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Lille

Travoley
Lille
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Lille Travel Guide

  • About Lille
If Paris is the sophisticated doyenne of France, then Lille is its edgy, fashionable younger sister. Flirting with the border of Belgium, Lille tantalises with its Flemish roots, excellent museums, great food and beer, and the world-renowned Grande Braderie (Europe’s biggest flea market and main hunting ground for vintage lovers), which takes place every year on the first weekend of September.The city, known as Ryssel in Flemish, is the capital of the Nord-Pas-de-Calais region, making it the hub of northern France. Its thriving cultural scene goes hand-in-hand with a young population which swells with students from ENSAIT, France’s top fashion university in nearby Roubaix.Once a cloth-producing industrial powerhouse, the textile industry crisis of the 1970s saw Lille come apart at the seams, but it shrugged off its troubles with Gallic flair, responding with typical innovation to turn the city’s fortunes around.Thanks to a vibrant regeneration, Lille has gone from strength to strength and it now has a reputation as one of France’s cultural hubs. Its pulsating creativity and industrial background has often drawn comparisons with Manchester, the UK’s industrial northern city of music scene renown, but now it’s taking on its own designs.The centre of Lille can roughly be divided into three main sections: Vieux Lille (the old town), Grand-Place (around the Place Général de Gaulle), and the République – Saint-Sauveur quarter. Beyond the centre, but still in the Lille metropolitan area and easily accessible on the metro network, are the towns of Villeneuve d’Ascq (where the LaM museum holds France’s greatest modern art collection outside Paris) and Roubaix, which is home to ENSAIT as well as the stunning La Piscine art museum (formerly an Art Deco swimming pool).After the Eurostar connection to London was opened in 1994, France’s coolest secret was out to the world, and that was before the war paint went on as Lille was made European Capital of Culture in 2004. Look out Paris, Lille is France’s new femme fatale.
  • Lille History
It’s safe to say that Lille has had a stormy history, thanks in no small part to the 11 separate occasions on which it has been the subject of a siege. That it should have been attacked so frequently becomes all the more astonishing when you realise that it was only founded in 1030. Known in its early years as L’Isle, the city’s island location made it an ideal defensive position, something the Counts of Flanders soon noticed.Its new castle brought trade and Lille quickly expanded until it became the capital of Flanders. Its capital status was not to last, however, and when Lille became part of France in 1312, it was superseded by Paris.Nevertheless, the city continued to grow under the stewardship of the Dukes of Burgundy, most of whom revelled in the nickname, ‘the Bold’. So powerful were the Burgundian dukes that one, Philip the Good, who ruled the city in the 1440s, was considered even more powerful than the King of France.With the death of the last Burgundian duke, Charles the Bold, in 1477, Lille became part of the Holy Roman Empire and from there, passed into Spanish hands. But by 1667, Lille was once more part of France with its delighted conqueror, Louis XIV, lavishing money on the city.Several sieges, two revolutions and a rebellion later and much of the lustre had gone from the city, although a textile boom initiated under Napoleonic rule helped compensate. However, much of that hard work was destined to be undone by the invading Germans during WWI who first bombarded, then burned down, parts of the town.The city was also besieged by Hitler’s forces 20 years later and, for the duration of the war, it found itself ruled as part of Belgium by the Nazi regime. Like most European cities, it suffered a decline in manufacturing after the war but reinvented itself as a hub for the service industries, as well of tourism – both of which are still going strong today.
  • Did you know?
Lille Cathedral, the Basilica of Notre Dame de la Treille, is named after a medieval statue of the Virgin Mary, which is associated with various miracles. The world’s first entirely driverless underground transit system was inaugurated in Lille in 1983. France’s most famous president, Charles de Gaulle, was born in Lille.
  • Weather in Lille
Lille’s marine climate means warm summers (June to August) and cool winters (December to February), but a chance of rain throughout the year. Visit in summer for sunshine, temperatures around 24°C (75°F) and busier attractions.Spring (March to May) and autumn (September to November) are both pleasant – and even when it’s cold or rainy outside, the city’s numerous estaminets (a local take on bar/tavern) are always welcoming.Vintage lovers and bargain hunters should make their way to Lille for the first weekend of September as Europe’s largest flea market, Braderie de Lille, rolls into town.

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