Normandy is one of the great historic regions of France; in the Middle Ages, Normandy was a great dukedom which, like Burgundy, rivalled in power and prestige with the kingdom of France. Indeed, the dukes of Normandy managed to achieve the same status as the kings of France, to whom they owed alliegance - but that was by extending their domains beyond the Channel, when William of Normandy managed to  acquire the title and status of King ...... of England..
    With their historic links and their proximity, it is hardly surprising that Normandy has much in common with the south of England; the rolling countryside is not too different - fields and meadows bordered by hedges, even bluebell woods. Furthermore, the historic and vernacular styles of architecture are not too different either.
    Today, the area that was once the dukedom of Normandy is divided into two administrative regions - Upper Normandy (Haute Normandie), capital Rouen, with its two departments, Eure (27) and Seine Maritime (76), and Lower Normandy, (Basse Normandie) capital Caen, comprising the departments of Calvados (14), Manche (50), and Orne(61). There are plenty of people who would like to see the two regions reunited - which would make historic sense, and leave a reunited Normandy still within the norms of French regions, both in size and in population. This is liable to occur in the not too distant future when the number of regions in metropolitan France is reduced fro the current 22 to 15.
    To the south east, Normandy borders on the Ile de France, the Paris region, and towns and villages in this area have developed due to their proximity to the capital. Both Caen and Rouen are sufficiently close to Paris to benefit from the economic vigour of the Paris region, which is the most propserous in France, and from their position between two major hubs of international communications - Paris for air travel (parts of south east Normandy are less than 100 km from Charles de Gaulle airport), and the Normandy port of Le Havre, France's most important international shipping port.
    Le Havre, Caen and Rouen are the three main cities in this region. There are four smaller cities - or large towns, these being Evreux, in the Eure,  Cherbourg - still an active seaport, though less than in its heyday when it was France's gateway to America  - Dieppe, a minor seaport, and Alençon, capital of the Orne.
    Outside the towns and cities, Normandy is a prosperous agricultural area, specialising in dairy products, fruit (notably apples) and mixed farming. The most famous regional products are the cheese Camembert, and two drinks, Cider and the spirit distilled from it, Calvados. Normandy is also famous for its racehorses, and the region has many top breeding stables.


Access : by train from Paris Gare Saint Lazare, Direct access by ferry from the UK, to Cherbourg, Caen (Ouistreham), Le Havre or Dieppe. Ait access by plane to Paris or (for western Normandy) to Rennes.