Lestrem

Lestrem (De Stroom; Létrin) is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in the Hauts-de-France region of France.

Geography
A small farming and light industrial town, situated some 8 mi north of Béthune and 19 mi west of Lille, on the D122, D178 and D975 roads, by the banks of the Lawe River.

History
The town was all but destroyed during the First World War. In 1940, the small hamlet of Le Paradis, on the south side of the commune, was the scene of a massacre of British troops of the BEF, during the Battle of France. The town is twinned with Swanland in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England.

Places of interest

 * The church of St. Amé, dating from the sixteenth century.
 * Two other churches at the hamlets of La Fosse and Le Paradis.
 * The Commonwealth War Graves Commission cemetery.