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Ste. Mere Eglise
This town not far from the
beach was captured by American paratroopers between 5th and 6th June
1944.
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Ponte du Hoc
A commanding high point used by
the Germans to place big artillery pieces, the Ponte was assaulted by a
team of American Army Rangers.
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Omaha Beach
Site of some of the bloodiest
battles fought on D-Day, the American landing soldiers faced the highest
casualties of the battle. A cemetery serves as a memorial to these
troops.
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Arromanches les Bains
Site of the British
landings. The remains of a giant port towed across the English Channel,
and called Winston, lies off the beach here.
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The Chateau
William the Conqueror, the Duke of
Normandy, famously invaded England in 1066. The chateau is built upon
his original fortress, offering a fine view of the town. Within the
chateau, the Musee de Normandie displays archeological finds from the
province, while the Musee des Beaux Arts is home to a collection of
classic paintings by Rembrandt, Titian and Veronese.
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Caen Memorial
A museum about the modern
history of the world since 1918, featuring exhibits about the role of
the United States from the Second World War up to the end of the Cold
War, and beyond.
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Eglise St. Etienne
Twin towers flank the front
façade of the abbey church. The naves are long and brooding, typical of
architecture from the 11th Century. The tomb of William the Conqueror
has been desecdrated, but is still marked with a marble slab.
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Rouen Cathedral
Captured in Monet’s famous
series of paintings, the cathedral is dominated by its two towers, the
tour le Beurre and the Tour Lanterne, which contains a carillon of 56
bells.
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Musee Jeanne d’Arc
Dedicated to the life story
of France’s National Heroine, the museum traces the history of her
birth, leadership in battles to her trail and execution in Rouen.
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Eglise St. Ouen
A Benedictine Abbey Church, it
is dominated by an octagonal lantern tower. Joan of Arc was taken to the
cemetery here to be burned at the stake.
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Rue du Gros Horloge
A pedestrian mall today,
this ‘Street of the Big Clock” was named for a Renaissance clock placed
on an arch over the street.
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Eglise Abbatiale
The abbey church crowns the
summit of the mountain, overlooking the entire island. Known as the
Marvel of the West, it held out as a symbol of French resistance to
English rule in the 14th - 15th Centuries. It is protected by a series
of ramparts and other buildings, collectively called La Merveille.
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Archeoscope
A small theatre featuring a show
known as Water and Light, recounting the historical role of the island
in the story of French nationhood.
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Musee Maritime et Archeologique
Featuring the
geographical peculiarities of the island such as its tidal flats, and
also the marine history of the island. |
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