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Nord-Pas-de-Calais Mining Basin is an area of France that has been added to the 2012 UNESCO World Heritage Sites list. This area has been shaped after three centuries of Coal extraction from 18th Century to 20th Century and illustrate a significant period in the history of Europe industrialization.


Condé-sur-l'Escaut is 12 km (7.5 mi) northeast of Valenciennes, 51 km (32 mi) from Lille, and 90 km (56 mi) from Brussels, Belgium. It is situated at the confluence of the Haine and Scheldt rivers. The region is noted for its coal mines, resources which made it a strategic objective in both world wars.