Rouen

Walking Tour of Rouen

Situated on the River Seine in northern France, Rouen is one of the largest cities in France. Formerly one of the largest and most prosperous cities of medieval Europe it also served as the seat of the Duchy of Normandy during the Middle Ages. Claimed by both the French and the English during the Hundred Years' War, it was here that Joan of Arc was tried and burned alive on 30 May 1431.

Rouen was founded by a Gaulish tribe and thrived under Roman rule. It was overrun by marauding Vikings (known as Northmen or Normans) a number of times in the 9th century until 912 when Charles II made the Viking Rollo the first Duke of Normandy. He was then charged with stopping any foreign forces (mainly other Vikings) from attacking from the English Channel up the Seine River.

Occupied by the Germans in WWII, the city was heavily bombed on D-Day and the Cathedral of Notre Dame was nearly destroyed. This portrait of St Jeanne D'Arc was created by the local art school by sandblasting the stone through a template. We entered the West Transept of the Cathedral through the Portail des Librairies. The statue standing guard over the portal is that of Saint Romain. Looking toward the Choir, you get a sense of the immense proportions of the Cathedral. Unfortunately, due to renovations, a large curtain hides the Choir. And due to services being held, I could not get to the Chapelle de Jeanne d'Arc. Directly across from the Cathedral was the tax collectors house. Seems they got you both coming and going. The city clock has but one hand. Of course, what good Frenchman cares about minutes. In the market, one of the most important vendors is that of <i>fleurs</i>. Obviously a product of the protests. It translates to 'Rouen stand up, stand up, defend your rights'. This statue of St Joan is just to the left of the entrance to <i>L'église Sainte-Jeanne-d'Arc</i>. It is a modern building constructed in 1979. After all, St Joan was not canonized until 1920. This church lies only feet from where she was burned at the stake. A sketch of St. Joan of Arc on the the entrance to the <i>L'église Sainte-Jeanne-d'Arc</i> The interior of <i>L'église Sainte-Jeanne-d'Arc</i>. It is not a large church probably due to its location in the city center. To return to the mundane, we passed this protest over raising the retirement age. I did not count, but would not be surprised if the number we saw wasn't in the thousands. (And we didn't see near all of them.) Since returning from our morning tour, I have heard a near constant sound of sirens.
To Caudebec-En-Caux