Argences () is a commune in the Calvados department in the Normandy region of north-western France. It is in the urban area of Caen, 15 kilometres from the city.
The commune has been awarded one flower by the National Council of Towns and Villages in Bloom in the Competition of cities and villages in Bloom.Argences in the Competition for Towns and Villages in Bloom
Geography Argences is some 15 km south-east of Caen and 1 km north of Moult. Access to the commune is by the D37 road from Saint-Pair in the north passing through the commune and the town and continuing to Moult in the south. The D41 road goes east from the town to join the D613 to Caen at Vimont. The D80 road also goes north-east from the town to Saint-Pierre-du-Jonquet. Apart from the town there are also the hamlets of Le Fresne to the north, Le Mesnil in the north-east, and Le Croix de Moult south of the town. The commune consists of a large residential area in the town with a large forest in the north-east (the Bois de Saint-Gilles) with small scattered forests but mostly farmland.Google Maps
The Muane river flows through the town and the commune from south to north.
History In 989, Richard I of Normandy donated land to the Abbey of Fécamp for the curates of Mondeville and Argences. From that date, the domain of Mondeville was managed as an ecclesiastical fief by the Barony of Argences. During the ducal era the wines of Argences were highly regarded.Jean Renaud, The Vikings and Normandy, éditions Ouest-France université, 1989.
In 1912, the large tile factory at Fresne built a railway line 4 km long connecting Argences to Moult-Argences Station in Moult on the Paris-Cherbourg line. The line from Argences was closed in 1931 and the nearest station is now Moult-Argences (TER Basse-Normandie).
On 16 April 1942, a group of resistance fighters derailed a Maastricht-Cherbourg train two kilometres from Moult-Argences station in Airan commune causing 28 dead and 19 wounded - all German soldiers. On 30 April of that year, in revenge for German retaliation, a new derailment of the same train killed 10 German soldiers and wounded 22 others.The double derailment at Moult-Argences and the hostages of Calvados, Claudine Cardon-Hamet
Heraldry
Administration List of MayorsList of Mayors of France
From To Name Party Position 1790 1791 Pierre Michel Gouget 1791 1792 André Pierre Duval-Destin 1792 1794 Robert Lesage 1794 1795 Nicolas Guillaume Moulin 1795 1796 Pierre Robert Caillouie 1796 1797 Joseph Bornet 1797 1798 Jean Mathieu Duport 1798 1799 Joseph Bornet 1799 1799 Nicolas Guillaume Moulin 1799 1800 André Halbique 1800 1806 Pierre Duval-Destin 1806 1808 Pierre Robert Cailloue 1808 1812 François Huillard 1812 1815 Ferdinand Desessarts 1815 1826 Nicolas Moulin 1826 1828 Jean Baptiste Honore 1828 1830 Jean Duport 1830 1840 Modeste Ancelle 1840 1841 Germain Lecharpertier 1841 1843 Jean Doublet 1843 1859 Modeste Ancelle 1859 1871 Armand Laville 1871 1874 Germain Lecharpertier 1874 1874 Armand Laville 1874 1896 Dominique Lecomte 1896 1908 Joseph Dalgot 1908 1912 Désiré Lepetit 1912 1921 André Gourmez 1921 1929 Clément Michel
Mayors from 1929 From To Name Party Position 1929 1945 Jean Hamel 1945 1947 Albert Frilley 1947 1953 Jean Hamel 1953 1954 René Maginier 1954 1965 André Plantain 1965 1970 Michel Jourdan 1970 1971 Georges Lemesle 1971 1979 Alfred Rouillard 1979 1989 Gilbert Deru 1989 1995 Jean-François Hamel 1995 2001 Gilbert Deru 2001 2008 Bernard Dufour Retired ETF officer 2008 2023 Dominique Delivet LREM Headmaster 2023 2026 Marie-Françoise Isabel
Population The inhabitants of the commune are known as Argençais or Argençaises in French.Le nom des habitants du 14 - Calvados, habitants.fr
Economy The newspaper L'Echo de la Muance was published in Argences from 1896 to 1897.Jean Quellien et Christophe Mauboussin, Newspapers from 1786 to 1944, the adventure of the press in Basse-Normandie, Cahiers du Temps, 1998.
Sites and monuments The Chateau of Fresne (1651) is registered as a Monument historique.Ministry of Culture, Mérimée The Church of Saint-Jean was destroyed by bombing in 1944 and only the wall of the apse remains. The Moulin de la Porte (Mill of the door) where the wheel is powered by the Muance. The Lavoir (Public laundry) in the Rue de la Morte eau. The old Tuileries de Beauvais tile factory.
Argences picture gallery
Activities and events The association of rural families organizes dance classes for children and adults (beginners, modern dance, Fit'n dance).
Notable people linked to the commune Dominique Lemesle (1951-2007): Assistant Football Referee - 1st French Division (1979-1982) François Fayt (1946-): composer. Yohann Eudeline (1982-), French footballer who played at the local football club until 2000.
See also Communes of the Calvados department
References
External links Argences on the Community of Communes website Argences on the 1750 Cassini Map