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Ouistreham (M 610)
Ouistreham () is a commune in the Calvados department in Normandy region in northwestern France. Ouistreham is a small port with fishing boats, leisure craft and a ferry harbour. It serves as the port of the city of Caen. The town borders the mouth of the Canal de Caen à la Mer. Origin of the place name The name Ouistreham derives from Saxon , meaning 'village'. There is no clear explanation for the first part of the name. A popular etymology is based on Middle French (Old French ), meaning 'oyster'. Actually most linguists agree on a Saxon origin, meaning Western or West (though some other linguists have claimed that it derives from the Saxon word meaning Eastern), because of the presence of Saxon-speaking settlers from England in Viking Normandy. If we follow this theory, 'Ouistreham' is a homonym of 'Westerham' in Kent. History Ouistreham has been a trading port since the Middle Ages. The harbour is now a part of "Port de Caen-Ouistreham". Since the beginning of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Communes Of France
The () is a level of administrative divisions, administrative division in the France, French Republic. French are analogous to civil townships and incorporated municipality, municipalities in the United States and Canada, ' in Germany, ' in Italy, or ' in Spain. The United Kingdom's equivalent are civil parishes, although some areas, particularly urban areas, are unparished. are based on historical geographic communities or villages and are vested with significant powers to manage the populations and land of the geographic area covered. The are the fourth-level administrative divisions of France. vary widely in size and area, from large sprawling cities with millions of inhabitants like Paris, to small hamlet (place), hamlets with only a handful of inhabitants. typically are based on pre-existing villages and facilitate local governance. All have names, but not all named geographic areas or groups of people residing together are ( or ), the difference residing in the l ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pegasus Bridge
Pegasus Bridge, originally called the Bénouville Bridge after the neighbouring village, is a road crossing over the Caen Canal, between Caen and Ouistreham in Normandy. The original bridge, built in 1934, is now a war memorial and is the centrepiece of the Memorial Pegasus museum at nearby Ranville. It was replaced in 1994 by a modern design which, like the old one, is a bascule bridge. On 6 June 1944, during the Second World War, the bridge was, along with the nearby Ranville Bridge over the Orne River (another road crossing, later renamed Horsa Bridge), the objective of members of D Company, 2nd (Airborne) Battalion, Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry, a glider-borne force who were part of the 6th Airlanding Brigade of the 6th Airborne Division during Operation Tonga in the opening minutes of the Allied invasion of Normandy. Under the command of Major John Howard, D Company was to land close by the bridges in six Airspeed Horsa gliders and, in a ''coup-de-main'' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Brittany Ferries
Brittany Ferries is the trading name of the French shipping company, BAI Bretagne Angleterre Irlande S.A. founded in 1973 by Alexis Gourvennec, that operates a fleet of ferries and cruiseferries between France and the United Kingdom, Ireland, and Spain, and between Spain and Ireland and the United Kingdom. History BAI (Bretagne Angleterre Irlande) S.A. was founded by Alexis Gourvennec. Working with fellow Breton farmers, Gourvennec lobbied for improvements to Brittany's infrastructure, including better roads, telephone network, education and port access. By 1972 he had successfully secured funding and work to develop a deep-water port at Roscoff. Gourvennec had no desire to run a ferry service, but existing operators showed little appetite for the opportunity. The company itself began sailings on 2 January 1973 between Roscoff in Brittany and Plymouth in the South West of England, using the freight ferry ''Kerisnel'', a former Israeli tank carrier. The company's primary aim a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Portsmouth
Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council. Portsmouth is the most densely populated city in the United Kingdom, with a population last recorded at 208,100. Portsmouth is located south-west of London and south-east of Southampton. Portsmouth is mostly located on Portsea Island; the only English city not on the mainland of Great Britain. Portsea Island has the third highest population in the British Isles after the islands of Great Britain and Ireland. Portsmouth also forms part of the regional South Hampshire conurbation, which includes the city of Southampton and the boroughs of Eastleigh, Fareham, Gosport, Havant and Waterlooville. Portsmouth is one of the world's best known ports, its history can be traced to Roman times and has been a significant Royal Navy dockyard and base for centuries. Portsm ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ferry
A ferry is a ship, watercraft or amphibious vehicle used to carry passengers, and sometimes vehicles and cargo, across a body of water. A passenger ferry with many stops, such as in Venice, Italy, is sometimes called a water bus or water taxi. Ferries form a part of the public transport systems of many waterside cities and islands, allowing direct transit between points at a capital cost much lower than bridges or tunnels. Ship connections of much larger distances (such as over long distances in water bodies like the Mediterranean Sea) may also be called ferry services, and many carry vehicles. History In ancient times The profession of the ferryman is embodied in Greek mythology in Charon, the boatman who transported souls across the River Styx to the Underworld. Speculation that a pair of oxen propelled a ship having a water wheel can be found in 4th century Roman literature "''Anonymus De Rebus Bellicis''". Though impractical, there is no reason why it could not ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
English Channel
The English Channel, "The Sleeve"; nrf, la Maunche, "The Sleeve" (Cotentinais) or ( Jèrriais), (Guernésiais), "The Channel"; br, Mor Breizh, "Sea of Brittany"; cy, Môr Udd, "Lord's Sea"; kw, Mor Bretannek, "British Sea"; nl, Het Kanaal, "The Channel"; german: Ärmelkanal, "Sleeve Channel" ( French: ''la Manche;'' also called the British Channel or simply the Channel) is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates Southern England from northern France. It links to the southern part of the North Sea by the Strait of Dover at its northeastern end. It is the busiest shipping area in the world. It is about long and varies in width from at its widest to at its narrowest in the Strait of Dover."English Channel". ''The Columbia Encyclopedia'', 2004. It is the smallest of the shallow seas around the continental shelf of Europe, covering an area of some . The Channel was a key factor in Britain becoming a naval superpower and has been utilised by Britain as a natural ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Philippe Kieffer
Philippe Kieffer (24 October 1899 – 20 November 1962), '' capitaine de frégate'' in the French Navy, was a French officer and political personality, and a hero of the Free French Forces. Life and career Born in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, to an Alsatian paternal family and an English mother, Philippe Kieffer obtained a diploma at the La Salle Extension University in Chicago and became a bank director in New York City. On 2 September 1939, aged 40, he volunteered for military service. He joined the French Navy, in which he was a reserve officer, a week later. He served on the battleship ''Courbet'', and at the headquarters of the Northern Fleet during the Battle of Dunkirk. He left for London on 19 June 1940 and joined the Free French Naval Forces (''Forces Navales Françaises Libres'') on 1 July 1940, the day they were founded. Speaking fluent English, he was asked to serve as a translator and cipher officer. Impressed by the techniques of the new British Commandos, formed i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis powers. World War II was a total war that directly involved more than 100 million personnel from more than 30 countries. The major participants in the war threw their entire economic, industrial, and scientific capabilities behind the war effort, blurring the distinction between civilian and military resources. Aircraft played a major role in the conflict, enabling the strategic bombing of population centres and deploying the only two nuclear weapons ever used in war. World War II was by far the deadliest conflict in human history; it resulted in 70 to 85 million fatalities, mostly among civilians. Tens of millions died due to genocides (including the Holocaust), starvation, massa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Merville, Nord
Merville (; West Flemish: ''Mergem'') is a commune in the Nord department and Hauts-de-France region of northern France. The town lies 13 kilometres north of Béthune, and 30 kilometres west of Lille. History Industry Located at the convergence of a canal system and a canalised river, Merville supported an extensive boat-building industry, with many different shipyards and chandlers located in the town. The industry went into decline in the post-war era and is today virtually extinct. First World War During the course of the First World War the village was completely destroyed. The 6th Jat Light Infantry were billeted here in 1915. The ''Merville Communal Cemetery and Extension'' is also located here. Notable buildings The parish church of St Peter in Merville is a very large capacity parish church, whose dimensions make it a prominent landmark, visible at considerable distances from the town. Merville is a parish of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Lille. The diocesan ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Colleville-sur-Mer
Colleville-sur-Mer (, literally ''Colleville on Sea'') is a commune in the Calvados department in Normandie region in northwestern France. History It was originally a farm owned by a certain ''Koli'', a Scandinavian settler in the Middle Ages. It shares the same etymology as the other Colleville in Normandy. During the conquest of England by William the Conqueror or following it, Gilbert de Colleville was given lands in England, it was from this Knight that the modern de Colville/Colvin/(Calvin in France,) family would develop, also including Clan Colville in Scotland and the Barony de Colville, of Castle Bytham in England. The beach next to the coastal village was one of the principal beachheads during the Normandy landings on 6 June 1944, designated Omaha Beach. Population Sights * Normandy American Cemetery and Memorial is located in Colleville-sur-Mer. * Notre-Dame de l'Assomption de Colleville: dated to the 12th or 13th century, a historical monument since ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bénouville, Calvados
Bénouville () is a commune in the Calvados department in the Normandy region in northwestern France. It is located on the Canal de Caen à la Mer close to Caen and Ouistreham. Sights * Château de Bénouville completed in 1777 by Claude Nicolas Ledoux * Pegasus Bridge * Memorial Pegasus D-Day and Pegasus Bridge Bénouville was the scene of the first - and possibly most vital - battle of the Allied invasion of Europe on D-Day, 6 June 1944 and the night before. From 12.15 am (British Double Summertime = 5 June at 23:15 hrs. German/Middle-European time), a reinforced company of glider-borne troops from the 2nd Batt. Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry, led by Major Reginald John Howard, landed around the bridge over the Caen Canal at Bénouville in three Horsa gliders and captured it from the Germans in a swift and dramatic attack. Control of this bridge was vital to the success of the whole Operation Overlord invasion, because it would be the route of any German ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Port-en-Bessin
Port-en-Bessin-Huppain () is a commune in the Calvados department in the Normandy region in northwestern France. The commune contains the two towns of Port-en-Bessin and Huppain. Population History The name ''Huppain'' stems from Norse/ Norwegian ''Oppheim'', reflecting the general Viking history of Normandy. The town was captured by Royal Marines of No. 47 (Royal Marine) Commando in Operation Aubery during the Normandy landings and used as the terminal for PLUTO (Pipe-Lines Under The Ocean). Media Port-en-Bessin was used to represent nearby Ouistreham in the 1962 film '' The Longest Day''. Sister cities * Saint-Pierre, Saint Pierre and Miquelon, (France), since 1976. See also *Communes of the Calvados department Gallery File:Ancien château de Villiers-sur-Port à Huppain.jpg, Château de Villiers-sur-Port File:Ancienne église de Villiers-sur-Port à Huppain.jpg, Église Saint-Nicolas de Villiers-sur-Port Image:Georges Seurat 011.jpg, ''Bridge and port of Po ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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