The Château de Falaise is a

castle A castle is a type of fortification, fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by Military order (monastic society), military orders. Scholars usually consider a ''castle'' to be the private ...

from the 12th–13th century, located in the south of the commune of Falaise ("cliff" in French) in the ''

département In the administrative divisions of France, the department (, ) is one of the three levels of government under the national level (" territorial collectivities"), between the administrative regions and the communes. There are a total of 101 ...

'' of Calvados, in the region of Normandy, France.

William the Conqueror William the Conqueror (Bates ''William the Conqueror'' p. 33– 9 September 1087), sometimes called William the Bastard, was the first Norman king of England (as William I), reigning from 1066 until his death. A descendant of Rollo, he was D ...

, the son of Duke Robert of Normandy, was born at an earlier castle on the same site in about 1028. William went on to conquer England and become king, and possession of the castle descended through his heirs until the 13th century, when it was captured by King Philip II of France. Because of his association to the location (though not the existing physical structure) it is also known as Château Guillaume le Conquérant or William the Conqueror's Castle. Possession of the castle changed hands several times during the

Hundred Years' War The Hundred Years' War (; 1337–1453) was a conflict between the kingdoms of Kingdom of England, England and Kingdom of France, France and a civil war in France during the Late Middle Ages. It emerged from feudal disputes over the Duchy ...

. The castle was abandoned during the 17th century. Since 1840 it has been protected as a .

History

On the death of

Richard II, Duke of Normandy Richard II (died 28 August 1026), called the Good (French: ''Le Bon''), was the duke of Normandy from 996 until 1026. Life Richard was the eldest surviving son and heir of Richard the Fearless and Gunnor. He succeeded his father as the ruler o ...

, in August 1026 his son (also called Richard) succeeded to the duchy. The inheritance however was disputed by Richard III's younger brother,

Robert The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of ''Hrōþ, Hruod'' () "fame, glory, honour, prais ...

. Not content with his inheritance of the town of

Exmes Exmes () is a former Communes of France, commune in the Orne Departments of France, department in north-western France. On 1 January 2017, it was merged into the new commune Gouffern en Auge.surrounding area, Robert rebelled and took up arms against his brother, and he captured the castle of Falaise. Richard then besieged the castle and forced Robert to submit to him. However, when Richard died from unknown causes in 1027, Robert became Duke of Normandy. Robert fathered an illegitimate son by a woman named Herleva, who was from the town of Falaise and the daughter of a chamberlain. The child,

William William is a masculine given name of Germanic languages, Germanic origin. It became popular in England after the Norman Conquest, Norman conquest in 1066,All Things William"Meaning & Origin of the Name"/ref> and remained so throughout the Middle ...

, was born in about 1028. The castle (12th–13th century), which overlooks the town from a high crag, was formerly the seat of the

Dukes of Normandy In the Middle Ages, the duke of Normandy was the ruler of the Duchy of Normandy in north-western Kingdom of France, France. The duchy arose out of a grant of land to the Viking leader Rollo by the French king Charles the Simple in 911. In 924 an ...

. The construction was started on the site of an earlier castle in 1123 by

Henry I of England Henry I ( – 1 December 1135), also known as Henry Beauclerc, was King of England from 1100 to his death in 1135. He was the fourth son of William the Conqueror and was educated in Latin and the liberal arts. On William's death in 1087, Henr ...

, with the "large keep" (''grand

donjon A keep is a type of fortified tower built within castles during the Middle Ages by European nobility. Scholars have debated the scope of the word ''keep'', but usually consider it to refer to large towers in castles that were fortified residenc ...

''). Later was added the "small keep" (''petit donjon''). The tower built in the first quarter of the 12th century contained a hall, chapel, and a room for the lord, but no small rooms for a complicated household arrangement; in this way, it was similar to towers at Corfe,

Norwich Norwich () is a cathedral city and district of the county of Norfolk, England, of which it is the county town. It lies by the River Wensum, about north-east of London, north of Ipswich and east of Peterborough. The population of the Norwich ...

, and

Portchester Portchester is a village in the borough of Fareham in Hampshire, England. It is northwest of Portsmouth and around 18 miles east of Southampton on the A27 road. Its population according to the 2011 United Kingdom census was 17,789. Name Portc ...

, all in England. Prince Arthur and Hubert de Burgh

Arthur I, Duke of Brittany, was King John of England's teenage nephew, and a rival claimant to the throne of England. With the support of King Philip II of France, Arthur embarked on a campaign in Normandy against John in 1202, and

Poitou Poitou ( , , ; ; Poitevin: ''Poetou'') was a province of west-central France whose capital city was Poitiers. Both Poitou and Poitiers are named after the Pictones Gallic tribe. Geography The main historical cities are Poitiers (historical ...

revolted in support of Arthur. The Duke of Brittany besieged his grandmother,

Eleanor of Aquitaine Eleanor of Aquitaine ( or ; ; , or ; – 1 April 1204) was Duchess of Aquitaine from 1137 to 1204, Queen of France from 1137 to 1152 as the wife of King Louis VII, and Queen of England from 1154 to 1189 as the wife of King Henry II. As ...

, in the Château de Mirebeau. John marched on Mirebeau, taking Arthur by surprise and capturing him on 1 August.Jones (2004) From there Arthur was conveyed to Falaise where he was imprisoned in the castle's keep. According to contemporaneous chronicler

Ralph of Coggeshall Ralph of Coggeshall (died after 1227), English chronicler, was at first a monk and afterwards sixth abbot (1207–1218) of Coggeshall Abbey, an Essex foundation of the Cistercian order. He is also known for his chronicles on the Third Crusade ...

, John ordered two of his servants to mutilate the duke. Hugh de Burgh was in charge of guarding Arthur and refused to let him be mutilated, but to demoralise Arthur's supporters was to announce his death. The circumstances of Arthur's death are unclear, though he probably died in 1203. In about 1207, after having conquered Normandy,

Philip II Augustus Philip II (21 August 1165 – 14 July 1223), also known as Philip Augustus (), was King of France from 1180 to 1223. His predecessors had been known as kings of the Franks (Latin: ''rex Francorum''), but from 1190 onward, Philip became the firs ...

ordered the building of a new cylindrical

keep A keep is a type of fortified tower built within castles during the Middle Ages by European nobility. Scholars have debated the scope of the word ''keep'', but usually consider it to refer to large towers in castles that were fortified residen ...

. It was later named the Talbot Tower (''Tour Talbot'') after the English commander responsible for its repair during the

.Bradbury (2004), p. 301. It is a tall round tower, a similar design to the towers built at

Gisors Gisors () is a Communes of France, commune in the Departments of France, French department of Eure, Normandy (administrative region), Normandy, France. It is located northwest from the Kilometre Zero, centre of Paris. Gisors, together with the ...

and the

medieval Louvre The Louvre Castle (), also referred to as the Medieval Louvre (), was a castle () begun by Philip II of France on the right bank of the Seine, to reinforce the city wall he had built around Paris. Over time, it was expanded but was generally ...

. Possession of the castle changed hands several times during the Hundred Years' War. In 1424, the constable of the Castle of "Faleys" was recorded as John Walkare, son of Robert Walker of Bedale. Plea Rolls of the Court of Common Pleas; Yorkshire; CP40/654; 1424; image viewable at: http://aalt.law.uh.edu/AALT1/H6/CP40no654/aCP40no654fronts/IMG_0291.htm The castle was deserted during the 17th century. Since 1840, Château de Falaise has been recognised as a by the

French Ministry of Culture The Ministry of Culture () is the ministry (government department), ministry of the Government of France in charge of List of museums in France, national museums and the . Its goal is to maintain the French identity through the promotion and pro ...

. A programme of restoration was carried out between 1870 and 1874. The castle suffered due to bombardment during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

in the battle for the

Falaise pocket The Falaise pocket or battle of the Falaise pocket (; 12–21 August 1944) was the decisive engagement of the Battle of Normandy in the Second World War. Allied forces formed a pocket around Falaise, Calvados, in which German Army Group B, c ...

in 1944, but the three keeps were unscathed.

Gallery

Chateau-falaise-calvados.jpg, The castle of Falaise. Falaise chateau guillaume conquerant 2.jpg, The keeps. File:Normandy_flag_falaise.svg, The flag of Falaise, birthplace of William the Conqueror. Plan.chateau.Falaise.2.png, Plan of the keeps. Chateau Falaise vu route caen2.jpg, View of the castle of Falaise showing its modern concrete entrance tower. .Chateau 004 .Chateau de Falaise Normandie.jpg, Aerial view of the castle and the city of Falaise.

References

Notes Bibliography * * * * *

External links

Official website : more informations, virtual visit
* Ministry of Culture database entries: and * personal websit
Castle of Falaise
with a long story {{DEFAULTSORT:Falaise, Chateau De Castles in Calvados (department) Historic house museums in Normandy Museums in Calvados (department) Ruined castles in Normandy Monuments historiques of Calvados (department) William the Conqueror

History

Gallery

See also

References

External links