Port of Dives-sur-Mer
Encyclopedia
The Port of Dives-sur-Mer, Port de Dives-sur-Mer, is the harbour
of the Norman
town of Dives-sur-Mer
, France
. It is from this harbour that William the Conqueror
left for England
to claim the throne.
' estuary used to be larger than it is now. A large head of land protects the natural haven and gives adequate protection to light craft from the sea
.
William
chose the port of Dives as the starting point of his campaign to claim the throne of England. The port has always been known as a thriving port and under Louis XIV
, one of his ministers Colbert
, decided, in 1676 to begin remodel the area. During the XIIIth century, the port of Dives was a commercial place for Spanish and Portuguese merchants, their trade in leathers and wine from Cordoba interested the monks of the Saint-Etienne abbey of Caen
who imposed import taxation. It is then that the Dives swamps were irrigated and drained and that the course of the River Dives
was modified. During the many centuries of war between France and England, the port showed a strategic and military importance.
Several naval battles occurred outside the port. On 29 May 1798, the frigate
la Confiante and the corvette
la Vésuve, having left Le Havre
were pursued by three English ships and tried to gain shelter in the port of Dives. To prevent them from doing so, the English ships began to fire on the French for five hours. Finally, la Confiante, having sustained heavy damage, ran ashore on the pointe de Beuzeval, where it was burnt down.
Around 1860, project to enlarge the port came to fruition. Activity increased. In 1881, the port's registry logged 203 ship movements. Ships with a draft
of up to 4 m regularly used the port which had 29 registered fishing boats. The port was then used by all types of ships, fishing, sailing and Cabotage
.
The site as we know it today was built between 1845 and 1859, and modified in 1880. It was a port of call for merchant ships and fishing boats and also the place of regattas organised by the Count of Dramard.
Sécrétan built Tréfimétaux steel works
inside the large meander
of the Dives in 1891. Three mast sailing ships provided the works with coal
from England and copper
from Le Havre
.
As of 2006, four independent fishermen still sail from Dives-sur-Mer
. They sell their seafood at port of Dives' fish market
. Fish caught in the Baie de Seine range from sole to lemon sole, turbot, mackerel, bass, mussel and shrimp.
Beyond the fish dock, a lock protects Port Guillaume. South of the lock is a sailing club, the CAPAC, (Comité des Amis du Plein Air du Calvados).
built in the 1990s on the site of the Tréfimétaux steel works
. The project was initiated by the Catherine Mamet construction and leisure group and built by Toffolutti. Catherine Mamet had built the marina as well as two buildings, consisting of two 5-storey mock Norman
residential buildings. One of the buildings, built along one of the marina's dock walls, possesses a few shops. These two buildings were the only two to be built for more than ten years until the Groupe George V took over the project at the end of the 1990s. Although the "new" project was a success, with the construction of the lighthouse and of several more houses as well as a private railway station, it received bad publicity following a television report on M6
's Capital business program. The program described how prices had been inflated to create a buzz around the project and how the group had neglected fitting guttering onto houses built in the notoriously rainy Normandy
.
The harbour is capable of berthing 600 pleasure sailing ship
s as well as 192 additional moorings in the estuary and has a depth of 2 m. The marina was built with locks, open 6 hours per tide.
Harbor
A harbor or harbour , or haven, is a place where ships, boats, and barges can seek shelter from stormy weather, or else are stored for future use. Harbors can be natural or artificial...
of the Norman
Normandy
Normandy is a geographical region corresponding to the former Duchy of Normandy. It is in France.The continental territory covers 30,627 km² and forms the preponderant part of Normandy and roughly 5% of the territory of France. It is divided for administrative purposes into two régions:...
town of Dives-sur-Mer
Dives-sur-Mer
-Transport:Dives-sur-Mer is on the line from Deauville to Dives-sur-Mer. The station is open, train services operate year round at weekends as well as on week days during the summer season. Dives is also on line #20 of the Calvados bus company Bus Verts du Calvados....
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. It is from this harbour that William the Conqueror
William I of England
William I , also known as William the Conqueror , was the first Norman King of England from Christmas 1066 until his death. He was also Duke of Normandy from 3 July 1035 until his death, under the name William II...
left for England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
to claim the throne.
History
The River DivesDives River
The Dives is a 105 km long river in the Pays d'Auge, Normandie, France. It flows into the English Channel in Cabourg.The source of the Dives is near Exmes, in the Orne department...
' estuary used to be larger than it is now. A large head of land protects the natural haven and gives adequate protection to light craft from the sea
English Channel
The English Channel , often referred to simply as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates southern England from northern France, and joins the North Sea to the Atlantic. It is about long and varies in width from at its widest to in the Strait of Dover...
.
William
William I of England
William I , also known as William the Conqueror , was the first Norman King of England from Christmas 1066 until his death. He was also Duke of Normandy from 3 July 1035 until his death, under the name William II...
chose the port of Dives as the starting point of his campaign to claim the throne of England. The port has always been known as a thriving port and under Louis XIV
Louis XIV of France
Louis XIV , known as Louis the Great or the Sun King , was a Bourbon monarch who ruled as King of France and Navarre. His reign, from 1643 to his death in 1715, began at the age of four and lasted seventy-two years, three months, and eighteen days...
, one of his ministers Colbert
Jean-Baptiste Colbert
Jean-Baptiste Colbert was a French politician who served as the Minister of Finances of France from 1665 to 1683 under the rule of King Louis XIV. His relentless hard work and thrift made him an esteemed minister. He achieved a reputation for his work of improving the state of French manufacturing...
, decided, in 1676 to begin remodel the area. During the XIIIth century, the port of Dives was a commercial place for Spanish and Portuguese merchants, their trade in leathers and wine from Cordoba interested the monks of the Saint-Etienne abbey of Caen
Caen
Caen is a commune in northwestern France. It is the prefecture of the Calvados department and the capital of the Basse-Normandie region. It is located inland from the English Channel....
who imposed import taxation. It is then that the Dives swamps were irrigated and drained and that the course of the River Dives
Dives River
The Dives is a 105 km long river in the Pays d'Auge, Normandie, France. It flows into the English Channel in Cabourg.The source of the Dives is near Exmes, in the Orne department...
was modified. During the many centuries of war between France and England, the port showed a strategic and military importance.
Several naval battles occurred outside the port. On 29 May 1798, the frigate
Frigate
A frigate is any of several types of warship, the term having been used for ships of various sizes and roles over the last few centuries.In the 17th century, the term was used for any warship built for speed and maneuverability, the description often used being "frigate-built"...
la Confiante and the corvette
Corvette
A corvette is a small, maneuverable, lightly armed warship, originally smaller than a frigate and larger than a coastal patrol craft or fast attack craft , although many recent designs resemble frigates in size and role...
la Vésuve, having left Le Havre
Port of Le Havre
The Port of Le Havre, Port Autonome du Havre, is the Port and port authority of the Normandy city of Le Havre, France.The port of Le Havre consists of a series of canal-like docks, the Canal de Tancarville and the Grand Canal du Havre, that connect Le Havre to the Seine, close to the Pont de...
were pursued by three English ships and tried to gain shelter in the port of Dives. To prevent them from doing so, the English ships began to fire on the French for five hours. Finally, la Confiante, having sustained heavy damage, ran ashore on the pointe de Beuzeval, where it was burnt down.
Around 1860, project to enlarge the port came to fruition. Activity increased. In 1881, the port's registry logged 203 ship movements. Ships with a draft
Draft (hull)
The draft of a ship's hull is the vertical distance between the waterline and the bottom of the hull , with the thickness of the hull included; in the case of not being included the draft outline would be obtained...
of up to 4 m regularly used the port which had 29 registered fishing boats. The port was then used by all types of ships, fishing, sailing and Cabotage
Cabotage
Cabotage is the transport of goods or passengers between two points in the same country by a vessel or an aircraft registered in another country. Originally starting with shipping, cabotage now also covers aviation, railways and road transport...
.
The site as we know it today was built between 1845 and 1859, and modified in 1880. It was a port of call for merchant ships and fishing boats and also the place of regattas organised by the Count of Dramard.
Sécrétan built Tréfimétaux steel works
Steel mill
A steel mill or steelworks is an industrial plant for the manufacture of steel.Steel is an alloy of iron and carbon. It is produced in a two-stage process. First, iron ore is reduced or smelted with coke and limestone in a blast furnace, producing molten iron which is either cast into pig iron or...
inside the large meander
Meander
A meander in general is a bend in a sinuous watercourse. A meander is formed when the moving water in a stream erodes the outer banks and widens its valley. A stream of any volume may assume a meandering course, alternately eroding sediments from the outside of a bend and depositing them on the...
of the Dives in 1891. Three mast sailing ships provided the works with coal
Coal
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...
from England and copper
Copper
Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu and atomic number 29. It is a ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. Pure copper is soft and malleable; an exposed surface has a reddish-orange tarnish...
from Le Havre
Le Havre
Le Havre is a city in the Seine-Maritime department of the Haute-Normandie region in France. It is situated in north-western France, on the right bank of the mouth of the river Seine on the English Channel. Le Havre is the most populous commune in the Haute-Normandie region, although the total...
.
As of 2006, four independent fishermen still sail from Dives-sur-Mer
Dives-sur-Mer
-Transport:Dives-sur-Mer is on the line from Deauville to Dives-sur-Mer. The station is open, train services operate year round at weekends as well as on week days during the summer season. Dives is also on line #20 of the Calvados bus company Bus Verts du Calvados....
. They sell their seafood at port of Dives' fish market
Fish market
A fish market is a marketplace used for marketing fish products. It can be dedicated to wholesale trade between fishermen and fish merchants, or to the sale of seafood to individual consumers, or to both...
. Fish caught in the Baie de Seine range from sole to lemon sole, turbot, mackerel, bass, mussel and shrimp.
Beyond the fish dock, a lock protects Port Guillaume. South of the lock is a sailing club, the CAPAC, (Comité des Amis du Plein Air du Calvados).
Port Guillaume
Port Guillaume is a pleasure harbourMarina
A marina is a dock or basin with moorings and supplies for yachts and small boats.A marina differs from a port in that a marina does not handle large passenger ships or cargo from freighters....
built in the 1990s on the site of the Tréfimétaux steel works
Steel mill
A steel mill or steelworks is an industrial plant for the manufacture of steel.Steel is an alloy of iron and carbon. It is produced in a two-stage process. First, iron ore is reduced or smelted with coke and limestone in a blast furnace, producing molten iron which is either cast into pig iron or...
. The project was initiated by the Catherine Mamet construction and leisure group and built by Toffolutti. Catherine Mamet had built the marina as well as two buildings, consisting of two 5-storey mock Norman
Normandy
Normandy is a geographical region corresponding to the former Duchy of Normandy. It is in France.The continental territory covers 30,627 km² and forms the preponderant part of Normandy and roughly 5% of the territory of France. It is divided for administrative purposes into two régions:...
residential buildings. One of the buildings, built along one of the marina's dock walls, possesses a few shops. These two buildings were the only two to be built for more than ten years until the Groupe George V took over the project at the end of the 1990s. Although the "new" project was a success, with the construction of the lighthouse and of several more houses as well as a private railway station, it received bad publicity following a television report on M6
Métropole 6
M6, also known as Metropole television, is the most profitable private national French TV channel and the third most watched television network in the French-speaking world...
's Capital business program. The program described how prices had been inflated to create a buzz around the project and how the group had neglected fitting guttering onto houses built in the notoriously rainy Normandy
Normandy
Normandy is a geographical region corresponding to the former Duchy of Normandy. It is in France.The continental territory covers 30,627 km² and forms the preponderant part of Normandy and roughly 5% of the territory of France. It is divided for administrative purposes into two régions:...
.
The harbour is capable of berthing 600 pleasure sailing ship
Sailing ship
The term sailing ship is now used to refer to any large wind-powered vessel. In technical terms, a ship was a sailing vessel with a specific rig of at least three masts, square rigged on all of them, making the sailing adjective redundant. In popular usage "ship" became associated with all large...
s as well as 192 additional moorings in the estuary and has a depth of 2 m. The marina was built with locks, open 6 hours per tide.