Miscellaneous
Saint-Omer is the seat of a court of assizes and tribunals, of a chamber of commerce, and of a board of trade arbitration. Besides the Lycée Alexandre Ribot, there are schools of music and of art.
The public library of Saint-Omer holds, in its rare books section, one of the three French copies of the 42-line Gutenberg Bible, originally from the library of the abbey of St Bertin. The other two copies are in Paris.
Godfrey of Saint-Omer, a Flemish knight and one of the founding members of the Knights Templar in 1119, is said to have come from the family of the Lords of Saint-Omer.
King Henry VIII of England employed a swordsman from Saint-Omer for the execution of Queen Anne Boleyn, rather than having a Queen beheaded with the common axe.
During the First World War on 8 October 1914, the British Royal Flying Corps (RFC) arrived in Saint-Omer and a headquarters was established at the aerodrome next to the local race course. For the following four years, Saint-Omer was a focal point for all RFC operations in the field. Although most squadrons only used Saint-Omer as a transit camp before moving on to other locations, the base grew in importance as it increased its logistic support to the RFC. Many Royal Air Force squadrons can trace their roots to formation at Saint-Omer during this period. Among which are No. IX Squadron RAF which was formed at Saint-Omer, 14 December 1914 and No. 16 Squadron RAF which was formed on 10 February 1915.
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