Asnelles

Asnelles () is a commune in the Calvados department in the Normandy region of north-western France.

Geography

Asnelles is located at the seaside some 13 km north-east of Bayeux and 10 west of Courseulles-sur-Mer. Access to the commune is by the D514 road from Saint-Côme-de-Fresné in the west passing through the town and continuing to Ver-sur-Mer in the east. The D65 road from Arromanches to Meuvaines passes through the south of the commune. The D65A links the D514 to the D65. A large part of the commune is residential with the sea shore fully urban but some 50% of the commune is farmland.

The Gronde river passes through the heart of the commune from south to north emptying into the English Channel.

Administration

thumb|The Town Hall

List of Successive Mayors

{| class="wikitable"

! From !! To !! Name !! Party !! Position

| || 2001 || Emmanuel Deneffle || ||

| 2001 || 2001 || Jean-Pierre Malo || || Chemical Engineer

| 2001 || 2026 || Alain Scribe || || Retired marketing consultant

The municipal council is composed of 15 members with 4 deputy mayors.

Twinning

Asnelles has twinning associations with:

Charmouth (United Kingdom) since 1985.

center|800px|Panoramic view of Asnelles

Demography

The inhabitants of the commune are known as Asnellois or Asnelloises in French.

Economy

Asnelles is a beach resort located on the Côte de Nacre. It has a beautiful sandy beach which is adjacent to the Arromanches beach. It also has a land sailing club. Asnelle is located on the Circuit of the landing beaches in Normandy. The commune has created a hiking trail called La Sente au Bâtard in honour of William the Conqueror.

Culture and heritage

Civil heritage

Asnelles has many buildings and structures that are classified as historical monuments as well as other points of interest that are not registered. They are:

Farmhouse at 19 Rue de la Cavée (1782)18px
Lavoir (Public laundry) at Rue du Débarquement (19th century)18px
Chateau at 1 Rue du Débarquement (18th century)18px
Maison le Mesnil at 2 Rue du Débarquement (18th century)18px
House at 12-14 Rue de l'Eglise (17th century)18px
Farmhouse at 36 Rue de l'Eglise (19th century)18px
Abri Sainte-Thérèse House at 8 Rue de l'Eglise (19th century)18px
House at 12 Rue du Front de Mar (1945)18px
Villa Cosson (Les Tourelles) at 15 Route de la Libération (19th century)18px
Villa Neptune at 17 Route de la Libération (19th century)18px
Villa les Tamaris (Centre Fernand Leconte) at 21 Route de la Libération (19th century)18px
Villa Carrée at 23 Route de la Libération (1874)18px
Stone Bridge at Rue Paul Hélaine (1846)18px
House at 2 Rue des Pérelles (19th century)18px
Fire Station at Rue de Southampton (1873)18px
Commerce House at 17 Rue de Southampton (19th century)18px
Château d'Asnelles at 42 Rue de Southampton (19th century)18px
House at 53 Rue de Southampton (1958)18px
Beach defence battery (1942)18px
Tithe Barn (14th century)18px
Town Hall, Post Office, and Primary School (19th century)18px
Village (12th-19th centuries)18px
Houses and Hotels (16th - 20th century)18px
Phoenix Caissons (offshore), were used for building Levees and jetties for the Mulberry harbour after the landings and for Bunkers on the coast.
Sente au Bâtard (walking path) (William the Conqueror passed there according to legend).
The Biscuit Factory famous for their Shortbread of Asnelles
La Gronde river
Seaweed beach

File:Lavoir Asnelles Calvados.JPG|The Lavoir (Public laundry)

File:Asnelles, Villa Neptune.JPG|Villa Neptune

File:Pont Asnelles.JPG|The Stone Bridge

File:Asnelles, remise de pompe à incendie.JPG|The Fire Station

File:Asnelles, batterie.JPG|The Beach defence battery

File:Asnelles, grange aux dîmes, façade ouest.JPG|The tithe barn

File:La biscuiterie d'Asnelles.JPG|The Biscuit Factory

</gallery>

Religious heritage

A number of religious buildings and structures have been registered as historical monuments. These are:

Presbytery (18th century)18px
Monumental Cross at Rue de Southampton (19th century)18px
Parish Church of Saint-Martin (12th century)18px

The Church of Saint Martin contains many items which are registered as historical objects. These are:

A Chasuble (ornamented in gold) (19th century)18px
2 Copes (ornamented in rose) (19th century)18px
A Cope (ornamented in rose) (19th century)18px
A Cope (ornamented in violet) (19th century)18px
2 Candlesticks (torches) (18th & 19th centuries)18px
2 Candelabra (19th century)18px
A Candlestick (torch) (19th century)18px
A Ciborium for the sick (19th & 20th centuries)18px
2 Ciboriums (19th & 20th centuries)18px
A Ciborium (19th century)18px
A Paten (19th century)18px
4 Altar Candlesticks (19th century)18px
3 Chalices with patens (19th century)18px
A Chalice with paten (19th century)18px
A Chalice with paten (19th century)18px
A Chalice (19th century)18px
A Statue: Saint Pierre (19th century)18px
A Statue: Notre-Dame des flots (17th century)18px
2 Altars, Retables, and Tabernacles (Secondary Altars) (19th century)18px
A Painting: Annunciation (18th century)18px
A Retable (18th century)18px
The Main Altar with Retable (17th & 19th centuries)18px
A Stained glass window (20th century)18px
A Stained glass window: Notre-Dame des flots (1931)18px
A Hagiographic Stained glass window: Charity of Saint Martin (19th century)18px
A Figurative Stained glass window: Bon Pasteur (19th century)18px
7 Allegorical Stained glass windows (20th century)18px
The Furniture in the Church of Saint-Martin18px

File:Asnelles, ancien presbytère.JPG|The Presbytery

File:Le calvaire d'Asnelles.JPG|The Monumental cross

File:FranceNormandieAsnellesEglise.jpg|The Church of Saint-Martin

File:Asnelles (14) Façade nord dela nef de l'église.JPG|North side of the Church

File:Asnelles, appareil en arête-de-poisson, façade sud de l'église.JPG|South side of the Church

File:Asnelles, croix de cimetière.JPG|A Cross in the church cemetery

</gallery>

Events

The Festival of the Sea takes place on 15 August every two years in odd years.

Notable people linked to the commune

Maurice Schumann (1911–1998), Companion of the Liberation, politician and journalist, is buried in the new municipal cemetery of Asnelles.
Théodore Labbey (1804–1873), Mayor of Asnelles under the French Second Empire and author of the first book on the history of the commune: Asnelles, paintings and memories, 1865.
Chigouesnel, magistrate, author of the monumental New History of Bayeux, 1867.
Jean Elivaire (1824 at Courseulles to 1862 at Courseulles), architect of some resort villas in the Côte de Nacre, a hotel on the street on the waterfront

Bibliography

Labbey (Théodore), Asnelles, paintings and memories, Typographie Saint-Ange Duvant, Bayeux, 1865.
Chanterenne (H. de), Analysis of old parish registers - Asnelles-sur-mer, Meuvaines, Henri Delesques, Caen, 1912.
Pouchain (Gérard), Asnelles and its history, photography by Pierre Touraine, Imprimerie La Renaissance du Bessin, Bayeux, 1973.
Pouchain (Gérard), Asnelles-la-Belle-Plage in postcards, Imprimerie Lebrun, Caen, 1979.
Pouchain (Gérard), Asnelles-sur-Mer, preface by Alain Garnavault and Gilbert Rameaux, photography by Pierre Touraine, La Renaissance du Bessin, Bayeux, 1990.
Ducouret (Bernard), Villas of Arromanches-les-Bains, Asnelles, Tracy-sur-Mer, Ver-sur-Mer, Itineraries of heritage, 1993.
Pouchain (Gérard), Asnelles-la-Belle-Plage and its surroundings, preface by Frédéric Gavard, Éditions Charles Corlet, Condé-sur-Noireau, 1997.
Le Bessin, Churches of the heart, "Saint-Martin d'Asnelles", A.D.T.L.B., 1997.
Pouchain (Gérard), The Church of Saint-Martin of Asnelles, preface by Monseigneur Pierre Pican, Bishop of Bayeux and Lisieux, Éditions Charles Corlet, Condé-sur-Noireau, 1999.
Pouchain (Gérard), Sea bathing and thermalism in Normandy, Birth of sea bathing at Asnelles, Acts of the 36th congress of Historical and Archaeological societies of Normandy, Annales de Normandie, Caen, 2002.
Saunders (Tim), Gold beach - Jig, Jig sector and west - June 1944, Leo Cooper, 2002.
Pouchain (Gérard), 100 Postcards of Asnelles during the Belle Époque, Éditions Charles Corlet, Condé-sur-Noireau, 2003.
Hargrove (Charles), Asnelles, 6 June 1944, preface by Admiral Brac de La Perrière, Collection Histoires normandes, Esther Flon Éditions, Lisieux, 2004.
Benamou (Jean-Pierre), Gold beach, Collection Memory 1944, OREP Éditions, 2004.
Trew (Simon), Gold beach, Sutton publishing, 2004.
Cormier (Antoine) and Vermont (Bertrand), It was then a town by the sea, Les Sablés d'Asnelles, Les Tourelles, 2004.
Meigh (Harry J), My memories of the campaign in Normandy, June 1944, (s.n.), (s.d.).
Pouchain (Gérard), Asnelles in the Press (1808–1873), 2005; Asnelles in the Press (1874–1892), 2006; Asnelles in the Press (1893–1901), 2007, La Renaissance du Bessin, Bayeux, Asnelles in the Press (1902–1921), 2008; Asnelles in the Press (1922–1937), 2009; Asnelles in the Press (1938–1957), Diamen, Bayeux.
Pouchain (Gérard), Asnelles the beautiful beach (1894–1896), photography by Philibert Bonvillain, Diamen, Bayeux, 2008.
Pouchain (Gérard), The Marcia C. Day, [Les Tamaris, Les Tourelles, Les Sablés d'Asnelles], Diamen, Bayeux, 2008.
Pouchain (Gérard), 6 June 1944, Asnelles - Le Hamel, (Les Tamaris, Les Tourelles, Les Sablés d'Asnelles), Diamen, Bayeux, 2010.
Pouchain (Gérard), Maurice Schumann - Asnelles and Bayeux, places of Liberty and Fidelity (6 June 1944 – 13 February 1998), 2011, Diamen, Bayeux.
Le Trait d'union (Parish journal), 1932-1937 and 1948-1958.
La Belle Plage (School journal), 1949-1964.
Asnelles Informations (Municipal journal), 1983-1993.
Asnelles Infos (Municipal journal), 1995-2000.
Asnelles Nouvelles (Municipal journal), depuis 2001.
La Renaissance Le Bessin - Côte de Nacre, Asnelles à la loupe, 2 August 2005.
Ducouret (Bernard) and Perrein (Christian), Topographic Inventory of Asnelles, Base Mérimée (Ministry of Culture website), 1990.