Mortain
| Mortain | ||
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| local community | Mortain Bocage | |
| region | Normandy | |
| Department | Some | |
| Arrondissement | Avranches | |
| Coordinates | 48 ° 39 ′ N , 0 ° 56 ′ W | |
| Post Code | 50140 | |
| Former INSEE code | 50359 | |
| Incorporation | January 1, 2016 | |
| status | Commune déléguée | |
Mortain is a town and commune Déléguée in the French community Mortain-Bocage with 1,531 inhabitants (2017) in the department of Manche in the region of Normandy .
geography
Mortain is on the banks of the River Cance .
history
On June 6, 1944 ( D-Day ) the Allies landed in Normandy . The plan for Operation Overlord was based on invasion plans drawn up from 1941.
Although the Allies had mobilized enormous forces, they made slow progress in places. Cherbourg in the north of the Cotentin Peninsula fell on June 26th after heavy American artillery fire and fierce street fighting ( Battle of Cherbourg ).
On July 25, the Americans attempted to break out of their bridgehead sector ( Operation Cobra ), which in the following days led to the Cotentin Peninsula being cut off as far as Avranches in the west . In the east, US units at Saint-Lô were able to quickly break through the German front after an initial delay. On August 6, the Germans started a counterattack at Mortain ( Liège company ) under the leading Mayor West , Field Marshal Günther von Kluge . But it was stopped after two days, which finally led to the Falaise pocket with the help of the British and Canadians fighting north .
With effect from January 1, 2016, the former municipalities of Bion , Mortain , Notre-Dame-du-Touchet , Saint-Jean-du-Corail and Villechien were merged to create a nouvelle commune with the name Mortain-Bocage. The municipality of Mortain belonged to the Arrondissement of Avranches and the Canton of Mortain .
Attractions
Sights that have survived centuries through the granite used in this former Norman fiefdom are for example the famous white abbey ( Abbaye Blanche ), as well as the collegiate church of St-Évroult . Other tourist attractions are the Grande Cascade and Petite Cascade waterfalls as well as the small chapel Petite Chapelle , from where, in good weather, you have a view of the 40 km distant Mont Saint Michel on the seashore.
Personalities
- Henri Breuil (1877–1961), priest and prehistoric
- Yves Pouliquen (1931–2020), ophthalmologist, medical researcher and university professor
partnership
Mortain had been twinning with Thannhausen in Bavaria (Germany) since 1981 . In the Partnership Square , doves of peace indicate this connection.
Web links
- Ville-mortain.fr (French)
Individual evidence
- ↑ La Seconde Guerre Mondiale on ville-mortain.fr ( Memento of the original from September 15, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. in French.
