Helfaut

Helfaut (French pronunciation: [ɛlfo]; West Flemish: Helveld; Picard: Hérfauw) is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in the Hauts-de-France region of France^[3] 4 miles (6 km) south of Saint-Omer, on a geological formation called the "plateau d'Helfaut", which separates the Aa valley to the north from the Lys valley, to the south.

Helfaut Helveld
Commune
The town hall and schools of Helfaut
Coat of arms
Location of Helfaut
Helfaut Show map of France Helfaut Show map of Hauts-de-France
Coordinates: 50°41′54″N 2°14′38″E
Country	France
Region	Hauts-de-France
Department	Pas-de-Calais
Arrondissement	Saint-Omer
Canton	Longuenesse
Intercommunality	Pays de Saint-Omer
Government
• Mayor (2020–2026)	Francis Marquant[1]
Area 1	8.92 km2 (3.44 sq mi)
Population  (2022)[2]	1,728
• Density	194/km2 (502/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+01:00 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00 (CEST)
INSEE/Postal code	62423 /62570
Elevation	23–95 m (75–312 ft) (avg. 92 m or 302 ft)
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

The commune is home to rare and protected species in a heathland landscape, which is unusual for northern France and led to the creation of a nature reserve (Les Landes d'Helfaut).

Population

The inhabitants are called Helfalois.

Historical population

Year	Pop.	±% p.a.
1968	1,139	—
1975	1,248	+1.31%
1982	1,426	+1.92%
1990	1,671	+2.00%
1999	1,693	+0.15%
2007	1,750	+0.41%
2012	1,596	−1.83%
2017	1,697	+1.23%
Source: INSEE[4]

History

In World War II the village was the site of La coupole, an underground bunker housing a huge concrete dome, built by the Nazis between 1943 and 1944 to serve as a launching base for V2 rockets, which never entered service because of bombing raids by the Allies. It has been transformed into a museum.^[5]

See also

• Audomarois
• Communes of the Pas-de-Calais department