cross the Rhine, German troops based in still-occupied Jersey launched a daring commando raid against Granville. Although spotted by the radar of Coutainville, the Germans aboard light boats managed to land at night in the port of Granville. They dynamited port facilities and sank four freighters. Fifteen U.S., eight British and six French soldiers were killed, seventy German prisoners were released and five Americans and four British were captured before the German commando unit took flight. Contemporary history During the Algerian War, the barracks housed the 3rd Demi-brigade, and then the 21st Battalion of chasseurs on foot, from 1956 to 1961. It was a training centre for thousands of contingent recruits before leaving for Kabylie or the region of Tiaret. The commune hosted the finish of stage 1 and the start of stage 2 of the 1957 Tour de France. In 1962, the town of Granville absorbed the commune of Saint-Nicolas-près-Granville; the latter, during the revolutionary period of the National Convention (1792–1795), bore the name Champ-Libre [Free Field]. On 4 June 1965, Granville welcomed Prime Minister Georges Pompidou. In 1970, the Regional Nautical Centre moved to Granville and in 1975, the port was completed with a marina. In 1972, the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Granville, founded in 1815, took the name CCI Granville-Saint-Lô, and which then became the in 2000. In 1973, opened a factory for the production of biscottes, in business ever since. In the 1980s, donations by Richard Anacréon allowed the opening of the Museum of modern art, many buildings in the town were classified or registered as historical monuments. In 1982, the town was endowed of a new hospital. In 1984, the military regiments left the barracks, allowing redevelopment of the Pointe du Roc. In 1991, the opened and the Charter of the Douzelage was signed. At the turn of the millennium, the business incubator emerged. In 2003, the A84 autoroute joined Granville with other agglomerations. Demography Demographic evolution In 2017, the commune had 12,580 inhabitants. Of 6,649 people at the beginning of the census of the people in 1793, the commune reached a demographic peak in 1861 with 17,180 inhabitants, prior to be severely affected by the War of 1870 by losing nearly 1,000 of its children. Then began a slow decline accentuated by the World War I, no longer accommodating more than 10,132 inhabitants in 1946. The second half of the 20th century