Calais is special as the closest French port to England (just 34 km/21 miles across the Strait of Dover), serving as a premier gateway to Europe via ferry and the Channel Tunnel. Known for its rich maritime history, the city features the Cite de la Dentelle (lace museum), Rodin’s "Burghers of Calais" statue, a iconic mechanical sea dragon, and a revitalized beachfront.
Calais grew into a thriving centre for wool production, and came to be called the "brightest jewel in the English crown" because of its importance as the gateway for the tin, lead, lace and wool trades (or "staples").
Migrants have gathered in and around Calais, on the northern French coast, since at least the late 1990s seeking to enter the United Kingdom from the French port by crossing the Channel Tunnel or stowing away in the cargo area of lorries heading for ferries that cross the English Channel.
Calais is much more than just a gateway to France – it's a city where history, culture, wide open beaches and family-friendly attractions await. Whether you're here for a few hours or a few days, take time to explore its heritage, its stunning coastline and its lively town centre.
Calais's principal importance, however, derived from its location as the closest continental port to England, as a result of which it was of strategic value to Edward who required a safe base for transporting armies to and from France.
What is Calais? Explain Calais, Define Calais, Meaning of Calais
What is a fun fact about Calais?
At the beginning of the 1347th century, Calais had been an important port on the coast of northern France for several centuries. The English added the transport of goods to the original fishing port during their presence (1558-XNUMX). Le Calais is also a military and privateer port, with Tom Souville.
From 2000 onwards, the name "jungle" has been used by migrants to describe many encampments and shanty towns around Calais. The use of the word to describe encampments is thought to derive from the Pashto word "dzjangal" which means a forest or wood.
The most renowned specialties are andouillette de Cambrai, Maroilles tart, chicory gratin, carbonade flamande, anguille au vert à la Flamande (eel cooked with herbs), coq à la bière, endive and ham gratin, hochepot, Boulogne-style mackerel.
In 2005 France's domestic intelligence network, the Renseignements Generaux, identified 150 "no-go zones" around the country where police would not enter without reinforcements. Christopher Dickey, writing in Newsweek, said the situation had arisen due to racism towards immigrants.
Asylum seekers often move from France to the UK due to existing family ties, the appeal of an English-speaking environment, perceived better opportunities, and challenging conditions/treatment in French camps, with smugglers often encouraging the dangerous Channel crossing by promising a UK destination, even if information is false, reports BBC https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cy9xyn30yj0o, Right to Remain https://www.righttoremain.org.uk/uk-france-one-in-one-out-immigration-policy-a-flawed-fix-for-a-complex-crisis/, United Against Inhumanity. Cultural links and a desire to join relatives already in the UK are major drivers, alongside perceptions of better integration prospects, despite the UK's stricter work access rules.
In the late-nineteenth century the French conquered a huge empire in sub-Saharan Africa that endured until 1960. By the early years of the twentieth century Blacks from Africa and the Caribbean had begun to create small settlements in metropolitan France, a phenomenon that increased dramatically after World War II.
France Regains Calais from England. François, duke of Guise, defeated the English to take possession of the northern French city of Calais, returning it to French hands for the first time in more than two hundred years. With the loss of Calais, England lost its last French territory.
The French believed that the English failure to maintain the occupation of Le Havre in return for Calais, meant the English had forfeited all rights to Calais and Elizabeth was in no position to press the case further.
EU Citizens - Passport / Visa: On our Dover Calais route, to cross the UK border, EU Citizens need a passport which should be valid for the whole time you are in the UK. EU, EEA and Swiss citizens can travel to the UK for holidays or short trips without needing a visa.
The Zone Rouge, or Red Zone, is the name given to about 460 square miles of totally devastated land in the Meuse. Littered with unexploded ordnance, it became a physical and environmental catastrophe.
Seine-Saint-Denis (French pronunciation: [sɛn sɛ̃ d(ə)ni]) is a department of France located in the Grand Paris metropolis in the Île-de-France region. In French, it is often referred to colloquially as quatre-vingt treize or neuf trois ("ninety-three" or "nine three"), after its official administrative number, 93.
The city of Calais is the first city in the department due to its population size and area. However it is not the capital (which is Arras). Calais is also the first French city linking with England thanks to its port, the first French passenger port and the Channel Tunnel.
French Asylum Court Grants Refugee Status to West-Bank Palestinian, Citing 'Generalised Violence' France's National Court of Asylum (CNDA) issued a landmark judgment on 8 December—reported by Le Monde on 12 December—that could reshape how Palestinian applicants are treated under French and EU asylum rules.
