InscritHome · protected 2009Ancien logement des Soeurs de la cité n° 12 de la compagnie des mines de Lens dite Saint-EdouardPart of the building is protectedPhoto: Jérémy Jännick · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons
Ensemble des bâtiments formant la maison syndicale des mineurs · Photo: Daniel VILLAFRUELA . · CC BY-SA 3.012historic monuments
History of Lens · Monuments historiques
12 historic monuments, none of them classé
For every 10,000 residents Lens counts 3.6 monuments, more per resident than 62% of compared French towns, against 2.5 in the median compared French town. The oldest date from the 19th century. We have photos of 5 of them.
Monuments historiques
12
3.6 per 10,000 residents
median compared town 2.5
median compared town 2.5
Classé
0
the highest protection
Inscrit
12
the second level
Oldest part
19th c.
of any listed monument
Homes before 1919
1.6%
median compared town 7.4%
In pictures
Lens in 5 photos
Tap a photo to step through them full screen.
Salle d'oeuvres paroissiales Saint-Pierre de la cité n° 11 de la compagnie des mines de Lens, située à l'angle de la rue du Saint-Esprit et de la rue du BéarnInscrit
Ecoles maternelles et primaire Louis Pasteur et ancien dispensaire de la cité n° 11 de la compagnie des mines de Lens, situés respectivement rue du Saint-Esprit, square Henri-Noguères et avenue de la Fosse 11Inscrit
Groupe scolaire Jean Macé, ancienne habitation du directeur des écoles et ancien patronage de la cité n° 12 de la compagnie des mines de Lens dite Saint-Edouard, situés parvis de l'église Saint-Edouard et grand chemin de Loos de part et d'autre de l'église Saint-EdouardInscrit
Ancien logement des Soeurs de la cité n° 12 de la compagnie des mines de Lens dite Saint-EdouardInscrit+1See all photosPhotos from Wikimedia Commons, copied to our own server, each credited to its photographer with its license; names open the monument’s page.
Map
Where Lens’ monuments stand
Every monument with a point on the ministry’s list; the larger, darker dots are classé.
Inscrit
Tap a dot to open the monument’s page: its record, photo and the monuments around it.
12 monuments by protection
12 Inscrit
Classé is the higher protection: any work on the building needs the State’s permission. Work on an inscrit building must be declared to the State in advance. Around both, building work in sight of the monument (usually within 500 m) needs the agreement of the architecte des Bâtiments de France.
Points as the ministry gives them: a monument spread over several plots has one point.
Inscrit
12 inscrit monuments in Lens
Inscrit is the second level of protection: the building is worth keeping, and any work on it must be declared.
InscritMonument · protected 2009Ecoles maternelles et primaire Louis Pasteur et ancien dispensaire de la cité n° 11 de la compagnie des mines de Lens, situés respectivement rue du Saint-Esprit, square Henri-Noguères et avenue de la Fosse 11Part of the building is protectedPhoto: Jérémy Jännick · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons
InscritHome · protected 2009Groupe scolaire Jean Macé, ancienne habitation du directeur des écoles et ancien patronage de la cité n° 12 de la compagnie des mines de Lens dite Saint-Edouard, situés parvis de l'église Saint-Edouard et grand chemin de Loos de part et d'autre de l'église Saint-EdouardPart of the building is protectedPhoto: Jérémy-Günther-Heinz Jähnick · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons
InscritMonument · protected 2009Salle d'oeuvres paroissiales Saint-Pierre de la cité n° 11 de la compagnie des mines de Lens, située à l'angle de la rue du Saint-Esprit et de la rue du BéarnPart of the building is protectedPhoto: Jérémy Jännick · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons
InscritPublic building · protected 1996Ensemble des bâtiments formant la maison syndicale des mineursPart of the building is protectedPhoto: Daniel VILLAFRUELA . · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Public building · protected 2009Anciens grands bureaux de la compagnie des mines de Lens, aujourd'hui Faculté des Sciences Jean Perrin (Université d'Artois)Part of the building is protected
Church · protected 2015Église du Millénium
Religious building · protected 2009Église Saint-Edouard de la cité n° 12 de la compagnie de mines de LensPart of the building is protected
Funerary monument · protected 2009Monument aux morts de la compagnie des mines de Lens, situé à l'intersection de la route de Béthune et de l'avenue de la fosse 12
War memorial · protected 2009Monument aux morts de la première guerre mondiale
Station · protected 1984Gare
What’s protected
Tombs and cemeteries are the largest group in Lens
Each monument under the main domain Mérimée gives it.
Tombs & cemeteries3
Religious buildings2
Houses & homes2
Public & civic2
Bridges & engineering1
Tombs & cemeteries: 3 of 12 monuments (25%). 2 are religious buildings.
Mérimée files each monument under one main domain: a château with its chapel counts once. 2 have no domain on the list.
How old
How old Lens’ monuments are
Each monument once, by the oldest part the list dates.
Prehistory & Antiquity to the 4th c.0
Middle Ages 5th–15th c.0
16th to 18th century Renaissance to Revolution0
19th century 1801–19004
20th century and later since 19018
The oldest dated: Ancien logement des Soeurs de la cité n° 12 de la compagnie des mines de Lens dite Saint-Edouard (19th & 20th c.).
When protected
Over half of Lens’ monuments were protected in 2009
Monuments by the year they were first protected.
2009 · 9
198020002020
The first was protected in 1984. 9 were protected in 2009 alone. 1 has been added since 2011.
Age of homes
1.6% of homes in Lens were built before 1919
Main homes by when they were finished, beside the median compared French town (the tick).
1.6%
Before 1919
21%
1919–45
31%
1946–70
21%
1971–90
13%
1991–2005
12%
2006 on
LensMedian compared French town
1.6% of its main homes were built before 1919; the median compared French town has 7.4%. More of them were finished between 1946 and 1970 than in any other period (31%).
INSEE, census 2023: main homes (résidences principales) only; second homes and empty homes aren’t dated.
Born before 1900
5 people born in Lens before 1900
Their lives on one line.
Auguste Béhal
Amand Valeur
Auguste Detœuf
Pierre Detœuf
Just Évrard
18501875190019251950
AD
Auguste Detœuf1883–1947 · French economist, writer and businessman
AB
Auguste Béhal1859–1941 · French chemist
AV
Amand Valeur1870–1927 · French chemist
PD
Pierre Detœuf1890–1962 · French politician
JÉ
Just Évrard1898–1972 · French politician
Everyone born in Lens Birthplaces from Wikidata, checked against Wikipedia.
Neighbors
Historic monuments in the towns around Lens
| Town | Residents | Monuments | Classé | Protected area |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lens | 32,920 | 12 | 0 | — |
| Éleu-dit-Leauwette | 2,805 | 0 | 0 | — |
| Loison-sous-Lens | 5,169 | 0 | 0 | — |
| Loos-en-Gohelle | 6,799 | 2 | 1 | — |
| Avion | 17,435 | 0 | 0 | — |
| Sallaumines | 9,414 | 1 | 0 | — |
| Liévin | 30,063 | 3 | 0 | — |
In brief
Lens in brief
Lens has 12 historic monuments, including Ensemble des bâtiments formant la maison syndicale des mineurs. Anciens grands bureaux de la compagnie des mines de Lens, aujourd'hui Faculté des Sciences Jean Perrin (Université d'Artois) and other monuments here are part of a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Most of its dated monuments come from the 20th century or later: 8 of 12. The oldest, Ancien logement des Soeurs de la cité n° 12 de la compagnie des mines de Lens dite Saint-Edouard, dates from the 19th century.
Église du Millénium carries the Architecture contemporaine remarquable label. Of the 5 people born here before 1900, the best known include Auguste Detœuf (1883), Auguste Béhal (1859) and Amand Valeur (1870). Its homes are mostly newer: 1.6% were built before 1919, against 7.4% in the median compared French town. The rest is about typical: it has 12 historic monuments, about typical for a town its size (the middle one has 5); and per resident it sits near the middle of compared French towns.
How to read these numbers
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Monuments historiques. France protects buildings at two levels. Classé, the higher (about a third of the list), means any work needs the State’s permission; inscrit means work must be declared to the State in advance. The Culture ministry’s Mérimée base lists every protected building, and this page counts them.
- Partly protected. Many entries protect part of a building only (its façades and roofs, a staircase, a painted room). Each counts as one monument, like a fully protected one.
- Where a monument is counted. In the commune named on its protection, moved to today’s commune where communes have since merged. A monument listed for several communes counts in each.
- Sites patrimoniaux remarquables. Since 2016 France’s protected historic areas (the former secteurs sauvegardés, ZPPAUP and AVAP) share one name. Inside one, building work follows the area’s plan and needs the agreement of the architecte des Bâtiments de France.
- What isn’t here. Protected objects (furniture, organs, paintings), old buildings with no protection, UNESCO World Heritage listings and labels such as “Plus Beaux Villages de France” aren’t on this list, so this page doesn’t count them.
- No History Grade yet. Everything on this page is described, not graded: France’s History Grade isn’t built yet.
Questions about the history of Lens
How many historic monuments are there in Lens?
The Culture ministry lists 12 historic monuments in Lens: 12 inscrit, none classé.
How old are the monuments of Lens?
The oldest parts of its listed monuments date from the 19th century.
When were monuments in Lens first protected?
The first in 1984, the latest in 2015.
How old are the homes in Lens?
1.6% of its main homes were built before 1919 (median compared French town: 7.4%).
France has no History Grade yet: this page describes, it doesn’t grade.
Sources: Ministère de la Culture, Mérimée base on POP (immeubles protégés au titre des monuments historiques), October 2026 · Ministère de la Culture, sites patrimoniaux remarquables, October 2026 · INSEE, census 2023 (main homes by build period) · Wikidata and Wikipedia (people born here) · Wikimedia Commons and Wikidata (photos of the monuments, each with its own credit and license) · IGN Admin Express (boundaries) · Medians and percentiles: TownRatings, over compared French towns, updated November 8, 2026. Under the Licence Ouverte / Open Licence 2.0 (Etalab).
Contains public sector information under the Licence Ouverte / Open Licence 2.0 (Etalab): INSEE, DGFiP, the Interior Ministry’s statistics service (SSMSI), the Ministry of Education (DEPP), the Health Ministry’s statistics service (DREES) and the Housing Ministry (Carte des loyers). Commune boundaries: IGN Admin Express.