Béthune

Béthune
Bethune beffroi et mairie 1544x778.jpg
Grand'Place
Béthune is located in France
Béthune
Administration
Country France
Region Nord-Pas-de-Calais
Department Pas-de-Calais
Arrondissement Béthune
Canton Béthune-Nord and Béthune-Sud
Intercommunality Artois
Mayor Stéphane Saint-André
(2008-)
Statistics
Elevation 18–42 m (59–138 ft)
(avg. 26 m/85 ft)
Land area1 12.97 km2 (5.01 sq mi)
Population2 27,900  (2006)
 - Density 2,151 /km2 (5,570 /sq mi)
INSEE/Postal code 62119/ 62400
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.
2 Population sans doubles comptes: residents of multiple communes (e.g., students and military personnel) only counted once.
East of Pas-de-Calais (Béthune, Lens, Hénin-Beaumont)

Béthune (archaic Dutch: Betun) is a city in northern France, sub-prefecture of the Pas-de-Calais department.

Contents

History

Béthune is located in the former province of Artois.

Presentation

Béthune is a pleasant town rich in architectural heritage and history. It has among others a beautiful place even paved, around which the shops and cafes give life to the city.

In the center stands proudly as the belfry to watch again on the inhabitants (height 47 m, 133 steps). His inimitable chime is composed of thirty-six bells.

Sights

Belfry of Béthune

Béthune is famous for its Belfry (tower in the central square of the city), from the top of which the Belgian border can be seen.

Geography

__From France : By car, Béthune is about 2h30 from Paris, 30 minutes from Arras and 40 minutes from Lille. 6 roundtrips on TGV trip from Paris to Dunkerque station put Bethune about 1h20 from the capital. It is also possible to take the TGV to Arras (second station in the region located just 50 minutes from Paris). __From other countries : By car, Bethune is about 3h30 from [London], about 6h40 from [Manchester] . (UK) . It's from 1h50 from [Brussels] (Belgium), about 3h from (Aix-La-Chapelle], about 3h from [Cologne], about 8h30 from [Berlin] (Germany) , always by car . And finally, by car, it's about 3h30 from [Amsterdam] (Nederlands)

Notable people

Béthune was the birthplace of:

Béthune is also associated with the following historic personalities:

See also

References

External links

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