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5th Armored Division (United States)
The 5th Armored Division ("Victory") was an armored formation of the United States Army active from 1941 to 1945 and from 1950 to 1956. History The 5th Armored "Victory" Division was activated on 10 October 1941, and reached the United Kingdom in February 1944. Combat chronicle The division landed at Utah Beach on 24 July 1944 under the command of Major General Lunsford E. Oliver, and moved into combat on 2 August, driving south through Coutances, Avranches, and Vitré, and across the Mayenne River to seize the city of Le Mans, 8 August. Turning north, the division surrounded the Germans in Normandy by advancing, through Le Mêle-sur-Sarthe liberated on 11 August, to the edge of the city of Argentan on 12 August—8 days before the Argentan-Falaise Gap was closed. Turning Argentan over to the 90th Infantry Division, the 5th Armored advanced 80 miles to capture the Eure River Line at Dreux on 16 August. Bitter fighting was encountered in clearing the Eure-Seine corrido ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Armor Branch (United States)
The Armor Branch of the United States Army is an active armoured warfare, armored warfare combat arms branch. It was created provisionally in 1940 as Armored Force under the Chief of the Armored Force, Brigadier General Adna R. Chaffee, Jr. and took control of all tank units in infantry and cavalry units. History Even though the armor branch traces its lineage back to the original cavalry (United States), cavalry units, its first beginnings date from the First World War. The United States Tank Corps was established in 1918 but then split back into the Infantry and Cavalry in 1921. The Armored Command was headquartered at Ft. Knox, Kentucky, became effective on 2 July 1943, the Armored Center on 20 February 1944, and was discontinued on 30 October 1945. The Armor Center at Fort Knox Kentucky transferred to Fort Benning Georgia in 2010. United States Army Armor School is now located at Fort Benning. I Armored Corps (United States) was established, fought during Operation Torch ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Division (military)
A division is a large military unit or formation, usually consisting of between 6,000 and 25,000 soldiers. In most armies, a division is composed of several regiments or brigades; in turn, several divisions typically make up a corps. Historically, the division has been the default combined arms unit capable of independent operations. Smaller combined arms units, such as the American regimental combat team (RCT) during World War II, were used when conditions favored them. In recent times, modern Western militaries have begun adopting the smaller brigade combat team (similar to the RCT) as the default combined arms unit, with the division they belong to being less important. While the focus of this article is on army divisions, in naval usage " division" has a completely different meaning, referring to either an administrative/functional sub-unit of a department (e.g., fire control division of the weapons department) aboard naval and coast guard ships, shore commands, and in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dreux
Dreux () is a commune in the Eure-et-Loir department in northern France. Geography Dreux lies on the small river Blaise, a tributary of the Eure, about 35 km north of Chartres. Dreux station has rail connections to Argentan, Paris and Granville. The Route nationale 12 (Paris–Rennes) passes north of the town. History Dreux was known in ancient times as Durocassium, the capital of the Durocasses Celtic tribe. Despite the legend, its name was not related with Druids. The Romans established here a fortified camp known as Castrum Drocas. In the Middle Ages, Dreux was the centre of the County of Dreux. The first count of Dreux was Robert, the son of King Louis the Fat. The first large battle of the French Wars of Religion occurred at Dreux, on 19 December 1562, resulting in a hard-fought victory for the Catholic forces of the duc de Montmorency. In October 1983, the Front National won 55% of the vote in the second round of elections for the city council of Dreux, in one ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eure River
The Eure (; ) is a river between Normandy and Centre-Val de Loire in north-western France, left tributary of the Seine. It is long. It rises at Marchainville in the Orne department and joins the Seine near Pont-de-l'Arche. Two departments are named after the Eure, namely Eure and Eure-et-Loir. Places along the river: * Orne (61): Marchainville, La Lande-sur-Eure, Neuilly-sur-Eure. * Eure-et-Loir (28): Courville-sur-Eure, Saint-Georges-sur-Eure, Fontenay-sur-Eure, Chartres, Saint-Prest, Maintenon, Nogent-le-Roi, Mézières-en-Drouais, Cherisy, Anet. * Eure (27): Évreux, Ivry-la-Bataille, Garennes-sur-Eure, Bueil, Merey, Pacy-sur-Eure, Ménilles, Chambray, Croisy-sur-Eure, Autheuil-Authouillet, Acquigny, Louviers, Le Vaudreuil, Val de Reuil, Pont-de-l'Arche, Martot. Its main tributaries are the Avre, the Iton Iton () is a river in Normandy, France, left tributary of the river Eure. It is long. Its source is near Moulins-la-Marche. For about 10 km ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Argentan
Argentan () is a commune and the seat of two cantons and of an arrondissement in the Orne department in northwestern France. Argentan is located NE of Rennes, ENE of the Mont Saint-Michel, SE of Cherbourg, SSE of Caen, SW of Rouen and N of Le Mans. Argentan station has rail connections to Caen, Le Mans, Paris and Granville. History Argentan is situated near the river Orne. Although the region was heavily populated during the Gallo Roman period the town is not mentioned until 1025–1026. The toponym comes from the Gaulish words ("silver") and ("market"). The town grew in importance during the Middle Ages. Throughout the Middle Ages, Argentan alternated between prosperity and destruction, as English forces occupied the city several times. The Plantagenets had considered this town as one of the most important of Normandy. During the reign of Louis XIV, Colbert set Alençon against Argentan in an economic competition on lace making. Thus, the ''point d'Argentan'' ("Ar ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Le Mêle-sur-Sarthe
Le Mêle-sur-Sarthe (, literally ''Le Mêle on Sarthe'') is a commune in the Orne department in north-western France. Twin towns – sister cities Le Mêle-sur-Sarthe is twinned with: * Faringdon, United Kingdom ''(since 1990)'' * Königstein im Taunus, Germany * Libčany, Czech Republic See also *Communes of the Orne department *Parc naturel régional Normandie-Maine Normandie-Maine Regional Natural Park ( Fr.: ''Parc naturel régional Normandie-Maine'') is a protected area of forest and bocage located in the French regions of Normandy and Pays de la Loire. Geography Spanning the departments of Orne, Manch ... References Melesursarthe {{Orne-geo-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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 Europe, roughly coextensive with the historical Duchy of Normandy. Normandy comprises mainland Normandy (a part of France) and the Channel Islands (mostly the British Crown Dependencies). It covers . Its population is 3,499,280. The inhabitants of Normandy are known as Normans, and the region is the historic homeland of the Norman language. Large settlements include Rouen, Caen, Le Havre and Cherbourg. The cultural region of Normandy is roughly similar to the historical Duchy of Normandy, which includes small areas now part of the departments of Mayenne and Sarthe. The Channel Islands (French: ''Îles Anglo-Normandes'') are also historically part of Normandy; they cover and comprise two bailiwicks: Guernsey and Jersey, which a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Le Mans
Le Mans (, ) is a city in northwestern France on the Sarthe River where it meets the Huisne. Traditionally the capital of the province of Maine, it is now the capital of the Sarthe department and the seat of the Roman Catholic diocese of Le Mans. Le Mans is a part of the Pays de la Loire region. Its inhabitants are called ''Manceaux'' (male) and ''Mancelles'' (female). Since 1923, the city has hosted the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the world's oldest active endurance sports car race. History First mentioned by Claudius Ptolemy, the Roman city ''Vindinium'' was the capital of the Aulerci, a sub tribe of the Aedui. Le Mans is also known as ''Civitas Cenomanorum'' (City of the Cenomani), or ''Cenomanus''. Their city, seized by the Romans in 47 BC, was within the ancient Roman province of Gallia Lugdunensis. A 3rd-century amphitheatre is still visible. The '' thermae'' were demolished during the crisis of the third century when workers were mobilized to build the city's defensi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mayenne River
The Mayenne () is a long river in western France, principally located in the French region of Pays de la Loire. Together with the river Sarthe and its tributary the Loir it forms the Maine, which is a tributary to the Loire. Geography Its source is in the department of Orne near the commune of Lalacelle, between Pré-en-Pail and Alençon. The source is in the foothills of Mont des Avaloirs at an altitude of 961 feet (293m); from there the river runs from east to west until it reaches Sept-Forges, at which point it turns to the south. After being joined by the Oudon, the Mayenne forms a confluence with the Sarthe north of Angers. The confluence of these two rivers is called the Maine, which is the local pronunciation of Mayenne. The waters of the Maine then empty into the Loire south of Angers. Departments and towns along the river include: * Orne * Mayenne: Mayenne, Laval, Château-Gontier * Maine-et-Loire: Chenillé-Changé, Chambellay, Montreuil-sur-Maine, Le Lion-d'A ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Vitré, Ille-et-Vilaine
Vitré (; br, Gwitreg; gallo ''Vitræ'') is a commune in the Ille-et-Vilaine department in Brittany in northwestern France. Vitré, a sub-prefecture until 1926, is the seat of a canton of 17,798 inhabitants (2015). It lies on the edge of Brittany, near Normandy, Maine, and Anjou. The town has been designated a ''ville d'art et d'histoire'', a town of artistic and historic significance, by the Ministry of Culture in recognition of its rich cultural inheritance. Vitré is the 37th French city with the most historic buildings and has 14% of the historical monuments of the department. "If I was not King of France, I want to be bourgeois from Vitré!" Henry IV, King of France, surprised by the richness of the city in 1598. "The good fortune to see a Gothic city entire, complete, homogeneous, a few of which still remain, Nuremberg in Bavaria and Vittoria in Spain, can readily form an idea; or even smaller specimens, provided that they are well preserved, Vitré in Brittany, Nor ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Avranches
Avranches (; nrf, Avraunches) is a commune in the Manche department, and the region of Normandy, northwestern France. It is a subprefecture of the department. The inhabitants are called ''Avranchinais''. History By the end of the Roman period, the settlement of ''Ingena'', capital of the Abrincatui tribe, had taken the name of the tribe itself. This was the origin of the name ''Avranches''. In 511 the town became the seat of a bishopric (suppressed in 1790) and subsequently of a major Romanesque cathedral dedicated to Saint Andrew, Avranches Cathedral, which was dismantled during the French revolutionary period. As the region of Brittany emerged from the Roman region of Armorica, Avranchin was briefly held by Alan I, King of Brittany as part of the Kingdom of Brittany at the turn of the 10th century. The regions that later became the Duchies of Normandy and Brittany each experienced devastating Viking raids, with Brittany occupied by Vikings from 907 to 937. In 933 Avranches ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
