Saint-Vigor-le-Grand combines church and abbey history with a fossil-rich landscape. The village is home to sacred buildings, historical evidence and geological features side by side.
Anyone wishing to rent a holiday apartment in Saint-Vigor-le-Grand can focus their accommodation search on this location.
Culture and History
The Église Saint-Sulpice features construction phases dating from the late 11th, 13th and 17th centuries. As a whole, it has been listed as a historic monument by decree of 9 June 2005.
In the 6th century, Bishop Vigor built a monastery on the site of a pagan temple, affiliated with the cathedral see of Bayeux. After the former abbey had been destroyed by the Normans, it was rebuilt by Bishop Odo, the brother of William the Conqueror.
The painting “Adoration of the Shepherds” returned to its place in the retable of the Église Saint-Sulpice after its restoration and exhibition at the Musée de Normandie. The parish church also contains an 18th-century retable with a painting depicting Saint Vigor, as well as a bishop’s throne made of red marble from Vire.
The gatehouse of the former abbey dates from the 13th to the 15th century and is a listed historic monument. The former abbey’s 13th-century barn was converted into a chapel. The site is a Roman burial and sacred site in the suburbium of Bayeux.
Nature
The northern part of Saint-Vigor-le-Grand consists of oolitic limestone that is particularly rich in fossils. The southern part consists of a layer of sand approximately 20 metres thick containing numerous shellfish fossils. The fossil-rich quarries of Saint-Vigor-le-Grand were visited by renowned geologists from France and abroad.
The village is surrounded by numerous orchards; the fertile Aure Valley and the forests of Vaux and Magny are also located nearby.
Geographical Setting
The Palais épiscopal de Bayeux is a palace in the immediate vicinity of Saint-Vigor-le-Grand. The Ancien château de Bayeux is a castle in the immediate vicinity of Saint-Vigor-le-Grand. The Château de Magny-en-Bessin is a historic site in the immediate vicinity of Saint-Vigor-le-Grand.
Cap Manvieux is a cape in the vicinity of Saint-Vigor-le-Grand. The Musée du Débarquement is a museum in the vicinity of Saint-Vigor-le-Grand. Gold Beach is a beach in the vicinity of Saint-Vigor-le-Grand.
Omaha Beach is a beach in the wider regional surroundings of Saint-Vigor-le-Grand. Juno Beach is a beach in the wider regional surroundings of Saint-Vigor-le-Grand.
The “Les Peupliers” motorhome and campervan parking area has seven spaces.
Further location profiles can then be accessed via Le Bény-Bocage, Géfosse-Fontenay, Castillon, Potigny, Truttemer-Le-Grand, Janville, Le Mesnil-Benoist and Mandeville-En-Bessin.
