Wissant

Wissant (" white sand" in English, to pronounce) is a common French, located in the department of the Pas-de-Calais and the area Nord-Pas-de-Calais.

Geography

Close villages: Audresselles, Tardinghen, Audembert, Audinghen

Wissant is in the center of a bay located between the two courses: White-nosed monkey and Gray-Nose.

A threatened seaside resort

The lowering of five meters of the consecutive level of the beach to the extraction of sand to broad of bay in the years 1980 and the presence of multiple sources to the toe of the tilted dam involve the disappearance of the sand on which this one rested.

March 19th, 2007, at the time of the equinoctial tide combined with strong winds come from the causing north of enormous waves which carry the dunes around, the dam of Wissant crumbles on half its length. The sea penetrates in the streets, carting stones and sand. The buildings, built imprudently on sand behind the dam must be evacuated.

History

In the east of Wissant, along the road leading to Calais and with a16 highway, an old ground fortification is with two enclosures, dating from the Early middle ages, and called " camp of César".

This erroneous name a long time made believe that Wissant was the septentrional port mentioned with book VII of the Guerre of Gaules.

Located at the Eastern end of an old lagoon, and for one long period under English administration, Wissant was a long time a village of fishermen-naufrageurs in war with their neighbors of Audresselles with which they disputed with the knife the territories of fishing, and this until the beginning of second half of the XXe century, time to which the first mixed marriages between the two villages and especially the disappearance of the fishing craftsmen produced alleviating effects.

At the end of the XIXe century, the coastal dunes of Wissant start to cover balneal villas. At the XXe century, the Létendart contractor, from Calais, extracts sand and the gravels from the dunes in the west of Wissant in the bed of a fossil river, digging enormous excavations forming from now on the lakes of a natural reserve (see photography above). At the time of the exploitation of these gravel pits, the complete bones of a mammoth with its defenses were discovered there by four workmen who shared them.

Today, because of the winds usually favorable and the proximity of the station of TGV and the Eurostar to Frethun, the Parisian ones call the station " Mecque of the Board to veil.

Administration

Demography

Places and monuments

Camp of César to see higher.
Church of XVe century with a statue of Holy Wilgeforte (virgo fortis), the holy one with crucifiée beard;

Typhonium

The Typhonium is a villa built on a hillock of Egyptian style. It is an interesting representation of the symbols of the Basse and High-Egypt represented by the Lotus and the Papyrus. During construction, various construction materials were used such as marbrized stone coming from the careers of Marquise or from bricks cement-coated. One can also notice the winged solar disk which is a low relief representing the original owners of the house in the shape of Pharaons. Adrien in front of its rest carries the attributes of a Pharaon such as the Némes hairstyle and the cross of life. In spite of the passion of the owners for the Egypt, they never went there and decided to build this particular villa on a hill. It is obvious that this architecture surprises and allures the amateurs of Article the lightning conductors also have their top the flower of papyrus.

Personalities related to the commune

Henri Dutilleux, type-setter, spent his holidays to Wissant before the second world war;
Virginia (1859-1935) and Adrien (1851-1918) Demont Breton: painters residing at Typhonium
Michel Bodin, priest, scholar, and former professor of old languages;
the de Gaulle General liked to spend these holidays there, to the commemorative plaques testify

to it Appendices

References

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