Victor and Gabriel Ruprich-Robert

Victor and Gabriel Ruprich-Robert, father and son respectively, are chief architects of historical monuments.  Disciples of Viollet-le-Duc.  In 1840 they are attached to the commission of historical monuments and work on the restoration of numerous religious buildings in Normandy.  During the same period the Château de Falaise is classed as an historic monument, to halt its state of great dilapidation and in 1863 Viollet-le-Duc proposes to confer the work upon Victor Ruprich-Robert, of whom he has a very positive opinion.  "He is one of our most capable architects, wise, scrupulous, devoted entirely to his work, he offers the administration his best results".  He has already worked on the keep in Chambois and then in Falaise up to 1878.  His project for the keeps in Falaise consisted mainly of clearing the rubble in the lower parts, repairing the vaults of the bays of the Great Keep and of the chapel and placing capping on the tops of the walls to seal them.  Between 1878 and 1913 it is Gabriel Ruprich-Robert, his son and pupil, who continued the succession in restoring the Small Keep and the Talbot Tower, adding running ledges to the Great Keep to facilitate visits to the monument, which was still empty and open to the sky.  The works of Victor and Gabriel have enabled the building to be saved from ruin, at the same time re-establishing the basics of Anglo-French architecture.  However it will take several decades to start a campaign to achieve full restoration.