Finding out about the Middle Ages in Normandy is to uncover 500 years of history, of war and rumours of war, invasions, battles, and larger than life, heroic personalities such as Rollo, William the Conqueror, Richard the Lionheart and Joan of Arc.    

Rollo, Viking warlord

Rollo, Viking warlord

It all began in the very memorable year of 911 when the treaty of Saint-Clair-sur-Epte, signed off between Rollo and the unfortunately-named King Charles the Simple of West Francia, established the first frontiers of what became the Duchy of Normandy. Founder of the Duchy of Normandy Rollo is best known for this, although it was […]

William the Conqueror

William the Conqueror

The great-great-great-grandson of the Viking warlord Rollo, William the Conqueror, would vastly expand his ancestors’ tradition of constant territorial expansion – the kingdom of England would be his. Duke of Normandy One fine day in 1027, on returning from the hunt, Robert the Magnificent, the 6th Duke, spotted Arlette, a tanner’s daughter, washing in the […]

Richard the Lionheart

Richard the Lionheart

In 1189, Richard the Lionheart, son of Henry II of England and Eleanor of Aquitaine, ruled a kingdom that stretched from the Pyrenees to the Scottish borders: Chateau Gaillard was a frontier fortress.

Joan of Arc

Joan of Arc

This seminal figure in the history of the Hundred Years’ War, was tried for heresy, and condemned to death by burning in Rouen.