Falaise () is a commune in the Calvados department in the

Normandy Normandy (; french: link=no, Normandie ; nrf, Normaundie, Nouormandie ; from Old French , plural of ''Normant'', originally from the word for "northman" in several Scandinavian languages) is a geographical and cultural region in Northwestern ...

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and the interaction of humanity and t ...

in northwestern France.

Geography

Falaise lies on the river

Ante Ante or Antes may refer to: * Ante (cards), an initial stake paid in a card game * Ante (poker), a forced bet in the game of poker * Ante (name), Croatian form of the given name Anthony * The Latin word ''ante'', meaning "before", which is used as ...

, a tributary of the river Dives, about southeast of

Caen Caen (, ; nrf, Kaem) is a commune in northwestern France. It is the prefecture of the department of Calvados. The city proper has 105,512 inhabitants (), while its functional urban area has 470,000, Falaise, as it is sited today, probably came into being around the castle. The town was the birthplace of

William the Conqueror William I; ang, WillelmI (Bates ''William the Conqueror'' p. 33– 9 September 1087), usually known as William the Conqueror and sometimes William the Bastard, was the first Norman king of England The monarchy of the United Kingdom, ...

, first of the Norman Kings of England. He was frequently referred to as William the Bastard, on account of his being born out of wedlock to

Herleva Herleva ( 1003 – c. 1050) was an 11th-century Norman woman known for having been mother of William the Conqueror, born to an extramarital relationship with Robert I, Duke of Normandy, and also of William's prominent half-brothers Odo of Bayeux ...

from Falaise, reputedly a tanner's daughter. The Château de Falaise (12th–13th century), which overlooks the town from a high crag (french: falaise), was formerly the seat of the Dukes of Normandy. Also, the Treaty of Falaise was signed at the castle in December 1174 between the captive

William I William I; ang, WillelmI (Bates ''William the Conqueror'' p. 33– 9 September 1087), usually known as William the Conqueror and sometimes William the Bastard, was the first Norman king of England, reigning from 1066 until his death in 108 ...

King of Scots The monarch of Scotland was the head of state of the Kingdom of Scotland. According to tradition, the first King of Scots was Kenneth I MacAlpin (), who founded the state in 843. Historically, the Kingdom of Scotland is thought to have grown ...

, and the Plantagenet King of England, Henry II. The town was also the place that Rabbi Yom Tov of Falaise, grandchild of

Rashi Shlomo Yitzchaki ( he, רבי שלמה יצחקי; la, Salomon Isaacides; french: Salomon de Troyes, 22 February 1040 – 13 July 1105), today generally known by the acronym Rashi (see below), was a medieval French rabbi and author of a compr ...

, held his rabbinical court. On 26 October 1851, a statue of William the Conqueror was inaugurated here (at his place of birth).

World War II

In modern times, it is known for the battle of the Falaise Pocket during the Allied reconquest of France (called

Operation Overlord Operation Overlord was the codename for the Battle of Normandy, the Allied operation that launched the successful invasion of German-occupied Western Europe during World War II. The operation was launched on 6 June 1944 (D-Day) with the Norm ...

) in August 1944 in which two German armies were encircled and destroyed by the Allied armies. Some 10,000 German troops were killed and 50,000 taken prisoner. Two-thirds of Falaise was destroyed by Allied bombing before the town was taken by a combined force of Canadian and Polish troops. Falaise was largely restored after the war.

Population

International relations

Falaise has been twinned with

Henley-on-Thames Henley-on-Thames ( ) is a town and civil parish on the River Thames in Oxfordshire, England, northeast of Reading, west of Maidenhead, southeast of Oxford and west of London (by road), near the tripoint of Oxfordshire, Berkshire and ...

in Oxfordshire, England, since 1974;

Bad Neustadt an der Saale Bad Neustadt an der Saale, officially Bad Neustadt a. d. Saale and often simply called Bad Neustadt, is a town in northern Bavaria, Germany. It is the capital of the Rhön-Grabfeld district in Lower Franconia. It is situated on the rivers Frä ...

in Germany since 1969;

Cassino Cassino () is a ''comune'' in the province of Frosinone, Southern Italy, at the southern end of the region of Lazio, the last city of the Latin Valley. Cassino is located at the foot of Monte Cairo near the confluence of the Gari and Liri ri ...

in Italy since 1975; and

Alma, Quebec Alma ( 2021 Town population: 30,331; CA Population 33,018; UA Population 26,016) is a town in Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean, in the Canadian province of Quebec. Geography Alma is located on the southeast coast of Lac Saint-Jean where it flows int ...

in Canada since 1969.

References

External links