Billy-Berclau

Billy-Berclau
Coat of arms
Billy-Berclau
Location within Nord-Pas-de-Calais region Billy-Berclau
Coordinates:
Country	France
Region	Nord-Pas-de-Calais-Picardy
Department	Pas-de-Calais
Arrondissement	Béthune
Canton	Douvrin
Intercommunality	Artois
Government
• Mayor (2008–2014)	Daniel Delcroix
Area1	7.41 km2 (2.86 sq mi)
Population (2009)2	4,324
• Density	580/km2 (1,500/sq mi)
INSEE/Postal code	62132 / 62138
Elevation	17–27 m (56–89 ft) (avg. 24 m or 79 ft)
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries. 2 Population without double counting: residents of multiple communes (e.g., students and military personnel) only counted once.

Billy-Berclau is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in the Nord-Pas-de-Calais region in northern France.

Geography

A small town 10 miles (16.1 km) east of Béthune and 12 miles (19.3 km) southwest of Lille, at the junction of the D163 and N47 roads. It is situated at the junction of the Canal de la Deûle and the Canal d'Aire. Light industry and a little farming have replaced the coal mining of the past.

History

The town was completely destroyed during World War I. On 27 March 2003, an explosion at the dynamite factory killed four people.

Population

Historical population
Year	Pop.	±%
1962	2,963	—
1968	2,979	+0.5%
1975	3,163	+6.2%
1982	3,579	+13.2%
1990	4,149	+15.9%
1999	4,259	+2.7%
2009	4,342	+1.9%

Sights

• The church of Notre-Dame, rebuilt, as was most of the town, after World War I.
• The remains of a Prévôté building (once belonging to an abbey)..
• The Commonwealth War Graves Commission cemetery.
• A German World War I cemetery.

See also

• Communes of the Pas-de-Calais department

References

• INSEE commune file

External links

• Official website of Billy-Berclau (French)
• Website about Artois (French)
• The CWGC at the communal cemetery
• Billy-Berclau on the Quid website (French)
• Website of the Communauté d'agglomération de l'Artois (French)