Saint-Sauveur-le-Vicomte

Saint-Sauveur-le-Vicomte
Saint-Sauveur-le-Vicomte
	Location of Saint-Sauveur-le-Vicomte
Country	France
Region	Normandy
Department	Manche
Arrondissement	Cherbourg
Canton	Saint-Sauveur-le-Vicomte
Intercommunality	Vallée de l'Ouve
Government
• Mayor (2008–2014)	Michel Quinet
Area 1	34.27 km2 (13.23 sq mi)
Population (1999)	2,204
• Density	64/km2 (170/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+01:00 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00 (CEST)
INSEE/Postal code	50551 /50390
Elevation	30 m (98 ft)
	1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

Saint-Sauveur-le-Vicomte is a commune in the Manche department in Normandy in north-western France.

It is situated in the Cotentin Peninsula near Valognes in the Manche département.

Population : 2,242 (1999 census).

History

The Château de Saint-Sauveur-le-Vicomte, an ancient castle with massive 14th century towers, and a 12-15th century abbey still mark a vivid history during the Middle Ages.

The city walls were breached by cannon during a siege in 1374. This is believed to have been among the first successful uses of guns against city walls in history.^[1]

Heraldry

Arms of Saint-Sauveur-le-Vicomte	The arms of Saint-Sauveur-le-Vicomte are blazoned : Gules, 2 fesses, in center point a triple towered castle, all between 3 pairs of sea-bass adorsed Or.

Notable people

The English knight Sir John Chandos (died 1369) held the title Viscount of Saint-Sauveur-le Vicomte in the Cotentin.

The Blessed Catherine of St. Augustine, O.S.A., was born here in 1632. She was sent by her Order as a missionary nurse to New France, serving at the Hôtel-Dieu de Québec, where she died in 1668. She was beatified by Pope John Paul II in 1989.

The novelist Jules Amédée Barbey d'Aurevilly was born there on 2 November 1808. A museum is now dedicated to him.

Sister Marie-Madeleine Postel acquired the derelict Benedictine monastery at St-Sauveur-le-Vicomte in 1830 which became the headquarters of the Sisters of the Christian Schools of Mercy; in 1846 she died in the town.