Fécamp

Channel seaport and resort of northern France, about 35 km/22 mi northeast of Le Havre, in the département of Seine-Maritime; industries include shipbuilding, fishing, and food processing; population (1990) 21,100. Benedictine liqueur was first produced here in the early 16th century.

Situated in the valley of the River Fécamp, the town grew up around a 7th-century nunnery, later to become the Benedictine abbey where the liqueur was first distilled by monks who gathered herbs on the cliff-tops. The present abbey church of La Trinité is one of the largest in France and dates from the 12th century. The abbey was incorporated into the town hall after the French Revolution.