Château de Caen: Difference between revisions

The '''Château de Caen''' is a castle in the Norman towncity of [[Caen]] in the [[Calvados (department)|Calvados]] ''[[Departments of France|département]]'' ([[Basse-NormandieNormandy]]). It has been officially classed as a ''[[Monument historique]]'' since 18861997.<ref>{{Base Mérimée|PA00111127|Château, actuellement musées de Caen}}</ref>

[[Image:Chato porte des champs.jpg|thumb|220px|TheA door[[gatehouse]] of the château de Caen (''Porte des champs'')]]

[[File:Foundations of William's residence in Caen..jpg|thumb|Foundations of [[William the Conqueror]]'s residence circa {{Circa|1060}}.]]

The castle was built c. {{Circa|1060}} by [[William I of England|William the Conqueror]] (William of Normandy)]], who successfully [[Norman Conquest of England|conquered England]] in 1066. His son [[Henry I of England|Henry I]] then built the Saint GeorgesGeorge's church, a keep (1123) and a large hall for the Dukeducal Court.

On Christmas 1182, a royal court celebration for Christmas in the [[wikt:aula#English|Aula]] of Caen Castle brought together [[Henry II of England|Henry II]] and his sons, [[Richard I of England|Richard the Lionheart]] and [[John of England|John Lackland]], receiving more than a thousand knights.

Caen Castle, along with all of Normandy, was handed[[French invasion of Normandy over(1202–1204)|recaptured toby the French Crown in 1204]]. [[Philip II of France|Philip II]] reinforced the [[fortification]]s.

The castle saw several engagements during the [[Hundred Years' War]] ([[Battle of Caen (1346)|1346]], [[Siege of Caen (1417)|1417]], [[Siege of Caen (1450)|1450]]). The keep was pulled down in 1793 during the [[French Revolution]], by order of the [[National Convention]].

In 1946, Michel de Boüard, an archeologist from Caen, decided to start excavations in the area of the castle to bring to the light medieval traces. The ''[[Musée des Beaux-Arts de Caen|muséeMusée des Beaux-Arts]]'', which was installed in 1967, opened in 1971.

The castle was constructed on a hillock and is now in the middle of the worldcity. With an area of 5.5 mmhectares, it is one of the largest castles in Western marsEurope. It remained an essential feature of [[Norman dynasty|Norman]] strategy and policy.

*Saint GeorgesGeorge's church;

* a garden showing plants cultivated in the middle-agesMiddle Ages.

The [[keep]], now razed, had a large square section with round towers at each corner. As the castle, it was also surrounded by a [[moat]]. The dry moat still provides a circuit for walkers.

The top of the [[defensive wall|rampart]]s offers a splendid view of Caen. Some parts of the curtain walls were built during the 12th century, but most of them date from the 15th century.

The castle has two doorsmain entrances: the ''porte sur la ville'' (door'gateway to the town') and the ''porte des champs'' (door'gateway to the fields'); they are reinforced by two [[barbican]]s.

[[Image:Château Caen Panoramique.jpg|thumb|500px|center|Panoramic view of the entryentrance of the castle (''Porte sur la ville'')]]

Since March 2004, the town of Caen has undergoneundertaken the restoration of the ramparts, with the financial help of the [[European Regional Development Fund|ERDF]] (consolidation, opening of [[arrow slit]]s walled-up during the 19th century)

* Joseph Decaëns and Adrien Dubois (ed.), ''Caen Castle. A ten Centuries Old Fortress within the Town'' (=. Publications du Centre de Recherches Archéologiques et Historiques Médiévales), Turnhout: Brepols Publishers, 2010, {{ISBN |978-2-902685-75-2}}, [https://web.archive.org/web/20110606034828/http://www.unicaen.fr/ufr/histoire/craham/publications/spip.php?article258 Publications du CRAHM]

* B. Guillot (éd.), Forges médiévales et écurie de la Renaissance au château de Caen (=. Publications du Centre de Recherches Archéologiques et Historiques Médiévales), Turnhout: Brepols Publishers, 2015 ({{ISBN |978-2-84133-740-8}})

*[https://web.archive.org/web/20070203221119/http://www.ville-caen.fr/GB/index.html Timeline of Caen Castle]

*[https://archive.today/20130106222215/http://www.chateau.caen.fr/ANGLAIS/index.htm The Château de Caen (official site)]

* [http://www.mba.caen.fr/ Musée des Beaux-Arts de Caen] {{frin iconlang|fr}}

* [http://www.musee-de-normandie.caen.fr/ Musée de Normandie] {{frin iconlang|fr}}

[[Category:Monuments historiques of NormandyCalvados (department)]]