Normandy

Normandy reunified in 2016 after 60 years of administrative division, reconstructing the historic duchy whose descendants rule England. The region combines agricultural productivity (dairy, apples, grain) with industrial activity (automotive, aerospace, energy) and tourism that D-Day beaches and Mont-Saint-Michel anchor. Rouen and Le Havre provide the metropolitan poles; rural areas struggle with depopulation that characterizes much of non-metropolitan France.

Le Havre operates France's second-largest port, handling container traffic that Seine River barges connect to Paris. The port's position at the Channel entrance—closer to American and transatlantic routes than Rotterdam—provides advantages that infrastructure development attempts to amplify. Automotive manufacturing (Renault at Sandouville) and aerospace (Safran, Airbus suppliers) create industrial employment that other regions envy.

D-Day beaches attract visitors for whom 1944's liberation remains meaningful—American, British, Canadian, and other veterans and descendants who seek connection to world-changing events. This tourism sector grows increasingly fragile as direct memory fades; whether heritage interpretation can sustain interest across generations poses long-term questions. Camembert, Calvados, and cider production provide agricultural brands that complement tourism while serving domestic and export markets.