La Wantzenau
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The town of La Wantzenau is located 12km north-east of Strasbourg in eastern France. It is located in the deparment of Bas-Rhin and the region of Alsace. It is the last village along the Ill river before it joins the Rhine a few kilometers downstream. The village limits touch the border with Germany, although the closest bridge across the Rhine is in Gambsheim, 10km north of the village. It is one of the towns of greater Strasbourg (Communauté Urbaine de Strasbourg or CUS). The center of the town sits on the north side of the river. The neighborhood of Le Woerthel on the south side of the river, and Le Golf in the fields north of the town were recently developed.
The terrain around the village is very flat and marshy. In fact, the ending "au" in the name denotes in Alstian a town which is subject to seasonal flooding. The town was probably founded in the 8th century as a fishing outpost of Honau, a nearby monastery founded by Irish monks on an island in the Rhine river. The name does not appear in any reconds until 1331 as "Wanzenowe". It is granted status as a parish by the bishop-prince of Strasbourg in 1468. During the 30 years war in the early 17th century, the town is completely wiped out by Swedish troops. It is also badly damaged during both world wars. There are many signs of the town's experience with war. La rue Zimmer is named for a soldier who became a local hero fighting with General Leclerc in World War II, only to be killed in fighting near Strasbourg in 1944. The town is dotted with bunkers and blockhouses from the Maginot Line, especially in the La Wantzenau forest. There is also a German-made bunker visible in the house on the corner of the rue Leh and the rue du Moulin.
Today, the town has preserved many 18th century half-timbered Alsatian-style houses. The town has graded a promenade along the Ill river. It is connected to a network of bicycle lanes including the "Piste des Forts" which circles greater Strasbourg, and a path through the La Wantzenau forest through La Robertsau and into downtown Strasbourg. La Wantzenau is well-known in the region for the high number of fine restaurants including Le Relais de la Poste, Les Semailles and Le Moulin de la Wantzenau, the last vestiges of a now closed cooking school in the town. The town is twinned with St. Yrieix la Perche in Haute-Vienne because the population of La Wantzenau was evacuated there at the start of the war with Germany in 1939.
La wantzenau is a bedroom community of Strasbourg. It combines the advantages of village life with individual houses while still being part of the CUS with train and bus transportation to the center of Strasbourg. 73% of the working population works outside of the village.
The center of the town has several commercial establishments including a grocery store, two bakeries and two tabaconists. There are also several public buildings including a post office, the town hall, the Foyer Culturel, the Jean-Claude Klein sports complex, a football stadium, two pre-schools, a primary school, and a junior highschool.
Demographics (source: Town of La Wantzenau website) Population (1999 census): 5462 Population (1990 census): 4394
