Écouché-les-Vallées () is a commune in the department of

Orne Orne (; or ) is a département in the northwest of France, named after the river Orne. It had a population of 279,942 in 2019.France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

. The municipality was established on 1 January 2016 by merger of the former communes of Batilly, La Courbe, Écouché (the seat), Loucé, Saint-Ouen-sur-Maire and Serans. On 1 January 2018, the former commune of Fontenai-sur-Orne was merged into Écouché-les-Vallées. Its seat, Écouché, is classed as a

Petites Cités de Caractère Petite Cité de Caractère is a label awarded to towns or villages that meet a set of criteria as set by the Petites Cités de Caractère de France. As of 2021 there are more than 200 communes listed as a Petite Cité de Caractère. History The la ...

Geography

The commune is made up of the following collection of villages and hamlets: La Courbe, Mesnil-Glaise, Le Haut du Château, Batilly, Treize Saints, L'Être Hubert, Saint-Ouen-sur-Maire, Serans, Écouché, Méheudin, Loucé, Noiseville, Le Hamel and Fontenai-sur-Orne. The parts of the commune that contains Batilly and La Courbe is part of the area known as Suisse Normande. Parts of the commune make up the area, the

Plaine d'Argentan The Plain d'Argentan (or Argentan Plain) is a natural region located in the center-north of the Orne department in Normandy, France. It is a cereal-growing plain surrounding the north, west, and south of the town of Argentan. The plain is bordered t ...

, which is known for its cereal growing fileds and horse stud farms. Écouché-les-Vallées along with another 65 communes is part of a 20,593 hectare,

Natura 2000 Natura 2000 is a network of nature protection areas in the territory of the European Union. It is made up of Special Areas of Conservation and Special Protection Areas designated under the Habitats Directive and the Birds Directive, respectiv ...

conservation area, called the

Haute vallée de l'Orne et affluents Haute vallée de l'Orne et affluents translated as the Upper Orne Valley and tributaries is a Natura 2000 conservation area that is 20,593 hectares in size. The site is managed by CPIE Collines normandes. Geography The area is focused on the sou ...

. The Commune has 5 rivers running through it with another 6 streams. The five rivers are the

Orne Orne (; or ) is a département in the northwest of France, named after the river Orne. It had a population of 279,942 in 2019.Swingolf course. *Gardens of Méheudin. is a 2 ha garden and

Arboretum An arboretum (: arboreta) is a botanical collection composed exclusively of trees and shrubs of a variety of species. Originally mostly created as a section in a larger garden or park for specimens of mostly non-local species, many modern arbor ...

in Écouché. The Garden was started in 1978 and features over 300 types of trees and ornamental shrubs.

National heritage sites

The Commune has 5 buildings and areas listed as a

Monument historique () is a designation given to some national heritage sites in France. It may also refer to the state procedure in France by which national heritage protection is extended to a building, a specific part of a building, a collection of buildings, ...

. *Lower grounds of la Courbe a barred spur from a

Protohistory Protohistory is the period between prehistory and written history, during which a culture or civilization has not yet developed writing, but other cultures that have developed writing have noted the existence of those pre-literate groups in the ...

site. *Upper Castle grounds a

site that still has remains of the ditches and embankments used for the castle. *la Queurie Lodge a 15th century manor in La Courbe. *Notre Dame Church a 13th century church in Ecouché. *Loucé Church a 12th century church in Loucé.

Notable People

* André Chéradame French

journalist A journalist is a person who gathers information in the form of text, audio or pictures, processes it into a newsworthy form and disseminates it to the public. This is called journalism. Roles Journalists can work in broadcast, print, advertis ...

and

scholar A scholar is a person who is a researcher or has expertise in an academic discipline. A scholar can also be an academic, who works as a professor, teacher, or researcher at a university. An academic usually holds an advanced degree or a termina ...

from the

École Libre des Sciences Politiques Sciences Po () or Sciences Po Paris, also known as the Paris Institute of Political Studies (), is a public research university located in Paris, France, that holds the status of ''grande école'' and the legal status of . The university's unde ...

born in 1871 in Ecouches.

Twin town

Elze Elze () is a town in the district of Hildesheim, in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is situated on the river Leine, approximately west of Hildesheim. The municipality of Elze also comprises the villages of ''Esbeck, Mehle, Sehlde, Sorsum, Wittenburg' ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

since 1971.

Transport

The commune has a Railway station in Écouché, that was opened in 1866 and serves part of the Argentan to Granville line.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ecouchelesvallees Communes of Orne Populated places established in 2016 2016 establishments in France Gardens in Orne Monuments historiques of Orne Arboreta in France