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By 56 BC the Romans had swept through the region, conquering the Celtic Gallic settlers. They built roads, amphitheatres, viaducts and major fortified settlements, including Rotomagus (Rouen), Augustodurum (Bayeux) and Mediolanum (Evreux).

By the early 10th century, the Carolingian king, Charles the Simple, realized that the Vikings, who had invaded in 800, would not go away quietly, so he ceded Rouen and the east of the region, making their leader Rollo the first duke of Normandy.

When Edward the Confessor died without an heir, his cousin William saw his chance to claim the English throne. He sailed for England on 27 September 1066, triumphed at Hastings on 14 October, and was crowned King of England on Christmas Day.

Since the accession of Henry II, King of England and Duke of Normandy, the French had tried to wrest control of the duchy from England. They succeeded in 1204, when King John lost Normandy to Philippe Auguste.

Signed by Louis X, this charter gave the region provincial autonomy, a sovereign court of justice in Rouen, and control over taxes. In return, local taxes were increased dramatically – amounting to a quarter of the entire country’s tax bill.

In the final phase of the Hundred Years’ War, the decisive Battle of Formigny saw the French using guns and heavy cavalry to inflict a major defeat on English archers. This battle marked the end of fighting in Normandy and led to its recovery by France.

During the French Revolution, there were royalist pockets throughout Normandy, but Caen became a centre for the republican Girondin movement (many of whose members originally came from the Gironde). Like the republicans who stormed the Bastille, their Norman counterparts demolished the château prison in Rouen.

On 7 June 1940, the German army marched into Forges-les-Eaux and, two days later, into Rouen – the prelude to four years of occupation, during which local people were imprisoned, tortured, deported and executed.

In June 1944, Norman beaches became the target for Operation Overlord. By 20 August, the Allied forces were advancing towards Paris over the Perche hills.

Every 10 years, surviving D-Day veterans gather to commemorate the dead; the 2004 gathering may have been one of the last.