commune
A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to:
Administrative-territorial entities
* Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township
** Communes of ...
in the
Manche
Manche (, ) is a coastal French département in Normandy, on the English Channel, which is known as ''La Manche'', literally "the sleeve", in French. It had a population of 495,045 in 2019.department
Department may refer to:
* Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility
Government and military
*Department (administrative division), a geographical and administrative division within a country, ...
in north-western
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
. On 1 January 2016, it was merged into the commune of
Sainte-Mère-Église
Sainte-Mère-Église () is a commune in the northwestern French department of Manche, in Normandy. On 1 January 2016, the former communes of Beuzeville-au-Plain, Chef-du-Pont, Écoquenéauville and Foucarville were merged into Sainte-Mère-Églis ...
.
Following World War II, for 21 months, tens of thousands of Nazi POWs were detained at an Allied prison camp in Foucarville. Officially called the Continental Prisoner of War Enclosure Number 19, it encompassed 306 acres, was powered by hydroelectric power and diesel generators, 2 hospitals, 50 kitchens serving 5 mess halls, 10 workshops, 4 churches 2 theaters and a soccer field. The last prisoners were re-integrated into society at the camp's close on 31 December 1948.Stoffer, Jeff. “The Compassionate Prison Camp.” The American Legion, 20 Feb. 2018, www.legion.org/magazine/241275/compassionate-prison-camp.