Encyclopædia Britannica, Ninth Edition/Granville

GRANVILLE, a fortified seaport town of France, department of Manche, is situated at the mouth of the Bosq and at the foot of a steep rocky promontory projecting into the English Channel, 30 miles S.W. of St Lô. It is surrounded by strong walls, and is built principally of granite, and its streets are mostly steep and narrow. The parish church dates from the 15th century. Among the other public buildings are the tribunal of commerce, the hospital, the public baths, and the naval school. Granville occupies the seventh place in point of importance among the seaports of France, and the harbour is accessible to vessels of the largest tonnage. There is regular steam communication with Jersey and Guernsey. The principal exports are fruits, vegetables, oysters, fish, corn, wood, and cattle. A large number of the inhabitants are engaged in the cod and oyster fisheries, and among the other industries are the manufacture of brandy, chemicals, cod-liver oil, and leather. Shipbuilding is also carried on. Granville was founded by the English in the beginning of the 15th century, taken by the French in 1450, bombarded and burned by the English in 1695, and partly destroyed by the Vendean troops in 1793. The population in 1876 was 12,372.