Merville-Franceville-Plage

Merville-Franceville-Plage
First aid post First aid post
Coat of arms
Merville-Franceville-Plage
Location within Lower Normandy region Merville-Franceville-Plage
Coordinates:
Country	France
Region	Normandy
Department	Calvados
Arrondissement	Caen
Canton	Cabourg
Intercommunality	Campagne et Baie de l'Orne
Government
• Mayor (2008–2014)	Olivier Paz
Area1	10.42 km2 (4.02 sq mi)
Population (2008)2	1,874
• Density	180/km2 (470/sq mi)
INSEE/Postal code	14409 / 14810
Elevation	0–42 m (0–138 ft) (avg. 14 m or 46 ft)
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries. 2 Population without double counting: residents of multiple communes (e.g., students and military personnel) only counted once.

Merville-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 14 km (8.7 mi) from Caen. Merville Franceville is located on the right/east side of the Baie de l'Orne.

The back country is a plain, favourable to cereal cultivation and dairy cattle.

Population

Historical population
Year	Pop.	±%
1962	948	—
1968	1,046	+10.3%
1975	1,184	+13.2%
1982	1,309	+10.6%
1990	1,317	+0.6%
1999	1,521	+15.5%
2008	1,874	+23.2%

Climate

The commune has a maritime climate : Winters are warm and summers rarely suffer from excessive heat.

Sights

• Redoute de Merville, fortification edified on Vauban's plans in 1779. Rediscovered by the occupying forces during World War II.

• Batterie de Merville or Merville Gun Battery is an historic site situated in the eastern flank of the landing area Sword Beach where Lieutenant-Colonel Terence Otway carried out a heroic mission with his men of the 9th Battalion of parachutists before the dawn of D-Day by neutralizing the artillery of the German battery.

Tourism

Merville Franceville is attractive for families, thanks to the various beach activities and excursions in the back-country.

This town is famous for being a good spot for kite surfing.

Twin towns

• Clyst St. Mary, England

See also

• Communes of the Calvados department

References

• INSEE

Photos

• Mairie de Merville-Franceville.jpg

  Town hall

• MF01.jpg

  seafront

• MF02.jpg

  low tide

• MF03.jpg

  footpath to the beach

• MF04.JPG

  miniature golf

• 

  former railway station now solicitor office

External links

• (fr-en) Tourist Office Website
• (fr-en) City council website