Pas-de-Calais is a département of northern France created in 1790 out of the former provinces of the coastal Boulonnais[?] and Artois to the east, and now constituting along with the neighbouring département of Nord the region of Nord-Pas-de-Calais.
The Pas-de-Calais has 1.44 million inhabitants in an area of 6670 sq. km.
Préfecture (the departmental seat of administration): Arras.
Sous-préfectures: Béthune, Boulogne-sur-Mer, Calais, Lens, Montreuil[?], Saint Omer.
Its principal towns are, on the coast, Calais and Boulogne-sur-Mer, and in Artois, Lens, Arras and Saint-Omer.
Here, some of the costliest battles of World War I were fought. At Vimy Ridge is Canada's most important memorial to its fallen soldiers.
