ARRAS, Weis', France, capital of the de partment of Pas-de-Calais, in the middle of an extensive and fertile plain, on the Scarpe, which here becomes navigable. It is an im portant station on the French Northern Rail way, is 134 miles by rail from Paris and 97 miles from Brussels. It is a well-built town, and has several handsome squares and a cita del, but is no longer fortified. The chief pub lic buildings are the modern cathedral, the ex tensive buildings of the former abbey of Saint Vaast, now accommodating a museum and the public library of 50,000 volumes; the Hotel de Ville, one of the handsomest in the north of France, with a fine Gothic facade; the theatre, Hotel de la Prefecture, barracks, etc. Its in dustries are varied and important. These in clude beet sugar, agricultural implements, hos iery, leather and petroleum products. There is also a large trade in flour, grain, oil, wines, etc. In the Middle Ages it was famous for the manufacture of tapestry, to which the English applied the name of the town itself. The corn-market of Arras is the most import ant in the north of France. Arras in ancient times was the capital of the Atrebates. It was ceded to Louis XI in 1482, but the inhabitants having revolted, the King stormed it and put the people to the sword or expelled them and named the place Franchise. In 1493 it was ceded to Maximilian of Austria, and was re tained by the Hapsburgs until 1640. Arras suf fered greatly during the Revolution and again in the European War when it was practically razed by the conflict of British and German guns. During the early stages of the War
the French were driven back at Arras on 4 Oct 1914. About the time fierce battles were raging on the Yser, at La Bass& and Ypres, the Germans made a determined attack on Arras 20 October. They had already bombarded the city during the first week of the month and had attempted to storm it on the 7th. For six days, from the 20th to the 26th, they poured a torrent of shells into Arras. The main attack was made on the 24th; whole quarters of the city were wrecked, but the French line remained firm. Had the Germans succeeded in breaking through they would not only have attained the channel ports and recovered the northern road to Paris, but they would have achieved their main objective, the splitting of the Allied line into two parts, of which the northern must have been annihilated or captured. On the 26th the French under General Maud'huy counter attacked and drove the enemy out of the front trenches, gradually widening the circle till was beyond the range of the heavy howitzers. The farthest advance of the Germans brought them 11 miles west of • Arras in 1914; by January 1918 they had been pushed back eight miles east of the city. Arras was the birthplace of Robespierre. Pop. about 26,000.