Dieppe
[key], city, Seine-Maritime dept., N France, in Normandy, at the mouth of
the Arques River on the English Channel. It is a fishing and commercial
port, a manufacturing center of products ranging from ships to telephones,
and a beach resort. It is famous for crafts made of bone and ivory. Channel
steamers sail from Dieppe to Newhaven, England. Dieppe was frequently
involved in the wars between England and France. In the late 17th cent. it
suffered severely from the dragonnades of Louis XIV and an
Anglo-Dutch naval bombardment (1694). In World War II, Dieppe was the object
of a costly commando attack (Aug. 19, 1942) to test the strength of the
German defenses. The Allied forces, mostly Canadians, lost two thirds of
their men in casualties. There is a war memorial on the beach. Among the
notable buildings of the city are the Church of Saint-Jacques (begun 13th
cent.) and a 15th-century château.
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