Grandcamp-Maisy

French commune
nomcommune=Grandcamp-Maisy
région=Basse-Normandie
département=Calvados
arrondissement=Bayeux
canton=Isigny-sur-Mer
insee=14312
cp=14450
maire=
mandat=
intercomm=
longitude=-1.04
latitude=49.3883
alt moy=50 m
alt mini=0
alt maxi=34 m
hectares=1485
km²=14.85
sans=1831
date-sans=1999
dens=123
date-dens=1999

Grandcamp-Maisy is a commune in the commune in the Calvados department in the Basse-Normandie region in northern France.

It is located on the coast, convert|9|km|mi|1 north east of Isigny-sur-Mer and convert|4|km|mi|1 west of Pointe du Hoc. Grandcamp-Maisy is an active fishing port, with a fish market located on the harbour side.

History

In 1 November 1972, the commune formerly known as Grandcamp-les-Bains amalgamated with Maisy (Its old INSEE code was 14392) and changed its name to Grandcamp-Maisy.

Grandcamp-Maisy formed a part of the Atlantic Wall, the German defences against D-Day in 1944.The Germans installed two batteries at this location. The first was called La Martine, manned by the 8/AR 1716. They were equipped with four cannon of Czech origin of the type FH14/19, with a caliber of 100 mm. These guns had a range of just under 10 km. Three of the cannons were housed in type H669 casemates with the fourth still in the open at the time of D-day. The second position five hundred meters to the east was named La Perruque had guns of a larger caliber. four French howitzers type F414 (155 mm), these guns dated from the end of World War One. Three had been placed in the open, but three personnel bunkers were built on the site. Two type H622 and one type H502. These French howitzers had a range of 11 km. The Regiment based here was 9/AR 1716. Both sites were protected by mine fields, and anti aircraft emplacements.Until recently the site was overgrown had been subject to landfill just after the liberation. This was before any historians had chance to look at the site. All that has now changed, Gary Sterne an Englishman has purchased some of the site with the intention of turning it into a museum. From his research it is obvious that the site is many times larger that was originally thought. The labyrinth of underground tunnels has a secret entrance that had remained hidden for around 60 years.It contains an office, a supplies house, a general quarters, radio room and many other blocks including an underground hospital.It may well be that when all the site is cleared and all the bunkers that are buried are rediscovered, that this site is largest on the Atlantic Wall in Normandy.The sheer size of the site poses many questions as to why it does not feature more prominently in German records, and why the site did not have more attention paid to it by the Allies. It was bombed, but not hit to any extent before D-day, and on D-day H.M.S. Hawkins claims to have put the guns out of action. The three casemates show no sign of damage from the front, only superficial damage from the east. This was the direction the battery was attacked on June 9th. H.M.S. Hawkins also claims to have put the battery at St. Martin de Varreville out of action, it is a well known factFact|date=August 2008 that the guns were not there on the morning of D-day, and had been moved further north. The town became the headquarters of General Bradley after it was liberated on June 9th.

The site has been excavated and will be opened as a Museum in the summer of 2007.

ee also

*Communes of the Calvados department

References

* [http://www.atlantikwall.org.uk/grandcamp_maisy.htm Atlantic Wall site]