Clairmarais

A farming village situated in reclaimed marshland, 2 miles northeast of Saint-Omer, on the D209 road. The Neufosse Canal, which connects the rivers Aa and Lys, passes by the commune.It owes its origin to the famous Cistercian abbey founded by St. Bernard in 1140.He gave the village the name of Claromarisco because of the huge marshes and many rivers in the vicinity. The Dutch Klaarmares and West Flemish Cleremeersch names reflect the nature of the terrain, too. Clairmarais became a fully-fledged common in 1790 when the abbey was going to be destroyed and sold as a national asset during the French Revolution.

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