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Caen Castle
DATE: 1025
Mentions of the port, the market and a fair in Caen
DATE: 1060
Construction begins on the Château of Caen
DATE: 1066
Dedication of the church of Saint-Trinity at the 'Abbaye aux Dames' in Caen (18 June)
DATE: 1077
Dedication of the church of Saint Étienne of the 'Abbaye-aux-Hommes' in Caen (13 September)
DATE: 1105
The people of Caen expel the garrison of Robert Couteheuse from the Château of Caen; Henri Ist Beauclerc celebrates Easter in the Château of Caen (13 April)
DATE: 1118
Henry I Beauclerc is in Caen
DATE: 1120
Construction of the Keep and the 'Salle de lÉchiquier' of the Château of Caen by Henry I Beauclerc / Henry I increases the height of the outer wall of the Château of Caen
DATE: 1124
Henry I Beauclerc celebrates Easter in the Château of Caen (26 March, 'Salle de lÉchiquier'?)
DATE: 1138
Caen supports Geoffrey of Anjou
DATE: 1172
Negotiations (at the Château of Caen) between Henry II and the legates of the Pope after the murder of Thomas Becket (30 May)
DATE: 1172
Reunion of Norman barons in Caen for inquiry into the military services due from each feudal lord (8 September)
DATE: 1173
Henry II Plantagenet celebrates Christmas in Caen ('Salle de lÉchiquier'?)
DATE: 1176
Session of the 'Échiquier' in the hall of the Château of Caen (first mention)
DATE: 1182
Grand Christmas court in the hall of the Château of Caen ('Salle de lÉchiquier'). On this occasion Henry II and his sons receive more than 1,000 knights
DATE: 1187
Henry II Plantagenet celebrates Christmas in Caen (Salle de lÉchiquier ?)
DATE: 1198
Extensive works in the Château of Caen
DATE: 1199
John Landless celebrates Christmas in Caen
The duchy of Normandy passes into the domain of the King of France
DATE: 1204
Caen surrenders without conflict to Philippe Auguste, King of France (21 May); the siege of Falaise, after Easter of this year, lasts 7 days.
DATE: 1210
Construction of a chemise wall around the Keep (outer wall with four round towers), of the Porte des Champs and of the two round towers of the outer wall (Puchot Tower and Matilda Tower) at the Château of Caen
DATE: 1256
Passage of Saint Louis through Caen
DATE: 1338
First mention of the Home of the King (Home of Governors) in the Château of Caen
Hundred Year War
DATE: 1346
Siege and pillage of the town of Caen by Edward III, King of England. The Château remains impregnable: first mention of the Puchot Tower; modernisation of the 'Porte des Champs' at the Château of Caen;
DATE: 1347
Extensive works within the enclosure of the Keep of the Château of Caen and reinforcement of the rampart after the raid of 1346
Normandy is occupied by the English
DATE: 1417
Siege and taking of Caen by Henry V, King of England. The Château capitulates (21 September)
DATE: 1438
Construction of the barbican of the 'Porte Saint-Pierre' at the Château of Caen
DATE: 1444
The Château receives the Duke of York, lieutenant general and governor of France and Normandy, during his stay in Caen
DATE: 1450
Caen surrenders to the King of France, Charles VII, after 15 days of siege (1st July).
DATE: 1475
Construction of the gothic choir of the church of Saint-Georges at the Château of Caen
DATE: 1503
François de Silly, bailiff of Caen, has the Château of Caen's fortifications strengthened
DATE: 1620
The governor of Caen having stood against Louis XIII, the Château threatens a cannon attack on the town acquired by the King
DATE: 1682
Refurbishment of the Home of Governors of the Château of Caen by the Count of Coigny.
French Revolution and the Franco-English wars: the reconversion of châteaux
DATE: 1789
On 21 July, Caen inhabitants force the entrance of the Château of Caen.
DATE: 1793
The National Convention (revolutionary parliament) orders the destruction of the Château of Caen, symbol of feudalism; only the Keep is progressively ruined
DATE: 1807
Redevelopment of the sector of the Keep of the Château of Caen for the construction of a powder magazine. The Keep is progressively razed to the ground.
DATE: 1811
During his passage through Caen, Napoleon envisages the total destruction of the Château given the state of dilapidation of the fortress
DATE: 1876
First taking of the garrison of the 36th Infantry Regiment of Caen. It will be finally established there only in 1901.
DATE: 1944
The Château of Caen is hit during the allied bombardments
DATE: 1947
First archeological research in the Château of Caen
DATE: 1956
The Château of Caen becomes the property of the town
DATE: 1963
Museum of Normandy open to the public in the former Home of Governors of the Château of Caen
DATE: 1997
Entire site of the Château of Caen is classed as an Historical Monument.
DATE: 2008
Opening of the Rampart Rooms in the Château of Caen (museographic section).
Norman Connections
DATE: 2009
Towns of Caen, Bayeux and Falaise, the Calvados General Council, the Calvados Departmental Committee for Tourism, the counties of Hastings, Colchester, Norwich and Medway Council collaborate within the framework of the Norman Connection project on the restoration and improvement of Norman châteaux.
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