Colleville-Montgomery

Colleville-Montgomery
Colleville-Montgomery
Commune
	The church in Colleville-Montgomery
	Coat of arms
	Location of Colleville-Montgomery
	Colleville-Montgomery Colleville-Montgomery
	Coordinates: 49°17′00″N 0°18′00″W / 49.2833°N 0.3000°W
Country	France
Region	Normandy
Department	Calvados
Arrondissement	Caen
Canton	Ouistreham
Intercommunality	CU Caen la Mer
Government
• Mayor (2020–2026)	Frédéric Loinard
Area 1	7.74 km2 (2.99 sq mi)
Population (2021)	2,537
• Density	330/km2 (850/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+01:00 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00 (CEST)
INSEE/Postal code	14166 /14880
Elevation	3–58 m (9.8–190.3 ft) ; (avg. 10 m or 33 ft)
	1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

Colleville-Montgomery (French pronunciation: [kɔlvil mɔ̃ɡɔmʁi] ^ⓘ; formerly Colleville-sur-Orne) is a commune in the Calvados department in the Normandy region in northern France. It was known as Colleville-sur-Orne until 13 June 1946 to distinguish it from another town in the department, also in a coastal location, Colleville-sur-Mer. The new name honoured Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery, the senior-ranking British military commander who commanded the invasion of Normandy on 6 June 1944. There are two neighbouring towns in Calvados called Sainte-Foy-de-Montgommery and Saint-Germain-de-Montgommery, but they are named for Montgomery's family ancestors. They were part of William the Conqueror's invading army in 1066 and settled in England. The town was featured in the 1962 film, The Longest Day, detailing the French Resistance and their efforts on D-Day.

Sights

The Church

Built by Saint-Vigor, Bishop of the city of Bayeux (511-531), during the 11th and 12th centuries, it has two choirs and a Romanesque nave.

The first bay consists in barrel vaults. The other vaults are more recent, built at the same time as the arches which lead to the second choir, from the thirteenth century.

The side tower from the twelfth century for the lower part is of Romanesque design, and from the fifteenth century for the upper part with a terrace on top surrounded by a parapet, and contains three bells. The bell tower, partially destroyed during the liberation of the area, was reconstructed.

The windows were designed in the style of Gothic architecture and their stained glass were restored after World War II.

Hillman Fortress

Built by the German army in 1942, it consists of a complex of bunkers which are being restored since 1990 by an association called "Les Amis du Suffolk Régiment". Free guided visits are organised during the summer.