Flers () is a

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

Orne Orne (; nrf, Ôrne or ) is a département in the northwest of France, named after the river Orne. It had a population of 279,942 in 2019.department in

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 ...

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 ...

. The inhabitants are called ''Flériens''.

Geography

Flers is bordered to the north by the communes of Saint-Georges-des-Groseillers and Aubusson, to the north-east by Ronfeugerai, to the west by La Lande-Patry and Saint-Paul, to the south-west by La Chapelle-Biche, La Chapelle-au-Moine and Messei, and to the south-east by La Selle-la-Forge. The commune is situated in the north-west of the Orne département, about ten kilometres from the border 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 ...

, an hour east of Granville, and two hours by train from

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. Si ...

. It depends on a

prefecture A prefecture (from the Latin ''Praefectura'') is an administrative jurisdiction traditionally governed by an appointed prefect. This can be a regional or local government subdivision in various countries, or a subdivision in certain international ...

located an hour north in

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,Noireau in Pont-Erembourg (commune of Saint-Denis-de-Méré).

Climate

Flers is part of the region that stretches from the

Bocage Bocage (, ) is a terrain of mixed woodland and pasture characteristic of parts of Northern France, Southern England, Ireland, the Netherlands and Northern Germany, in regions where pastoral farming is the dominant land use. ''Bocage'' may a ...

to the Écouves forest, the wettest part of the Orne département, with relatively mild temperatures thanks to its proximity to the

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 Ka ...

and the effect of the sea. It benefits from an oceanic climate with mild winters and temperate summers.

History

The first written mentions of Flers appear at the end of the twelfth century as ''Flers'' (1164–1179) or ''Flex'' (1188–1221). Some authors think that the name of the town derives from the

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

toponym ''Hlaeri'', meaning ''wasteland'' or ''common grazing land'', while others suggest an origin in the German ''Fliessen'', from the

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

''vliet'' or the

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through ...

''fluere''

''Fluere'', indicating a waterflow, basin or marsh. Yet another etymology links Flers to the Latin ''flexus'', meaning the bend in a road or river. Finally, the Breton term ''fler'' or ''flear'' means ''bad smell'', indicating the stench of stagnant water. All etymologies seem to agree however that the town is named for its topography and the water close to it.

Middle Ages

From the tenth century on, the ''de Flers'' family headed a barony. Tradition has it that in the 11th century, the two brothers Foulques d'Aunou and Guillaume de Gasprée married two sisters who were Ladies of Flers. Foulques d'Aunou received as his wedding gift Flers, seat of the barony. The construction of the castle of Flers began in the 12th century as a fortified location of wood and stone surrounded by water. The chronicles of the

Hundred Years War The Hundred Years' War (; 1337–1453) was a series of armed conflicts between the kingdoms of England and France during the Late Middle Ages. It originated from disputed claims to the French throne between the English House of Plantagene ...

do not mention a fortified place in Flers, revealing that it didn't present a major strategic interest at the time.

Construction of the castle

In 1790, in the revolutionary period, Flers formed a canton in the district of Domfront, in the Orne département. The countess of Flers, Jacqueline Le Goué de Richemont, wife of Pierre-François de Paule de La Motte-Ango, supported the counter-revolutionary

chouan Chouan ("the silent one", or "owl") is a French nickname. It was used as a nom de guerre by the Chouan brothers, most notably Jean Cottereau, better known as Jean Chouan, who led a major revolt in Bas-Maine against the French Revolution. Part ...

s. The castle of Flers became the headquarters of count

Louis de Frotté Marie Pierre Louis de Frotté (August 1, 1766 – February 18, 1800) was a French soldier and an opponent of the Republic during the Revolutionary Wars. Louis de Frotté was born in Alençon (Normandy). He joined the Royal Army in 1781, and wa ...

, one of the leaders of the Normandic

Chouannerie The Chouannerie (from the Chouan brothers, two of its leaders) was a royalist uprising or counter-revolution in twelve of the western ''départements'' of France, particularly in the provinces of Brittany and Maine, against the First Repub ...

Industrial Revolution

In 1901, Julien Salles, mayor of Flers, bought the castle for the community.

World War II

Like other towns near the D-Day landing, Flers was one of the targets of strategic

bombing of Normandy __NOTOC__ The Bombing of Normandy during the Normandy invasion was meant to destroy the German communication lines in the Norman cities and towns. However, very few Germans occupied these municipalities. German troops were mostly located outsid ...

on 6 and 7 June 1944, aimed at reducing the advance of German reinforcements. 80% of the town was destroyed. What remained of the town was liberated on 16 August by the British

11th Armoured Division The 11th Armoured Division was an armoured division of the British Army which was created in March 1941 during the Second World War. The division was formed in response to the unanticipated success of the German panzer divisions. The 11th Armour ...

and the memorial to the division is at Pont de Vère, north of Flers.

Heraldry

Demographics

Transport

Flers station is served by

TER Normandie TER Normandie is the regional rail network serving the region of Normandy, northwestern France. It is operated by the French national railway company SNCF. It was formed in 2016 from the previous TER networks TER Basse-Normandie and TER Haute-No ...

trains between

and Granville. It has a local bus system for Flers and the surrounding communities, and departmental lines connecting it with other major towns in Orne and Calvados. Flers also has a small airstrip

Monuments and interesting places

The castle, dating back to the 16th and 18th century, houses a museum of ancient and 19th century paintings and sculptures, applied art (furniture and decoration) and local history. Other interesting visits are the early 20th century neo-gothic Saint-Germain church and the 19th century neo-Romanesque Saint-Jean church, and the covered market built in 1883 on a former cemetery. Image:Chateau-Flers-2.jpg, Flers castle Image:Chateau_Flers_4.jpg, Flers castle File:FranceNormandieFlersMarcheCouvert.jpg, The covered market Image:Eglise_St_Germain_Flers_Orne.jpg, Saint-Germain church

Notable people

* Paulette Duhalde (1921–1945), heroine of the resistance, died when deported to Ravensbrück

Born in Flers

Jean-Pierre Brard Jean-Pierre Brard, (born 7 February 1948), is a French politician. Initially a teacher, he entered politics and was elected was deputy mayor of Montreuil, Seine-Saint-Denis, a post he held until 1984 when he was elected mayor of the same city. ...

, politician *

Tony Chapron Tony Chapron (born 23 April 1972) is a French former football referee. Born in Flers, Orne, Chapron took up refereeing in 1996 in conjunction with his job as an educational advisor. He became a full-time referee in 1998 and an international ref ...

, international football (soccer) referee * Gérard Larcher, President of the Senate of France * Patrice Lecornu, professional football (soccer) player * Alain Lemercier, racewalker * Sébastien Lewis, chef

Guy Mollet Guy Alcide Mollet (; 31 December 1905 – 3 October 1975) was a French politician. He led the socialist French Section of the Workers' International (SFIO) from 1946 to 1969 and was the French Prime Minister from 1956 to 1957. As Prime Minist ...

, politician *

François Morel François Morel (14 March 1926 – 14 January 2018) was a Canadian composer, pianist, conductor, and music educator. An associate of the Canadian Music Centre, he was made a Knight of the National Order of Quebec in 1994 and was awarded t ...

, comedian, writer and singer * Thibault Moulin footballer who plays for

Legia Warsaw Legia Warszawa (), commonly referred to as Legia Warsaw or simply Legia, is a professional football club based in Warsaw, Poland. Legia is the most successful Polish football club in history, winning record 15 Ekstraklasa champions titles, ...

Twin towns

Warminster Warminster () is an ancient market town with a nearby garrison, and civil parish in south west Wiltshire, England, on the western edge of Salisbury Plain. The parish had a population of about 17,000 in 2011. The 11th-century Minster Church o ...

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and ...

, since 1973 * Poundou,

Burkina Faso Burkina Faso (, ; , ff, 𞤄𞤵𞤪𞤳𞤭𞤲𞤢 𞤊𞤢𞤧𞤮, italic=no) is a landlocked country in West Africa with an area of , bordered by Mali to the northwest, Niger to the northeast, Benin to the southeast, Togo and Ghana t ...

, since 1977 *

Wunstorf Wunstorf () is a town in the district of Hanover, in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is situated approximately 22 km west of Hanover. The following localities belong to the town of Wunstorf: Blumenau (with Liethe), Bokeloh, Großenheidorn, Idensen ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwee ...

, since 1994