Plan a trip to Normandy

Everything you find here is “imposing”:  spectacular views, epic history, events that affected the entire world, key and important persons, obviously well-known painters and writers and of course the best of French cuisine.

In this area there is a coastline from which the spectacular white chalk cliffs, formed by erosion and weathering, masterly rise. Normandy (French: Normandie) is the land of bocage (mixed terrain combining wooded and pasture areas) and hedgerows which are dense woods and bushes that acted like fences that separated the houses, plots of land and estates. The defensive positions of the Germans in Normandy in WWII were not created by Rommel or his friends but rather by the vegetation and hedges that were planted here by the Romans thousands of years before WWII and today are synonymous with Normandy. During the allied invasion of Normandy General Bradley served as a field commander and allegedly called the bocage / hedgerow region “the damnedest country ever seen”.  He was obviously referring to most of the agricultural areas that were separated into individual plots by the tall shrubbery twisted and snarled bushes and shrubs.
It is almost impossible to describe the difficulties encountered by the Allied forces that landed, towards the end of WW II, due to the bocage which prevented even the tanks from moving – until an original solution was found, “the Rhino” which was a plow that was attached so that they could break through the hedgerows and surprise the German Army.

The story of the Allied assault of the Normandy coastal town is an invasion that effectively brought an end to WWII and is thus immortalized in countless monuments, as well as authentic instruments of war that remained or were placed there, plus many symbols. The invasion museum in the town of Arromanches-les-Bains shows the famous landing beaches and the battle that took place here during WWII, in 1944, and how it left their mark on the place more than anything else. There is not a corner in Normandy that one doesn’t encounter mementos.

The Seine River divides Normandy into two areas, Upper Normandy and Lower Normandy and flows from Paris via Rouen, the city with medieval architecture and cobbled streets, which was named by writer Victor Hugo as “the city of a hundred spires”. The river meanders between the city of le Havre and Honfleur, flowing through pastoral scenes where wonderful towns and cities are tucked away. After WWII, about 500 fascinating houses with wooden supports known as colombage (half-timbered), have miraculously survived intact in Rouen. The impressive cathedral, recognized for its three towers, each in a different style, stands proudly in an ancient square, the same cathedral that the artist Claude Monet (1840–1926) painted over thirty times in one year. He painted the Cathedral throughout the year, at different times of the day and different seasons.

Not far from there in the picturesque Old Market Square, known as Place du Vieux-Marcheis, stands the Joan of Arc Church, built on the site where she was burned for heresy.

In the city of Caen there are two monasteries founded in 1066, Abbaye-aux-Hommes (Men’s Abbey) and the Abbaye-aux-Dames (Women’s Abbey) and in the medieval city of Bayeux which is close to the D-Day landing beaches and was the first major city secured by the Allies and liberated after WWII in Jund 1944.

Not to be missed is “The Tapestry” which is a “wall carpet” depicting the Norman conquest of England and is exhibited at the Musée de la Tapisserie de Bayeux.
Other important cities with rich historical backgrounds are Le Havre, Cherbourg on the Cotentin Peninsula that forms part of the northwest coast of France, along the 130 km long Alabaster Coast, southwest of the city of Dieppe limestone cliffs.  Not far from there, is one of the pearls of the area, the ancient picturesque port city Honfleur. 
The landscape artist Eugène Louis Boudin lived and painted here and it was from here that the explorers set out to conquer the New World.

There are thousands of tourists that come from all over the world to the resort towns of Deauville and Trouville, known as the Parisian Riviera.  This is the land of breath-taking views and the well-known Cider of Normandy (Cidre de Normandie) Calvados and its brandy, the dairy products of milk and quality cheeses second to none, fish and seafood as well as the fruits and vegetables. All this and more have attracted tourists to Normandy and Brittany. But not only the regular tourists but also famous artists and writers came and/or lived in this region such as; Eugène Louis Boudin, Claude Monet, Gustave Flaubert and Pierre Corneille and Guy de Maupassant.

History in a nutshell, the Vikings, who were pagans, invaded Normandy in the 9th century. In order to keep some kind of peace, the French King Charles the Simple offered Rollo, the Viking leader, the north-western corner of France. The city of Rouen became the capital of the region which explains the origin of the name of the region – the land of the northern people – Normen or Norsemen. The inhabitants of this region, around the year 100, accepted Christianity. To this day, one can still find pagan symbols in many places.

William I, who later was named William the Conqueror, became Duke of Normandy towards the end of the 11th century, the first Norman king.  It was in the battle of Hastings that he defeated the English, having crossed the English Channel with 6000 soldiers. And it was thus that he became King of England as well and his dynasty survived for three generations. His lands were divided after his death: Normandy went to Robert, and England went to his William Rufus, his second son. William’s grandchildren having been imprisoned, struggled fiercely for the crown of England, however Stephen aka as Stephen of Blois became king of England in 1135. The Channel Islands are a group of British-dependent islands off the coast of Normandy, France and The Channel Islands close to the Normandy coast still belong to England today.

Churches and monasteries were built both in Normandy and England, in the Romanesque style in the 11th and 12th centuries.

The 100-year war between England and France was about control of the region and lasted from 1337–1453. This was the era that Joan of Arc fought to install Charles VII as the French king. With the exception of a few Channel Islands that remained under English control, Normandy was finally annexed to France in 1450.

The battles between the Catholics and Protestants were extremely fierce and bloody during the 16th century. In 1524 Henry IV finally managed to win and take over Rouen.  

Towards the end of WWII the Dieppe Raid was a disastrous attempt to attack the German-occupied port of Dieppe. Fast forward to June 6 1944 known as D-Day (the codename was Overlord), when the allied forces landed on the beaches of Normandy and after close to three months the Germans were crushed.

Culinary Normandy is known as the land of dairy products of unparalleled quality. Normandy's cows feed on natural pastures and provide huge amounts of excellent digestible milk. About half of France's milk, butter and cheese consumption comes from here. The best-known cheese is Camembert which was a favourite of the above-mentioned King William the Conqueror. Needless to say there are countless different types of cheeses. The butter is also used to cook delicious and top-quality sauces that are added to various foods. As well there is an abundance of very tasty cold cuts (or lunch meats) including sausages, pate, Rouen’s goose and duck food as well as delicious pork deli meat.

Incredibly delicious seafood, as one can only imagine and which is one of Normandy’s specialties, can be found along the coastal road in the resort towns.  Apples are one of the distinctive crops of Normandy. Renowned Normandy apple cider, which contains about five percent alcohol is produced here. Apple Cider is the accepted accompanying drink with various dishes and it is also added to cakes and special recipes.

Calvados, the famous brandy of Normandy, is one of the favorite drinks made an alcoholic beverage similar to cognac, but made from apples and not grapes.  You can drink it as an alcoholic beverage, add it to creams, cakes, filling with high-quality chocolate.  This region is also the homeland of the Benedictine wine, which was first created by monks in the city Fecamp and you can add it to cocktails and to desserts.

By the way, the seaside town Fecamp, along the Alabaster Coast has magnificent views from Cap Fagnet, interesting architecture and the Benedictine Palace.