D55 roads. Its neighboring communes are

Souchez Souchez () is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in the Hauts-de-France region of France. It is located northwest of the Canadian National Vimy Memorial dedicated to the Battle of Vimy Ridge and the missing First World War Canadian sold ...

to the west,

Angres Angres () is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in the Hauts-de-France region of France. Geography A farming and light industrial suburb situated just southwest of Lens centre, at the junction of the D51 and D58e roads. The A26 autorou ...

to the northwest,

Liévin Liévin (; ; ) is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in northern France. The inhabitants are called ''Liévinois'' in French. Overview The town of Liévin is an old mining area of Pas-de-Calais. Near Lens, this town is of modest size but ...

to the north, Avion to the east and

Vimy Vimy lemish: Wimi or ; ) is a commune in the French department of Pas-de-Calais. Located west of Vimy is the Canadian National Vimy Memorial dedicated to the Battle of Vimy Ridge and the Canadian soldiers who were killed during the First Wor ...

to the southeast. The ''Bois de Givenchy'' or Givenchy Forest, covers much of the commune on its northern side. To further the agricultural range of products, the commune of Givenchy-en-Gohelle have planted

grape A grape is a fruit, botanically a berry, of the deciduous woody vines of the flowering plant genus ''Vitis''. Grapes are a non- climacteric type of fruit, generally occurring in clusters. The cultivation of grapes began approximately 8,0 ...

s (

chardonnay Chardonnay (, ; ) is a green-skinned grape variety used in the production of white wine. The variety originated in the Burgundy wine region of eastern France, but is now grown wherever wine is produced, from England to New Zealand. For new a ...

and

pinot gris Pinot gris, pinot grigio (, ), or ''Grauburgunder'' is a white wine grape variety of the species ''Vitis vinifera''. Thought to be a mutant clone of the pinot noir variety, it normally has a pinkish-gray hue, accounting for its name, but th ...

). The first grape harvest took place in 2000.

First World War

During the

First World War 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 ...

, Givenchy-en-Gohelle was on the front line between German and Allied forces during the battles of Arras and was severely damaged, particularly during the

Battle of Vimy Ridge The Battle of Vimy Ridge was part of the Battle of Arras, in the Pas-de-Calais department of France, during the First World War. The main combatants were the four divisions of the Canadian Corps in the First Army, against three divisions of ...

in 1917. For much of the First World War, the village also was the site of sustained underground fighting between German and British tunneling units. Givenchy-en-Gohelle was taken by the 2nd Canadian Division on 13 April 1917. Over 150 war casualties (1914–1918) are commemorated at the Canadian cemetery here and 109 from the Battle of Vimy Ridge are buried here. The centennial commemoration of the Battle of Vimy Ridge was held at the

Canadian National Vimy Memorial The Canadian National Vimy Memorial is a war memorial site in France dedicated to the memory of Canadian Expeditionary Force members killed during the Military history of Canada during World War I, First World War. It also serves as the place o ...

near the village on 9 April 2017. Estimates before the event indicated that up to 30,000 would attend. By early April 2017, the village had been decorated with 500 Canadian flags.

Population

Places of interest

* The

to commemorate First World War Canadian dead and missing, presumed dead, in France. * The church of St. Martin, dating from the seventeenth century. * The

Commonwealth War Graves Commission The Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) is an intergovernmental organisation of six independent member states whose principal function is to mark, record and maintain the graves and places of commemoration of Commonwealth of Nations mil ...

Canadian memorial and cemeteries.

References

External links

The CWGC burials in the churchyard

The CWGC cemetery at Souchez

The Vimy Memorial on the CWGC site

The local winegrowers' website

Official commune website

Regional website

Gallery

Givenchy-en-Gohelle_Mairie_R01.jpg, Town hall Givenchy-en-Gohelle_Eglise_R03.jpg, Saint-Martin church Givenchy-en-Gohelle_Monument_aux_Morts_R01.jpg, War memorial {{DEFAULTSORT:Givenchy-En-Gohelle Givenchyengohelle Populated places in Artois