Coutances is a commune in the Manche department in Normandy in north-western France.
Coutances Cathedral is one of the major buildings of Norman architecture and contains a chapel and stained glass dedicated to Saint Marcouf. The bishop of Coutances exercised ecclesiastical jurisdiction over the Channel Islands until the Reformation, despite the secular division of Normandy in 1204. The final rupture occurred definitively in 1569.
Coutances houses a well-known botanical garden and an art museum.
Coutances is the location of Jazz sous les pommiers ("Jazz under the apple trees"), a yearly recurring international jazz festival that has been held since 1982. The festival traditionally takes place during the week of Ascension.
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