Let us introduce you to ... DENAIN

Where is Denain located?

Denain (point A on the map) is located in the department of North and the region called Nord-Pas de Calais. It is 10 km in the south-west of Valenciennes at the edge of the motorway A2 and bordered by the ship canal of the Escaut. Denain is located 45 minutes away from Brussels, 1h30 from Paris and 3h from London.

Denain is inhabited by 20,186 inhabitants, the population hasn’t stopped increasing since 1800.

Our city isn’t isolated, since Transvilles transport network in particular with tram lines from and to Valenciennes and bus lines stops at Denain.

by Thomas

What do people do in Denain?

In Denain there are three secondary schools. “Les Forges” which is private; “Kastler”, it’s a school which prepares general, technological and professional high-school examinations. Then there is “Mousseron”, our high school; it is grouped together with a professional high-school “Jurenil”.

In Denain there are 4 junior high schools and 8 elementary schools and 12 nursery schools.

The main professional activities are especially in the fields of health, of education and administration.

by Olivia

A little history...

In 1826 the city of Denain knew a beautiful time thanks to the canal, l’Escaut. The small village then became an important industrial city of the north. 1,000 people worked in coal mines. Five wells were opened, a thousand houses were built. In 1868, the city had fifteen pits, three blast furnaces, two hundred ovens, six breweries, three sugar mills and two refineries

Emile Zola was inspired by the lives of the miners in Denain for Germinal, one of his greatest novels.
In 1884, Emile Zola came to Denain to get documented about the harsh mining industry time. He tried to understand it better to write his book Germinal. In 1828, Denain had 900 inhabitants. The population reached the figure of 25,000 in 1901 to a peak of 30,000 in 1959. The mining episode in Denain ended in 1948 with the closure of the Renard pit.

by Maxence

Local celebrities

Famous characters of Denain are Jules Mousseron, Zeph’ Cafougnette, and Marshal Villars.

Jules Mousseron was born in 1848. He was a minor and a poet who took classes every evening to become a poet. He died in Denain, his hometown in 1943. His name was given to Jules Mousseron high school and to a reception room in town.

Zeph’ Cafougnette is a character created by Jules Mousseron. Like Jules Mousseron, he was a courageous and a faithful minor who is more famous than his creator now.

Marshal Villars (1653 – 1734) was a soldier who became a marshal under the reign of Louis XIV. In 1712 he won the decisive Battle of Denain against the Austrian and Dutch troops during the War of the Spanish Succession. A statue was dedicated to him just outside the city hall.

Click on the following link to see Cafougnette on the TV news of TF1 (the 1^st TV channel in France).

http://miely.pagesperso-orange.fr/denain/images_denain/cafougnette-2-5.wmv

by Adrien

Important places of Denain

The conservatoire of Denain:

We can learn to play the saxophone, the trumpet, the flute and many other instruments.

The city hall:

That’s where the mayor, currently Patrick Roy, has his office.

The town museum:

We can find archaeological pieces from the Stone Age.

Square Villars:

Square Villars is a place where you can take the tramway or the bus.

The theatre:

In the theatre, we can see dancing shows (Celtic Legends on the 10th of April), comic people and so on…

The Library “Jacques Prévert”

It’s a building where you can read books, see videos or listen to music.

The Doisy Mill:

Nowadays, this building has been rehabilitated and it has become an apartment block.

by Angélique & Damien

Main events and festivals

Great Carnival of spring (Easter): Great jumble sale in the morning and Carnival in the afternoon Monday 25 April 2011:

People march, people dress up and we admire the processions of the famous characters of Denain: the giants.

Fun fairs in February, for Easter, and in October

Come and discover various kinds of attractions, from the most traditional to the most recent and thrilling ones: bumper cars, stands, etc

The annual music festival on the 21st June allows music bands to play in public performing for free in Denain.

Le grand prix de Denain is a cycling race, the cyclists will have to ride approximately 200 km .The 2011 edition will take place on April 14. 20 teams will take part in this race .

Secondhand sale and Jumble sale on Sunday the 15th May 2011

by Anaïs

Sport in Denain

ASC Denain Voltaire is a club of basket ball created in 1947; their colours are red and white. Today the team of basketball practice in the room Jean Degros near the high school Jules Mousseron. They are in liga LEB-2(third division in France) but in 1965 the team of Denain was French champion, in 1960 they won the French cup, etc… Tony Parker Sr played in Denain.

For more information on this association you can visit the following link http://denain-voltaire.over.blog.com .

But, in Denain there are also a football club, swimming (classified second in the Olympic Games), an athletics club, an English boxing club and a tennis club, etc…

by Emeric & Magalie

Some of us also come from…

Escaudain

Escaudain is a town next to Denain, located at 19km from Valenciennes. The town was shaped in the first time for rural activity and mining activity. There are 9,140 inhabitants.

Roeulx

It is situated between Denain and Bouchain. Roeulx is a urban town with some activities for every age. There are 3,695 inhabitants.

Wallers.

Wallers is situated next to Valenciennes. It is a town with some sports activities and there is a cinema and entertainment. There are 5,559 inhabitants.

The most difficult part of the famous cyling race “Paris-Roubaix” is in the forest of Wallers-Arenberg.

Douchy

The town is situated next to Denain. There are 11,000 inhabitants . Douchy is situated next to the towns of Cambrai , Valenciennes, Douai and a few hours away from Paris , Calais and Bruxelles.

by Joanna & Cynthia