Pont-Farcy () is a former commune 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 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 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 ...

. Before 1 January 2018, it was part of the

Calvados Calvados (, , ) is a brandy from Normandy in France, made from apples or pears, or from apples with pears. History In France Apple orchards and brewers are mentioned as far back as the 8th century by Charlemagne. The first known record of Nor ...

department. On 1 January 2018, it was merged into the commune of

Tessy-Bocage Tessy-Bocage () is a commune in the department of Manche, northwestern France. The municipality was established on 1 January 2016 by merger of the former communes of Fervaches and Tessy-sur-Vire (the seat). On 1 January 2018, the former commune o ...

.Arrêté préfectoral
28 December 2017

History

Pont-Farcy has its origins in

Gallo-Roman Gallo-Roman culture was a consequence of the Romanization of Gauls under the rule of the Roman Empire. It was characterized by the Gaulish adoption or adaptation of Roman culture, language, morals and way of life in a uniquely Gaulish context ...

times: the town has always been an important crossing place due to its bridge over the

River Vire The Vire () is a river in Normandy, France whose course crosses the '' départements'' of Calvados and Manche, flowing through the towns of Vire, Saint-Lô and Isigny-sur-Mer, finally flowing out into the English Channel. Its main tributarie ...

. It was also passed through by the Dukes of Normandy. Before the 20th century, there is little evidence to suggest the village held much more than peasants; it probably wasn't considered a particularly important spot, as

Saint-Sever-Calvados Saint-Sever-Calvados () is a former commune in the Calvados department in the Normandy region in northwestern France. On 1 January 2017, it was merged into the new commune Noues de Sienne.Baie de Seine and the Normandy landing beaches. The village originally had a railway bridge over the Vire, but this was blown up by the

Nazi Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in ...

s upon their retreat from the village in 1944. Pont-Farcy was liberated by the American 35th Infantry Division on 2 August 1944. In the latter half of the 20th century the population has dropped from nearly 1,000 to about 500, although in recent years it has grown slightly. This has a lot to do with the Autoroute which passes just north of the village.

Population

Its inhabitants are known as ''Farcy-Pontains''.

Geography

The village is located on the D307a road, and the nearest sizable villages are

Villedieu-les-Poêles Villedieu-les-Poêles is a former commune in the Manche department in Normandy in north-western France. On 1 January 2016, it was merged into the new commune of Villedieu-les-Poêles-Rouffigny.Saint-Martin-des-Besaces to the northeast, Tessy-sur-Vire and

Saint-Lô Saint-Lô (, ; br, Sant Lo) is a commune in northwest France, the capital of the Manche department in the region of Normandy.

to the north, and

Sainte-Marie-Outre-l'Eau Sainte-Marie-Outre-l'Eau is a commune in the Calvados department in the Normandy region in northwestern France. The name roughly translates as ''Saint Mary beyond the Water''. Geography The village is located approximately 1 kilometre east f ...

, Beaumesnil and

Vire Vire () is a town and a former commune in the Calvados department in the Normandy region in northwestern France. On 1 January 2016, it was merged into the new commune of Vire Normandie. Geography The town is located on the river Vire. Much of i ...

to the south. Pont-Farcy is a small rural village, surrounded by many small hamlets (some of which are no more than a single farm); sizable settlements neighbouring Pont-Farcy are named above. Pont-Farcy has a petrol station, a

bar Bar or BAR may refer to: Food and drink * Bar (establishment), selling alcoholic beverages * Candy bar * Chocolate bar Science and technology * Bar (river morphology), a deposit of sediment * Bar (tropical cyclone), a layer of cloud * Bar (u ...

and

newsagents A newsagent's shop or simply newsagent's or paper shop (British English), newsagency (Australian English) or newsstand (American and Canadian English) is a business that sells newspapers, magazines, cigarettes, snacks and often items of local ...

, a

hotel A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. Facilities provided inside a hotel room may range from a modest-quality mattress in a small room to large suites with bigger, higher-quality beds, a dresser, a ref ...

and

restaurant A restaurant is a business that prepares and serves food and drinks to customers. Meals are generally served and eaten on the premises, but many restaurants also offer take-out and food delivery services. Restaurants vary greatly in appearan ...

called "Le Coq Hardi", a church with graveyard and a separate cemetery, the latter of which practices the French custom of naming the living on the tombstones (leaving the year of death blank). There is also a campsite along the banks of the River Vire, with an outdoor pursuits centre from which bikes and canoes can be hired.

Personalities

One of the village's most famous residents is the Russian-born artist

Timur D'Vatz Timur D'Vatz (born 16 April 1968 in Moscow, Russia) is a figurative painter. He began his education at the Republic College of Art (Uzbekistan) and London's Royal Academy of Arts The Royal Academy of Arts (RA) is an art institution based ...

, who is currently exhibiting in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

Venice Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 ...

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

and

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pontfarcy Former communes of Calvados (department) Manche communes articles needing translation from French Wikipedia