The French department of
Calvados (kal.va.dos) is part of the
regionFrance is divided into 27 administrative regions , 22 of which are in Metropolitan France, and five of which are overseas. Corsica is a territorial collectivity , but is considered a region in mainstream usage, and is even shown as such on the INSEE website...
of
Basse-NormandieLower Normandy is an administrative region of France. It was created in 1956, when the Normandy region was divided into Lower Normandy and Upper Normandy...
in
NormandyNormandy is a geographical region corresponding to the former Duchy of Normandy. It is in France.The continental territory covers 30,627 km² and forms the preponderant part of Normandy and roughly 5% of the territory of France. It is divided for administrative purposes into two régions:...
. It takes its name from a cluster of rocks off the English Channel coast. The pronunciation varies: in French the final 's' is not mute; in English usually Calvadoss with stress on the first syllable.
History
Calvados is one of the original 83 departments created during the
French RevolutionThe French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...
on 4 March 1790. It was created from a part of the
former provinceThe Kingdom of France was organised into provinces until March 4, 1790, when the establishment of the département system superseded provinces. The provinces of France were roughly equivalent to the historic counties of England...
of
NormandyNormandy is a geographical region corresponding to the former Duchy of Normandy. It is in France.The continental territory covers 30,627 km² and forms the preponderant part of Normandy and roughly 5% of the territory of France. It is divided for administrative purposes into two régions:...
. The name "Orne inférieure" was originally proposed for the department, but it was ultimately decided to call the area Calvados.
Its etymology is most likely derived from the
Salvador, a ship from the
Spanish ArmadaThis article refers to the Battle of Gravelines, for the modern navy of Spain, see Spanish NavyThe Spanish Armada was the Spanish fleet that sailed against England under the command of the Duke of Medina Sidonia in 1588, with the intention of overthrowing Elizabeth I of England to stop English...
that sank by the rocks near
Arromanches-les-bainsArromanches-les-Bains is a commune in the Calvados department in the Basse-Normandie region in north-western France....
in 1588. However, others insist that the name
Calvados was derived from
calva dorsa, meaning
bare backs, in reference to two sparsely vegetated rocks off its shore.
After the allied victory at
WaterlooThe Battle of Waterloo was fought on Sunday 18 June 1815 near Waterloo in present-day Belgium, then part of the United Kingdom of the Netherlands...
the department was occupied by
PrussianPrussia was a German kingdom and historic state originating out of the Duchy of Prussia and the Margraviate of Brandenburg. For centuries, the House of Hohenzollern ruled Prussia, successfully expanding its size by way of an unusually well-organized and effective army. Prussia shaped the history...
troopsThe Royal Prussian Army was the army of the Kingdom of Prussia. It was vital to the development of Brandenburg-Prussia as a European power.The Prussian Army had its roots in the meager mercenary forces of Brandenburg during the Thirty Years' War...
between June 1815 and November 1818.
On 6 June 1944, the
Allied forcesThe Allies of World War II were the countries that opposed the Axis powers during the Second World War . Former Axis states contributing to the Allied victory are not considered Allied states...
landed on the beaches of the Bay of the Seine in what became known as the Battle of Normandy.
Geography
Calvados belongs to the region of
Basse-NormandieLower Normandy is an administrative region of France. It was created in 1956, when the Normandy region was divided into Lower Normandy and Upper Normandy...
and is surrounded by the departments of
Seine-MaritimeSeine-Maritime is a French department in the Haute-Normandie region in northern France. It is situated on the northern coast of France, at the mouth of the Seine, and includes the cities of Rouen and Le Havre...
,
EureEure is a department in the north of France named after the river Eure.- History :Eure is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on 4 March 1790...
,
OrneOrne is a department in the northwest of France, named after the river Orne.- History :Orne is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution, on March 4, 1790. It was created from parts of the former provinces of Normandy and Perche.- Geography :Orne is in the region of...
and
MancheManche is a French department in Normandy named after La Manche , which is the French name for the English Channel.- History :Manche is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on March 4, 1790...
. To the north is the
Baie de la SeineThe Baie de la Seine or Baie de Seine is a bay in northern France.-Geography:It is a wide, rectangular inlet of the English Channel, approximately 100 kilometres by 45 kilometres, bounded in the west by the Cotentin Peninsula, in the south by the Normandy coast and in the east by the estuary of...
, part of the
English ChannelThe English Channel , often referred to simply as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates southern England from northern France, and joins the North Sea to the Atlantic. It is about long and varies in width from at its widest to in the Strait of Dover...
. On the east, the
Seine RiverThe Seine is a -long river and an important commercial waterway within the Paris Basin in the north of France. It rises at Saint-Seine near Dijon in northeastern France in the Langres plateau, flowing through Paris and into the English Channel at Le Havre . It is navigable by ocean-going vessels...
forms the boundary with Seine-Maritime. Calvados includes the
BessinThe Bessin is an area in Normandy, France, corresponding to the territory of the Bajocasse tribe of Gaul who also gave their name to the city of Bayeux, central town of the Bessin.-History:The territory was annexed by the Duchy of Normandy in 924....
area, the
Pays d'AugeThe Pays d'Auge is an area in Normandy, straddling the départements of Calvados and Orne . The chief town is Lisieux.-Geography:Generally it consists of the basin of the Touques River....
and the area known as the "Suisse normande" ("Norman Switzerland").
The most notable places in Calvados include
DeauvilleDeauville is a commune in the Calvados département in the Basse-Normandie region in northwestern France.With its racecourse, harbour, international film festival, marinas, conference centre, villas, Grand Casino and sumptuous hotels, Deauville is regarded as the "queen of the Norman beaches" and...
and the formerly elegant 19th-century
casinoIn modern English, a casino is a facility which houses and accommodates certain types of gambling activities. Casinos are most commonly built near or combined with hotels, restaurants, retail shopping, cruise ships or other tourist attractions...
resorts of the coast.
Economy
Agriculture dominates the economy of Calvados. The area is known for producing
butterButter is a dairy product made by churning fresh or fermented cream or milk. It is generally used as a spread and a condiment, as well as in cooking applications, such as baking, sauce making, and pan frying...
, cheese,
ciderCider or cyder is a fermented alcoholic beverage made from apple juice. Cider varies in alcohol content from 2% abv to 8.5% abv or more in traditional English ciders. In some regions, such as Germany and America, cider may be termed "apple wine"...
and Calvados, the apple-based
spiritA distilled beverage, liquor, or spirit is an alcoholic beverage containing ethanol that is produced by distilling ethanol produced by means of fermenting grain, fruit, or vegetables...
that takes its name from the area.
Politics
The President of the General Council is the centrist
Anne d'OrnanoAnne D'Ornano is the current President of the General Council of the French department of Calvados. She has been President of the department since 1991. She was a member of the Union for French Democracy until the UDF dissolved in 2007, and she did not join either of the UDF's claimed successors:...
. She is the wife of
Michel d'OrnanoMichel d'Ornano was a French politician. A descendant of both Marie Walewska and Philippe Antoine d'Ornano, he began his political career as mayor of Deauville in 1962...
, the former dominant figure of the right and centre in the department. The Conseil General of Calvados and
Devon County CouncilDevon County Council is the county council administering the English county of Devon. Based in the city of Exeter, the council covers the non-metropolitan county area of Devon...
signed a Twinning Charter in 1971 to develop links with the English county of
DevonDevon is a large county in southwestern England. The county is sometimes referred to as Devonshire, although the term is rarely used inside the county itself as the county has never been officially "shired", it often indicates a traditional or historical context.The county shares borders with...
.
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Socialist PartyThe Socialist Party is a social-democratic political party in France and the largest party of the French centre-left. It is one of the two major contemporary political parties in France, along with the center-right Union for a Popular Movement...
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Miscellaneous Right Miscellaneous Right in France refers to right-wing candidates that are not member of any large party. They either include small right-wing parties, dissidents expelled from their parties for running against their party's candidate, as well as candidates who were never formal members of a party...
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Union for a Popular MovementThe Union for a Popular Movement is a centre-right political party in France, and one of the two major contemporary political parties in the country along with the center-left Socialist Party...
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Left Radical PartyThe Radical Party of the Left is a minor social-liberal, and in opposition to its common understanding of its name, a moderate centre-left political party in France advocating radicalism, secularism to its french extend known as laïcité, progressivism, pro-Europeanism, individual freedom and...
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New CentreNew Centre , also known as the European Social Liberal Party is a centre-right political party in France, formed by the members of the Union for French Democracy – including a majority of former parliamentarians – who did not agree with François Bayrou's...
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MoDem The Democratic Movement , MoDem) is a centrist, social liberal and pro-European French political party that was founded by centrist politician François Bayrou to succeed his Union for French Democracy and to contest the 2007 legislative election, after his strong showing in the 2007 presidential...
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Demography
The inhabitants of Calvados are called "Calvadosiens" (male) and "Calvadosiennes" (female). In 1999, Calvados had 648,299 inhabitants, making it the 30th most populated French department.
Age distribution in Calvados:
- 75 years and older: 7.2%
- 60 – 74 years old: 13.16%
- 40 – 59 years old: 25.52%
- 20 – 39 years old: 28.53%
- 0 – 19 years old: 25.6%
Culture
The
Bayeux TapestryThe Bayeux Tapestry is an embroidered cloth—not an actual tapestry—nearly long, which depicts the events leading up to the Norman conquest of England concerning William, Duke of Normandy and Harold, Earl of Wessex, later King of England, and culminating in the Battle of Hastings...
is on display in
BayeuxBayeux is a commune in the Calvados department in Normandy in northwestern France.Bayeux is the home of the Bayeux Tapestry, which depicts the events leading up to the Norman conquest of England.-Administration:Bayeux is a sub-prefecture of Calvados...
and makes the city one of the most-visited tourist destinations in Normandy.
Juno Beach CentreThe Juno Beach Centre or, in French, Centre Juno Beach, is a museum located in Courseulles-sur-Mer in the Calvados region of Normandy, France...
at
Courseulles-sur-MerCourseulles-sur-Mer is a commune in the Calvados department in the Basse-Normandie region in northwestern France.It is a popular tourist destination not only with locals but also with international visitors who come to tour the Normandy landing beaches...
, Calvados, commemorates the
D-DayD-Day is a term often used in military parlance to denote the day on which a combat attack or operation is to be initiated. "D-Day" often represents a variable, designating the day upon which some significant event will occur or has occurred; see Military designation of days and hours for similar...
landing of the
CanadianCanada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
liberation forces at
Juno BeachJuno or Juno Beach was one of five sectors of the Allied invasion of German-occupied France in the Normandy landings on 6 June 1944, during the Second World War. The sector spanned from Saint-Aubin, a village just east of the British Gold sector, to Courseulles, just west of the British Sword sector...
during World War II in 1944. The cult of Saint
Thérèse de LisieuxSaint Thérèse of Lisieux , or Saint Thérèse of the Child Jesus and the Holy Face, born Marie-Françoise-Thérèse Martin, was a French Carmelite nun...
brings large numbers of people on
pilgrimageA pilgrimage is a journey or search of great moral or spiritual significance. Typically, it is a journey to a shrine or other location of importance to a person's beliefs and faith...
to
LisieuxLisieux is a commune in the Calvados department in the Basse-Normandie region in northwestern France.Lisieux is the capital of the Pays d'Auge area, which is characterised by valleys and hedged farmland...
, where she lived in a Carmelite convent. Every September, Deauville hosts the Festival of the American Movie and the beach resort of
CabourgCabourg is a commune in the Calvados department in the Basse-Normandie region of France.Cabourg belongs to the Paris Basin. The commune is located next to the sea and the back country is a plain, favourable to the cereal culture...
hosts the Festival of the Romantic Movie. Annually, the city of Caen celebrates the festival of the electronical cultures called "Nordik Impakt" & The festival of Beauregard, just around Caen.
The local dialect of the
Norman languageNorman is a Romance language and one of the Oïl languages. Norman can be classified as one of the northern Oïl languages along with Picard and Walloon...
is known as
AugeronAugeron is the Norman dialect of the Pays d'Auge. It is highly endangered. This dialect includes both coastal and inland areas.-Phonology:Augeron can be characterised by means of its position within the isoglosses that traverse the Norman-speaking territory...
. It is spoken by a minority of the population.
Tourism
Calvados is one of the most visited areas in France because of its seaside resorts which are among the most prestigious in France with their luxurious hotels, casinos, green countryside, manors, castles, the quiet, the chalk cliffs, the typical Norman houses, the history of William the Conqueror, Caen, Bayeux, Lisieux, the famous D-day beaches and numerous museums about the Second World War. The culinary specialties from the verdant countryside of Calvados are abundant: cider, calvados,
camembertCamembert is a commune in the Orne department in north-western France.It is most famous as the place where camembert cheese originated.Camembert has been called "The largest small village in France." This is because the area of the commune itself is out of proportion to the center of the village...
and
Pont-l'ÉvêquePont-l'Évêque is a French cheese, originally manufactured in the area around the commune of Pont-l'Évêque, between Deauville and Lisieux in the Calvados département of Basse-Normandie...
cheeses.
One of the advantage of Calvados is to be at fairly near large urban centers (Paris, Ile de France). Calvados is therefore often preferred for holidays and for weekends and sometimes considered as the
countryside of Paris .
Calvados, via the port of
OuistrehamOuistreham is a commune in the Calvados department' in the Basse-Normandie region in northwestern France.Ouistreham is a small port with fishing boats, leisure craft and a ferry-harbour. It serves as the port of the city of Caen. The town is about the mouth of the Canal de Caen à la...
, is an entrance to the continent from Britain. There are two airports:
Caen-CarpiquetCaen la Mer Airport or Aéroport de Caen la Mer is an airport located in Carpiquet and 6 km west of Caen, both communes of the Calvados département in the Basse-Normandie région of France....
and Deauville-Saint Gatien. The department of Calvados has several popular tourist areas: the
BessinThe Bessin is an area in Normandy, France, corresponding to the territory of the Bajocasse tribe of Gaul who also gave their name to the city of Bayeux, central town of the Bessin.-History:The territory was annexed by the Duchy of Normandy in 924....
, the Plain of
CaenCaen is a commune in northwestern France. It is the prefecture of the Calvados department and the capital of the Basse-Normandie region. It is located inland from the English Channel....
, the
BocageBocage is a Norman word which has entered both the French and English languages. It may refer to a small forest, a decorative element of leaves, a terrain of mixed woodland and pasture, or a type of rubble-work, comparable with the English use of 'rustic' in relation to garden...
Virois, the Côte de Nacre, the
Côte FleurieCôte Fleurie is part of the Lower Normandy coast on the English Channel in the North of the Pays d'Auge, it constitutes the Eastern coast of the department Calvados....
and the
Pays d'AugeThe Pays d'Auge is an area in Normandy, straddling the départements of Calvados and Orne . The chief town is Lisieux.-Geography:Generally it consists of the basin of the Touques River....
. Several beaches of Calvados are popular for water sports, including
CabourgCabourg is a commune in the Calvados department in the Basse-Normandie region of France.Cabourg belongs to the Paris Basin. The commune is located next to the sea and the back country is a plain, favourable to the cereal culture...
and
Merville-Franceville-PlageMerville-Franceville-Plage is a commune in the Calvados department in the Basse-Normandie region in northwestern France.-Geography:Merville-Franceville-Plage, more usually called Franceville, is situated on the Côte Fleurie, 6 km from Cabourg and from Caen...
.
Tourist capacity (2001):
- 7,818 hotel rooms
- 13,734 camping sites
- 1,176 beds (holiday villages)
- 619 rural gites
Municipalities with more than 10% of second homes
This ranking takes into account all the municipalities having over 10% of second homes in the departement of Calvados. 80% of owners are from the Paris area, 10% are English and 10% are local.
According to the general census of the population of 1 January 2006, 18.9% of housing available in the department were second homes.
Table
| City |
Municipal Population |
Number of homes |
Second home |
% Second home |
Villers-sur-Mer-Places of interest:Villers-sur-Mer is known for the large topiary dinosaurs facing the sea from the garden of the office of tourism. In certain years, a baby dinosaur is added to the garden....
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HoulgateHoulgate is a small tourist resort in northwestern France along the English Channel with a beach and a casino. It is a commune in the Drochon Valley, in the Calvados department in the Basse-Normandie region.-Pre-19th century:...
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TourgévilleTourgéville is a commune in the Calvados department in the Basse-Normandie region in northwestern France.The Deauville-Clairefontaine Racecourse is located on the territory of the commune.-Population:-References:*...
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| Benerville-sur-Mer Benerville-sur-Mer is a commune in the Calvados department in the Basse-Normandie region in northwestern France.-Population:-References:*...
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Colleville-sur-MerColleville-sur-Mer is a commune in the Calvados department in the Basse-Normandie region in northwestern France.The beach next to the coastal village was one of the principal beachheads during the Normandy landings on 6 June 1944, designated Omaha beach....
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| Blonville-sur-Mer Blonville-sur-Mer is a commune in the Calvados department in the Basse-Normandie region in northwestern France. It is a seaside resort on the Côte Fleurie with a long sandy beach.-Transport:Blonville-sur-Mer is on the line from Deauville to Dives-sur-Mer...
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DeauvilleDeauville is a commune in the Calvados département in the Basse-Normandie region in northwestern France.With its racecourse, harbour, international film festival, marinas, conference centre, villas, Grand Casino and sumptuous hotels, Deauville is regarded as the "queen of the Norman beaches" and...
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Merville-Franceville-PlageMerville-Franceville-Plage is a commune in the Calvados department in the Basse-Normandie region in northwestern France.-Geography:Merville-Franceville-Plage, more usually called Franceville, is situated on the Côte Fleurie, 6 km from Cabourg and from Caen...
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| Saint-Côme-de-Fresné Saint-Côme-de-Fresné is a commune in the Calvados department in the Basse-Normandie region in northwestern France.-Population:-References:*...
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| Asnelles Asnelles is a commune in the Calvados department in the Basse-Normandie region in northwestern France.-Population:...
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Trouville-sur-MerTrouville-sur-Mer, commonly referred to as Trouville, is a commune in the Calvados department in the Basse-Normandie region in northwestern France.Trouville-sur-Mer borders Deauville...
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| Courseulles-sur-Mer Courseulles-sur-Mer is a commune in the Calvados department in the Basse-Normandie region in northwestern France.It is a popular tourist destination not only with locals but also with international visitors who come to tour the Normandy landing beaches...
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| Grandcamp-Maisy Grandcamp-Maisy is a commune in the Calvados department in the Basse-Normandie region in northwestern France.-Geography:Grandcamp-Maisy is located on the coast, north east of Isigny-sur-Mer and west of Pointe du Hoc...
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Bernières-sur-MerBernières-sur-Mer is a commune in the Calvados department in the Basse-Normandie region in northwestern France.In 1944, Le Régiment de la Chaudière, a French Canadian infantry unit, came ashore at Bernières-sur-Mer as a part of Operation Overlord, the D-Day landings which began the liberation of...
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Arromanches-les-BainsArromanches-les-Bains is a commune in the Calvados department in the Basse-Normandie region in north-western France....
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| Bonneville-la-Louvet Bonneville-la-Louvet is a commune in the Calvados department in the Basse-Normandie region in northwestern France.-Geography:The commune is located in the heart of the Pays d'Auge, 12 km from Pont l'Evêque and 26 minutes away from the ocean....
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| Hermanville-sur-Mer Hermanville-sur-Mer is a commune in the Calvados department in the Basse-Normandie region in northwestern France.-Population:-Sights:* 13th century church* Commonwealth war cemetery* Old village center...
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| Colleville-Montgomery Colleville-Montgomery is a commune in the Calvados department in the Basse-Normandie region in northern France.-Sights:* The ChurchBuilt by Saint-Vigor, Bishop of the city of Bayeux , during the 11th and 12th centuries, it has two choirs and a Romanesque nave.The first bay consists in barrel vaults...
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| Dives-sur-Mer -Transport:Dives-sur-Mer is on the line from Deauville to Dives-sur-Mer. The station is open, train services operate year round at weekends as well as on week days during the summer season. Dives is also on line #20 of the Calvados bus company Bus Verts du Calvados....
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Luc-sur-MerLuc-sur-Mer is a commune in the Calvados department in the Basse-Normandie region in northwestern France.-Population:-Sights:* The "Maison de la Baleine". On January 15, 1885 a 40 ton and 19 meters long whale beached in Luc sur Mer...
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| Saint-Gatien-des-Bois Saint-Gatien-des-Bois is a commune in the Calvados in the Basse-Normandie region in northwestern France.-Population:-References:*...
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OuistrehamOuistreham is a commune in the Calvados department' in the Basse-Normandie region in northwestern France.Ouistreham is a small port with fishing boats, leisure craft and a ferry-harbour. It serves as the port of the city of Caen. The town is about the mouth of the Canal de Caen à la...
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Lion-sur-MerLion-sur-Mer is a commune in the Calvados département in the Basse-Normandie region in northwestern France.-Geography:Lion-sur-Mer is located on the edge of the English Channel, more precisely on the Côte de Nacre , about North of Caen.The beach is made of fine sand and is bordered, to the west,...
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| Touques Touques can refer to:* Touques, a commune of the Calvados département, in northern France,* Touques , a small coastal river in Normandy, France,...
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Port-en-Bessin-HuppainPort-en-Bessin-Huppain is a commune in the Calvados department in the Basse-Normandie region in northwestern France.The commune contains the two towns of Port-en-Bessin and Huppain.-Population:-Media:...
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| Honfleur Honfleur is a commune in the Calvados department in northwestern France. It is located on the southern bank of the estuary of the Seine across from le Havre and very close to the exit of the Pont de Normandie...
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Sport
Aquatic sports are often played on the coasts and beaches, for example, kite surfing and beach volleyball. For the season 2007/2008, the Football team of Caen will play in the Ligue 1 French championship (Elite).
See also
- Cantons of the Calvados department
- Communes of the Calvados department
- Arrondissements of the Calvados department
External links
Calvados Stratégie – Calvados Development Agency Economic news from Calvados General Council website Prefecture website
Encyclopædia Britannica's guide to D-Day