Normandy was a province in the North-West of what later became France under theAncien Régime which lasted until the later part of the 18th century. Initially populated byCeltictribes in the West andBelgic tribes in the North East, it was conquered in AD 98 by theRomans and integrated into the province ofGallia Lugdunensis byAugustus. In the 4th century,Gratian divided the province into thecivitates that constitute the historical borders. After thefall of Rome in the 5th century, theFranks became the dominantethnic group in the area and built severalmonasteries. Towards the end of the 9th century,Viking raids devastated the region, prompting the establishment of theDuchy of Normandy in 911. After 150 years of expansion, the borders of Normandy reached relative stability. These old borders roughly correspond to the present borders ofLower Normandy,Upper Normandy and theChannel Islands. Mainland Normandy was integrated into theKingdom of France in 1204. The region was badly damaged during theHundred Years War and theWars of Religion, the Normans having more converts to Protestantism than other peoples of France. In the 20th century,D-Day, the 1944Allied invasion of Western Europe, started in Normandy. In 1956, mainland Normandy was separated into tworegions, Lower Normandy and Upper Normandy, which were reunified in 2016.
Archeological finds, such ascave paintings, prove thathumans were present in the region inprehistoric times, especially inEure andCalvados. The Gouy and Orival cave paintings also testify to humans inSeine-Maritime. Severalmegaliths can be found throughout Normandy, most of them built in a uniform style.
More is known about Celtic Normandy due to the archeological sources being more numerous and easier to date. In the 19th century, local scholars studied archeological sites (especially those of Upper Normandy) and recorded their discoveries. They discovered objects such as theGallic gildedhelmet ofAmfreville-sous-les-Monts, made in the 4th century BC, and the iron helmet currently in theMuseum of Louviers. They also examined the cemetery atPîtres, with itsurns forcremated remains. The artifacts found at these sites indicate Gallic presence in Normandy as far back as the times of theHallstatt andLa Tène cultures.
Belgae andCelts, known asGauls, invaded Normandy in successive waves from the 4th to the 3rd centuries BC. Much of our knowledge about this group comes fromJulius Caesar'sde Bello Gallico. Caesar identified several different groups among the Belgae who occupied separate regions and lived in enclosed agrarian towns. In 57 BC, the Gauls united underVercingetorix in an attempt to resist the onslaught of Caesar's army. Even after their defeat atAlesia, the people of Normandy continued to fight until 51 BC, the year Caesar completed his conquest of Gaul.
Below is a list of Gallic tribes, whose territories correspond to later Normandy, and their administrative centers:
In 27 BC,Emperor Augustus reorganized the Gallic territories by adding theCaletes andVeliocasses to the province ofGallia Lugdunensis, which had its capital atLyon. TheRomanization of Normandy was achieved by the usual methods:Roman roads and a policy of urbanization.
Classicists have knowledge of manyGallo-Romanvillas in Normandy, thanks in large part to finds made during construction of theA29 autoroute inSeine-Maritime. These country houses were often laid out according to two major plans. One design features a tall and slender structure with an open façade facing south; the second design is similar to Italian villas, with an organized layout around a square courtyard. The latter can be seen at the villa ofSainte-Marguerite-sur-Mer. The villas were built using local materials:flint,chalk,limestone, brick, andcob. The technique ofhalf-timbering came from this period and Celtic huts. The heating systems of these villas relied on the Romanhypocaust.
Agriculture in the region provided wheat andlinen, according toPliny the Elder. Pliny also noted the presence offana (small temples with a centered, usually square plan) in great numbers. In antiquity the temples ofÉvreux made the town an importantpilgrimage site, with aforum,Roman baths, abasilica, and a Gallic theatre. Évreux is also notable for themother goddess statues found in tombs and houses.
In the late 3rd century, barbarian raids devastated Normandy. Traces of fire and hastily buried treasures bear evidence to the degree of insecurity in Northern Gaul. Coastal settlements risked raids bySaxonpirates. The situation was so severe that an entire legion ofSueves[1] was garrisoned atConstantia (in thepagus Constantinus), the administrative center of theUnelli tribe.Batavi were garrisoned atCivitas Baiocasensis (Bayeux ). As a result ofDiocletian's reforms, Normandy was detached fromBrittany, while remaining withinGallia Lugdunensis. Christianity began to enter the area during this period: SaintMellonius was supposedly ordainedBishop of Rouen in the mid-3rd century. In 406,Germanic andAlan tribes began invading from the east, while the Saxons subjugated the Norman coast. Eventually in 457,Aegidius established theDomain of Soissons in the area (with its seat the town of the same nameSoissons, formerly the seat of theSuessiones), independent of and cut off from the Empire but with citizens nevertheless still considering themselves Roman. His sonSyagrius succeeded him in 464 and remained until the kingdom was conquered in 486. Rural villages were abandoned and the remaining "Romans" confined themselves to within urbanfortifications.Toponymy suggests that the various barbarian groups had installed themselves and formedalliances and federations already at the end of the 3rd century, well before the fall of theWestern Roman Empire in 476.
As early as 486, the area between theSomme and theLoire came under the control of theFrankish lordClovis. Frankish colonization did not occur on a massive scale, and is evidenced chiefly by cemeteries inEnvermeu,Londinieres,Herouvillette, andDouvrend. The place names were chieflyFrankish at this time. The Franks also cut administration and military presence at the local levels. Eventually the eastern region of Normandy became a residence forMerovingian royalty.
TheChristianization of the area continued with the construction of cathedrals in the principal cities and churches in minor localities. This establishment of theparishes would continue for a long time. The smaller parishes tended to be located in the plains aroundCaen while the rural parishes took up more space. Villagers would be buried around the local parish church up until theCarolingian era.
TheNeustrian monarchy developed in the 6th century in the isolated western regions. In the 7th century the Neustrianaristocrats founded severalabbeys in the valley of theSeine:Fontenelle in 649,Jumièges about 654,Pavilly,Montivilliers. These abbeys rapidly adopted theBenedictine Rule. They came to possess great quantities of land throughout France, from which they drew considerable income. They therefore became involved in political and dynastic rivalries.
Normandy takes its name from theViking invaders who menaced large parts of Europe towards the end of the 1st millennium in two phases (790–930, then 980–1030).Medieval Latin documents referred to them asNortmanni, which means "men of the North". This name provides the etymological basis for the modern words "Norman" and "Normandy", with-ia (Normandia, likeNeustria,Francia, etc.). After 911, this name replaced the term Neustria, which had formerly been used to describe the region that included Normandy. The other parts of Neustria became known asFrance (nowÎle-de-France),Anjou and Champagne.[citation needed] The rate of Scandinavian colonization can be seen in theNorman toponymy and in the changes in popularfamily names. Today,nordmann (pron. Norman) in theNorwegian language andSwedish language denotes aNorwegian person.[citation needed]
The first Viking raids began between 790 and 800 on the coasts of western France[citation needed]. Several coastal areas were lost during the reign ofLouis the Pious (814–840). The incursions in 841 caused severe damage toRouen andJumièges. The Viking attackers sought to capture the treasures stored atmonasteries - easy prey consideringmonks were generally unable to put up much if any resistance. An expedition in 845 went up theSeine and reached Paris. The raids took place primarily in the summers, with the Vikings initially wintering inScandinavia.
After 851, Vikings began to stay in the lowerSeine valley for the winter[citation needed]. In January 852, they burned theAbbey of Fontenelle. The monks who were still alive fled toBoulogne-sur-Mer in 858 and then toChartres in 885. The relics ofSainte Honorine were transported fromGraville toConflans, which becameConflans-Sainte-Honorine in the Paris region, safer by virtue of its southeasterly location. The monks also attempted to move theirarchives and monastic libraries to the south, but several were burned by the Vikings.[citation needed]
The Carolingian kings in power at the time tended to have contradictory politics, which had severe consequences. In 867,Charles the Bald signed the Treaty of Compiègne, by which he agreed to yield theCotentin Peninsula (and probably theAvranchin) to theBreton kingSalomon, on condition that Salomon would take an oath of fidelity and fight as an ally against the Vikings. After being defeated by the Franks (led byRobert I of France)[2] at theBattle of Chartres in 911, the Viking leaderRollo and the Frankish KingCharles the Simple signed theTreaty of Saint-Clair-sur-Epte, under which Charles gave Rouen and the area of present-dayUpper Normandy to Rollo, establishing theDuchy of Normandy. In exchange, Rollo pledged vassalage to Charles and agreed tobaptism. Robert I stood as godfather during Rollo's baptism.[2] Rollo vowed to guard the estuaries of the Seine from further Viking attacks.
With a series of conquests, the territory of Normandy gradually expanded:Hiémois andBessin were taken in 924, the Cotentin and a part of Avranchin followed in 933. That year, KingRaoul of France was forced to give Cotentin and a part of Avranchin toWilliam I of Normandy, essentially all lands north of the riverSélune which the Breton dukes had theoretically controlled for about the previous 70 years. Between 1009 and 1020, the Normans continued their westward expansion, taking all the land between the rivers Sélune andCouesnon, includingMont Saint-Michel, and completing the conquest of Avranchin.William the Conqueror completed these campaigns in 1050 by takingPassais. Logically, the Norman rulers (firstcounts of Rouen and then dukes of Normandy) tried to bring about the political unification of the two different Viking settlements ofpays de Caux-lowerSeine in the east and Cotentin in the west. Furthermore, Rollo re-established thearchbishopric of Rouen and wanted to restore the traditional limits of his archbishopric in the west, that had always included Cotentin and Avranchin.
While Viking raiders pillaged, burned, or destroyed many buildings, it is likely that ecclesiastical sources give an unfairly negative picture: no city was completely destroyed. On the other hand, many monasteries were pillaged and all the abbeys were destroyed. Nevertheless, the activities of Rollo and his successors brought about a rapid recovery.
The Scandinaviancolonisation was principallyDanish under the Norwegian leadership of Rollo, the colonization also had aNorwegian element in the Cotentin region. For instance, the first nameBarno is mentioned in two different documents before 1066 and clearly represents the "frankization" of the Old Scandinavian personal nameBarni, only found in Denmark and in England during theViking Age. It can be identified in many Norman place-names too, such asBarneville-sur-Seine,Banneville, etc. and in England:Barnby.[3] On the other hand, the presence of Norwegians has left traces in the Cotentin:
A fewSwedes may have also come to Normandy.
The Viking colonisation was not a mass phenomenon. Nevertheless, in some areas, the Scandinavians established themselves rather densely, particularly in pays de Caux and in the northern part of the Cotentin. In fact, one can qualify the Nordic settlements in Normandy as Anglo-Scandinavian, because most of the colonists must have come after 911 as fishermen and farmers from the EnglishDanelaw and a consequent Anglo-Saxon influence can be detected. Toponymic and linguistic evidence survives in support of this theory: for instanceDénestanville (Dunestanvilla in 1142, PN Dunstān >Dunstan) orVénestanville (Wenestanvillam 13th century, Wynstān >Winston).[5] Furthermore, theAnglo-Saxon Chronicle mentions three times the possible settlement of Danes from England in Neustria:
Archeological evidence can be added: some Anglo-Saxon swords were dredged out of the Seine River, they had probably been used by the Danes. More recently, a buried treasure hoard discovered atSaint-Pierre-des-Fleurs contained nine Anglo-Saxon coins with traces of blows to test the metal quality of the coins.[6]
The merging of the Scandinavian and native elements contributed to the creation of one of the most powerfulfeudal states of Western Europe. The naval ability of the Normans would allow them to conquer England and to participate in theCrusades.
Historians have few sources of information for this period of Norman history:Dudo of Saint-Quentin,William of Jumièges,Orderic Vitalis,Flodoard of Reims,Richerus andWace. Diplomatic messages are the primary source of information for the succession ofdukes.
Rollo of Normandy was the chief – the "jarl" – of the Viking population. After 911, he was thecount ofRouen. His successors gained the titleDuke of Normandy fromRichard II. After the rise of theCapetian dynasty, they were forced to vacate the title, for there could be only one duke inNeustria, and theRobertians carried the title. These dukes increased the strength of Normandy, although they had to observe the superiority of theKing of France. The dukes of Normandy did not resist the general trend of monopolizing authority over their territory: the dukes struck their own money, rendered justice, and levied taxes. They raised their own armies and named the bulk ofprelates of theirarchdiocese. They were therefore practically independent of the French king, although they paid homage to each new monarch.
The dukes maintained relations with foreign monarchs, especially theking of England: Emma, sister ofRichard II married KingEthelred II of England. They appointed family members to positions as counts and viscounts, which came about around the year 1000. They held on to some territory in Scandinavia and the right to enter those lands by sea. The Norman dukes also ensured that their vassal lords did not get too powerful, lest they become a threat to the ducal authority. The Norman dukes thus had more authority over their own domains than other territorial princes in northernFrance. Their wealth thus enabled them to give large tracts of land to the abbeys and to ensure the loyalty of their vassals with gifts of fiefdoms.William'sconquest of England opened up more land to the dukes, allowing them to continue these practices whilst preserving sufficient land holdings to serve as their powerbase.
The course of the 11th century did not have any strict organizations and was somewhat chaotic. The great lords madeoaths of fidelity to the heir of the duchy, and were in return granted public and ecclesiastical authority. The justice system lacked a central governing body and written laws were uncommon.
The aristocracy was composed of a small group of Scandinavian men, while the majority of the Norman political leaders were of Frankish descent. At the start of the 11th century, the region was attacked by theBretons from the West, theGermans from the East, and the people ofAnjou from the South. All of the aristocrats' fidelity oaths to the Norman dukes were attributed to defending their important domains. As early as 1040, the term ‘baron’ indicated the elite knights and soldiers of the duke. On the other hand, the term ‘vassal’ does not appear in the documents from 1057 onwards. It was also in the middle of the 11th century thatfiefdoms came to exist.Richard the First designated fiefdoms to counts from the dynasty and the cities so as to prevent them from getting too powerful.
Having little confidence in the loyalty of the Normans, Philip installed French administrators and built a powerful fortress, theChâteau de Rouen, as a symbol of royal power. Within the royal demesne, Normandy retained certain distinctive features.Norman law continued to serve as the basis for court decisions. In 1315, faced with the constant encroachments of royal power on the liberties of Normandy, the barons and towns pressed on the king the Norman Charter. While this document did not provide autonomy to the province, it protected it against arbitrary royal acts. The judgments of theExchequer, the main court of Normandy, were declared final. This meant that Paris could not reverse a judgement of Rouen. Another important concession was that the King of France could not raise a new tax without the consent of the Normans. However, the charter, granted at a time when royal authority was faltering, was violated several times thereafter when the monarchy had regained its power.
The Duchy of Normandy survived mainly by the intermittent installation of a duke. In practice, the King of France sometimes gave that portion of his kingdom to a close member of his family, who then did homage to the king.Philippe VI madeJean, his eldest son and heir to his throne, the Duke of Normandy. In turn, Jean II appointed his heir,Charles, who was also known by his title ofDauphin.
In 1465,Louis XI was forced by his nobles to cede the duchy to his eighteen-year-old brotherCharles, as anappanage. This concession was a problem for the king since Charles was the puppet of the king's enemies. Normandy could thus serve as a basis for rebellion against the royal power. Louis XI therefore agreed with his brother to exchange Normandy for theDuchy of Guyenne (Aquitaine). Finally, to signify that Normandy would not be ceded again, on 9 November 1469 the ducal ring was placed on an anvil and smashed. This was the definitive end of the duchy on the continent.
Although agriculture remained important, industries such as weaving, metallurgy, sugar refining, ceramics, and shipbuilding were introduced and developed.
In the 1780s, the economic crisis and the crisis of theAncien Régime struck Normandy as well as other parts of the nation, leading to theFrench Revolution. Bad harvests, technical progress and the effects of theEden Agreement signed in 1786 affected employment and the economy of the province. Normans laboured under a heavy fiscal burden.
Dauphin Louis Charles, the second son ofLouis XVI, was again given the nominal title of 'Duke of Normandy' before the death of hiselder brother in 1789.
In 1790, the five departments of Normandy replaced the former province.
11 July 1793, the NormanCharlotte Corday assassinatedJean-Paul Marat.
The Normans reacted little to the many political upheavals that characterised the 19th century. Overall, they warily accepted the changes of régime (First French Empire,Bourbon Restoration,July Monarchy,French Second Republic,Second French Empire,French Third Republic).
There was an economic revival (mechanization of textile manufacture, first trains...) after theFrench Revolutionary Wars and theNapoleonic Wars (1792–1815).
And new economic activity stimulated the coasts: seaside tourism. The 19th century marks the birth of the first beach resorts.
During the Second World War, following thearmistice of 22 June 1940, continental Normandy was part of theGerman occupied zone of France. The Channel Islands wereoccupied by German forces between 30 June 1940 and 9 May 1945. The town ofDieppe was the site of the unsuccessfulDieppe Raid by Canadian and British armed forces.
The Allies in this case involving Britain, the U.S., and Canada coordinated a massive build-up of troops and supplies to support a large-scale invasion of Normandy in theD-Day landings on 6 June 1944 under the code nameOperation Overlord. The Germans were dug into fortified emplacements above the beaches.Caen,Cherbourg,Carentan,Falaise and other Norman towns endured many casualties in theBattle of Normandy, which continued until the closing of the so-calledFalaise gap betweenChambois andMont Ormel. The liberation ofLe Havre followed.
This was a significant turning point in the war and led to the restoration of the French Republic. The remainder of Normandy was liberated only on 9 May 1945 at the end of the war, when theOccupation of the Channel Islands effectively ended.
