Audinghen

Audinghen (Dutch: Oudinghen) is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in the Hauts-de-France region of France.

Audinghen
Commune
The town hall and school of Audinghen
Coat of arms
Location of Audinghen
Audinghen Audinghen
Coordinates: 50°51′09″N 1°36′50″E
Country	France
Region	Hauts-de-France
Department	Pas-de-Calais
Arrondissement	Boulogne-sur-Mer
Canton	Desvres
Intercommunality	Communauté de communes de la Terre des Deux Caps
Government
• Mayor (2014-2020)	Marc Sarpaux
Area ^1	13.09 km^2 (5.05 sq mi)
Population  (2017-01-01)[1]	582
• Density	44/km^2 (120/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+01:00 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00 (CEST)
INSEE/Postal code	62054 /62179
Elevation	0–123 m (0–404 ft) (avg. 68 m or 223 ft)
^1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km^2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

Geography

A farming commune, comprising several hamlets, some 14 miles (23 km) north of Boulogne-sur-Mer, at the junction of the D940 and the D191 roads. Cap Gris-Nez, the nearest part of France to the English coast, forms the western boundary of the commune.

History

The town was originally named Odingehem, 'home of Odin', by the Vikings who built a temple here dedicated to the Germanic god Odin. Audinghen has been rebuilt several times after being completely destroyed, including:

• In 1643 or 1644, according to the interpretations, by a party of soldiers of the King of England, who burned the village population inside the church;
• Three centuries later, in November 1943, by the British, who bombed and totally destroyed the village (then occupied by the German army) and a centre for Organisation Todt.[2]

Population

Historical population

Year	Pop.	±%
1962	409	—
1968	457	+11.7%
1975	461	+0.9%
1982	468	+1.5%
1990	503	+7.5%
1999	548	+8.9%
2004	554	+1.1%
2009	584	+5.4%
2014	575	−1.5%
2015	579	+0.7%

Sights

• The church of St. Pierre, dating from the twentieth century.
• The ruins of the lighthouse at Cap Gris Nez.
• World War II German defences, part of the Atlantic wall.

Part of the German defences, at the Todt Battery

Personalities

• Gabriel Auguste Ferdinand Ducuing, soldier who died here in 1940.
• Raoul de Godewaersvelde, composer, died here in 1977.

See also

• Communes of the Pas-de-Calais department

References

• INSEE commune file

1. "Populations légales 2017". INSEE. Retrieved 6 January 2020.
2. Embry, Basil (1957). Mission Completed (1957 first ed.). Methuen. p. 255.

External links

• Website about Audinghen (in French)