- Type
- Castle
- Origins
- 1060 · 11th century per Wikidata: founding, first mention or construction
- Style
- medieval architecture of Normandy
- Coordinates
- 49.1864°, -0.3628°
History
William, Duke of Normandy, founded the castle on a rocky rise above Caen around 1060, a few years before his conquest of England. His son Henry I Beauclerc added a stone keep and a great hall, now known as the Exchequer Hall, early in the 12th century. In 1204 Philip II Augustus annexed Normandy to France and strengthened the castle, and during the Hundred Years' War the English took it in 1417 and held it until 1450. During the Revolution the keep was demolished and the castle used as barracks. Badly damaged in the Battle of Caen in 1944, it was cleared and restored after the war.
What to see
Towered walls with two gates enclose a vast courtyard, and the ramparts give views over the city and its abbeys. Inside the walls are the Musée de Normandie and the Museum of Fine Arts with European painting, and beside the Romanesque Exchequer Hall stands the church of Saint-Georges. The outline of the keep's foundations with its surrounding moat also survives.
Wikipedia article Official website Wikidata Q2968752
Popularity: articles about this site in 17 Wikimedia projects (Wikipedia language editions and others).