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Vire () is a town and a former
commune A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to: Administrative-territorial entities * Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township ** Communes of ...
in the
Calvados Calvados (, , ) is a brandy from Normandy in France, made from apples or pears, or from apples with pears. History In France Apple orchards and brewers are mentioned as far back as the 8th century by Charlemagne. The first known record of Nor ...
department in the
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 ...
region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics ( physical geography), human impact characteristics ( human geography), and the interaction of humanity an ...
in northwestern
France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
. On 1 January 2016, it was merged into the new commune of
Vire Normandie Vire Normandie () is a commune in the Calvados department and Normandy region of north-western France. It was established on 1 January 2016 as a result of the merger of the former communes of Vire (seat of the new municipality), Coulonces, Mais ...
.


Geography

The town is located on the river Vire. Much of its surroundings consist of the ''
bocage Bocage (, ) is a terrain of mixed woodland and pasture characteristic of parts of Northern France, Southern England, Ireland, the Netherlands and Northern Germany, in regions where pastoral farming is the dominant land use. ''Bocage'' may a ...
virois'', a type of mixed woodland and pasture common in Normandy.


History

In 1123,
King of England The monarchy of the United Kingdom, commonly referred to as the British monarchy, is the constitutional form of government by which a hereditary sovereign reigns as the head of state of the United Kingdom, the Crown Dependencies (the Baili ...
and
Duke of Normandy In the Middle Ages, the duke of Normandy was the ruler of the Duchy of Normandy in north-western France. The duchy arose out of a grant of land to the Viking leader Rollo by the French king Charles III in 911. In 924 and again in 933, Normand ...
Henry I Henry I may refer to: 876–1366 * Henry I the Fowler, King of Germany (876–936) * Henry I, Duke of Bavaria (died 955) * Henry I of Austria, Margrave of Austria (died 1018) * Henry I of France (1008–1060) * Henry I the Long, Margrave of the N ...
had a redoubt constructed on a rocky hill top, which was surrounded by the Vire river. The redoubt was stoned square at the bottom to assure the defense of the
Duchy of Normandy The Duchy of Normandy grew out of the 911 Treaty of Saint-Clair-sur-Epte between King Charles III of West Francia and the Viking leader Rollo. The duchy was named for its inhabitants, the Normans. From 1066 until 1204, as a result of the Norman c ...
against any attacks from
Brittany Brittany (; french: link=no, Bretagne ; br, Breizh, or ; Gallo: ''Bertaèyn'' ) is a peninsula, historical country and cultural area in the west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known as Armorica during the period ...
or
Maine Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and nor ...
. At the beginning of the 13th century, King Louis IX of France ordered that the existing stonework be supplemented with exterior ramparts. However the second precinct was finished only in the early the 14th century. At the end of the Middle Ages, the village prospered first with leather and then with textiles During the
Hundred Years' War The Hundred Years' War (; 1337–1453) was a series of armed conflicts between the kingdoms of England and France during the Late Middle Ages. It originated from disputed claims to the French throne between the English House of Plantagen ...
, Vire was plundered in 1368 by large military companies, and delivered to the English in 1418. The English occupation would end in 1450, with many considering it a time of brutality and oppression. Notably, the execution of Hugues Vaux, owner of the largest farm of the village, after refusing to give up his farm to the English sergeant Fields, caused much grief among the population. Some inhabitants nevertheless benefited from the English occupation. Eugène Vergny, who provided Fields with information about the movement of the French troops, received the property of Vaux after his execution. During the reign of
Louis XIII of France Louis XIII (; sometimes called the Just; 27 September 1601 – 14 May 1643) was King of France from 1610 until his death in 1643 and King of Navarre (as Louis II) from 1610 to 1620, when the crown of Navarre was merged with the French crow ...
, because a number of
Fortifications A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''face ...
of the
Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...
served in rebellions by the
Huguenots The Huguenots ( , also , ) were a religious group of French Protestants who held to the Reformed, or Calvinist, tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss political leader, the Genevan burgomaster B ...
in particular, the castle and its precinct were dismantled on orders of Richelieu. During the 19th century, the village did not respond well to the
Industrial Revolution The Industrial Revolution was the transition to new manufacturing processes in Great Britain, continental Europe, and the United States, that occurred during the period from around 1760 to about 1820–1840. This transition included going f ...
and went into an important recession. The castle of Tracy, the manor of 19th-century the French historian
Arcisse de Caumont Arcisse de Caumont (20 August 1801, Bayeux – 16 April 1873) was a French historian and archaeologist. Biography Arcisse Caumont was born at Bayeux to François de Caumont and Marie-Louise de Mathan Hue. One of his mentors was Charles de Gervil ...
, can be found just north of Vire in the old community of Neuville. Like many other Norman cities and villages, Vire suffered heavily from British bombings on June 6, 1944, or
D-Day The Normandy landings were the landing operations and associated airborne operations on Tuesday, 6 June 1944 of the Allied invasion of Normandy in Operation Overlord during World War II. Codenamed Operation Neptune and often referred to as ...
, during the
Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...
. 95% of the town was destroyed. One of the two target marking flare groups was out of alignment and much of the bombing fell across the town of Vire. The Master Bomber in charge of the operation identified the problem and issued corrections to the incoming aircraft. Much of the bombing from the first wave of aircraft fell across the town of Vire killing many of the inhabitants. It was a distressing night for many families. The reconstruction of began in the 1960s.


Population


Administration

In 1953, Vire was merged with the former commune of Neuville. In 1972, Vire was merged with the former commune of Saint-Martin-de-Tallevende. Since January 2016, it is a delegated commune within the commune
Vire Normandie Vire Normandie () is a commune in the Calvados department and Normandy region of north-western France. It was established on 1 January 2016 as a result of the merger of the former communes of Vire (seat of the new municipality), Coulonces, Mais ...
. Vire is part of the
canton of Vire Normandie The canton of Vire Normandie (before 2021: ''Vire'')Décret n° 2014-160 du 17 février 2014 portant délimitation des cantons dans le département du Calvados
/ref>


Transport

Vire has a large railway station ( Gare de Vire) which has frequent services to Paris and Granville. The nearest airport is
Caen – Carpiquet Airport Caen – Carpiquet Airport (French: ''Aéroport de Caen - Carpiquet)'' is an international airport located in Carpiquet, 6 km west of Caen, both ''communes'' of the Calvados ''département'' in the Normandy (formerly Lower Normandy) ''regio ...
in Caen (40 min drive). Vire is connected to Saint-Lô and
Cherbourg-en-Cotentin Cherbourg-en-Cotentin () is a city in the department of Manche, Normandy, northwestern France, established on 1 January 2016.
via RN 174 and to Caen via RD 577 and A84. Vire is also connected to Granville,
Villedieu-les-Poêles Villedieu-les-Poêles is a former commune in the Manche department in Normandy in north-western France. On 1 January 2016, it was merged into the new commune of Villedieu-les-Poêles-Rouffigny.Flers,
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 ...
,
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 Gra ...
and
Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. Si ...
via RD 924.


Gastronomy

*
Andouille Andouille ( , ; ; from Latin'induco') is a smoked sausage made using pork, originating in France. France In France, particularly Brittany and Normandy, the traditional ingredients of andouille are primarily pig chitterlings, tripe, onions, wi ...
, a speciality of Vire.


International relations

Vire is twinned with:


Personalities

*
Charles-Julien Lioult de Chênedollé Charles-Julien Lioult de Chênedollé (, 4 November 1769 – 2 December 1833) was a French poet. Life He was born at Vire (Calvados). His father was a member of the revenue court of Normandy. He early showed a vocation for poetry, but the outbrea ...
*
Henry I of England Henry I (c. 1068 – 1 December 1135), also known as Henry Beauclerc, was King of England from 1100 to his death in 1135. He was the fourth son of William the Conqueror and was educated in Latin and the liberal arts. On William's death in ...
* Francis Letellier *
Olivier Basselin Olivier Basselin (; ; was a French poet. Life He was born in the Val-de-Vire in Normandy about the end of the 14th century. He was by occupation a fuller, and tradition still points out the site of his mill. His drinking songs became famous unde ...
*
Thomas Pichon Thomas Pichon (30 March 1700 – 22 November 1781), also known as Thomas Tyrell, was a French government agent during Father Le Loutre's War. Pichon is renowned for betraying the French, Acadian and Mi’kmaq forces by providing information to t ...
* Raymond Lefebvre


See also

*
Communes of the Calvados department The following is a list of the 528 communes of the Calvados department of France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regio ...


References


External links

{{authority control Former communes of Calvados (department)