Rouen (, ; or ) is a city on the River Seine in northern France. It is the prefecture of the

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics ( physical geography), human impact characteristics ( human geography), and the interaction of humanity an ...

Normandy Normandy (; french: link=no, Normandie ; nrf, Normaundie, Nouormandie ; from Old French , plural of ''Normant'', originally from the word for "northman" in several Scandinavian languages) is a geographical and cultural region in Northwestern ...

and the department of

Seine-Maritime Seine-Maritime () is a department of France in the Normandy region of northern France. It is situated on the northern coast of France, at the mouth of the Seine, and includes the cities of Rouen and Le Havre. Until 1955 it was named Seine-Inféri ...

. Formerly one of the largest and most prosperous cities of

medieval Europe In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...

, the population of the metropolitan area (french: aire d'attraction) is 702,945 (2018). People from Rouen are known as ''Rouennais''. Rouen was the seat of the

Exchequer of Normandy The Exchequer of Normandy (''Échiquier de Normandie'') or Exchequer of Rouen (''Échiquier de Rouen'') was the fiscal and administrative court of the Duchy of Normandy until the early 16th century. Surviving records show that the Exchequer of N ...

during the Middle Ages. It was one of the capitals of the

Anglo-Norman Anglo-Norman may refer to: *Anglo-Normans, the medieval ruling class in England following the Norman conquest of 1066 * Anglo-Norman language **Anglo-Norman literature * Anglo-Norman England, or Norman England, the period in English history from 10 ...

dynasties, which ruled both

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

and large parts of modern France from the 11th to the 15th centuries. From the 13th century onwards, the city experienced a remarkable economic boom, thanks in particular to the development of textile factories and river trade. Claimed by both the French and the English during the Hundred Years' War, it was on its soil that

Joan of Arc Joan of Arc (french: link=yes, Jeanne d'Arc, translit= �an daʁk} ; 1412 – 30 May 1431) is a patron saint of France, honored as a defender of the French nation for her role in the siege of Orléans and her insistence on the coronat ...

was tried and burned alive on 30 May 1431. Severely damaged by the wave of bombing in 1944, it nevertheless regained its economic dynamism in the post-war period thanks to its industrial sites and its large seaport, which today is the fifth largest in France. Endowed with a prestige established during the

medieval era In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...

, and with a long architectural heritage in its historical monuments, Rouen is an important cultural capital. Several renowned establishments are located here, such as the Museum of Fine Arts, the Secq des Tournelles museum, and

Rouen Cathedral Rouen Cathedral (french: Cathédrale primatiale Notre-Dame de l'Assomption de Rouen) is a Roman Catholic church in Rouen, Normandy, France. It is the see of the Archbishop of Rouen, Primate of Normandy. It is famous for its three towers, each i ...

. Seat of an archdiocese, it also hosts a court of appeal and a

university A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States ...

. Every four to six years, Rouen becomes the showcase for a large gathering of sailing ships called "L'Armada"; this event makes the city an occasional capital of the maritime world.

History

Rouen was founded by the

Gaul Gaul ( la, Gallia) was a region of Western Europe first described by the Romans. It was inhabited by Celtic and Aquitani tribes, encompassing present-day France, Belgium, Luxembourg, most of Switzerland, parts of Northern Italy (only during ...

ish tribe of the

Veliocasses The Veliocasses or Velocasses (Gaulish: *''Weliocassēs'') were a Belgic or Gallic tribe of the La Tène and Roman periods, dwelling in the south of modern Seine-Maritime and in the north of Eure. Name They are mentioned as ''Veliocasses'' by ...

, who controlled a large area in the lower Seine valley. They called it ''Ratumacos''; the

Romans Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

called it ''Rotomagus''. It was considered the second city of

Gallia Lugdunensis Gallia Lugdunensis (French: ''Gaule Lyonnaise'') was a province of the Roman Empire in what is now the modern country of France, part of the Celtic territory of Gaul formerly known as Celtica. It is named after its capital Lugdunum (today's Lyon) ...

after

Lugdunum Lugdunum (also spelled Lugudunum, ; modern Lyon, France) was an important Roman city in Gaul, established on the current site of Lyon. The Roman city was founded in 43 BC by Lucius Munatius Plancus, but continued an existing Gallic settle ...

(

Lyon Lyon,, ; Occitan language, Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, third-largest city and Urban area (France), second-largest metropolitan area of F ...

) itself. Under the reorganization of Diocletian, Rouen was the chief city of the divided province Gallia Lugdunensis II and reached the apogee of its Roman development, with an amphitheatre and ''

thermae In ancient Rome, (from Greek , "hot") and (from Greek ) were facilities for bathing. usually refers to the large imperial bath complexes, while were smaller-scale facilities, public or private, that existed in great numbers throughout ...

'' of which foundations remain. In the 5th century, it became the seat of a bishopric and later a capital of

Merovingian The Merovingian dynasty () was the ruling family of the Franks from the middle of the 5th century until 751. They first appear as "Kings of the Franks" in the Roman army of northern Gaul. By 509 they had united all the Franks and northern Gauli ...

Neustria Neustria was the western part of the Kingdom of the Franks. Neustria included the land between the Loire and the Silva Carbonaria, approximately the north of present-day France, with Paris, Orléans, Tours, Soissons as its main cities. It late ...

. From their first incursion into the lower valley of the Seine in 841, the

Normans The Normans ( Norman: ''Normaunds''; french: Normands; la, Nortmanni/Normanni) were a population arising in the medieval Duchy of Normandy from the intermingling between Norse Viking settlers and indigenous West Franks and Gallo-Romans. ...

overran Rouen. From 912, Rouen was the capital of the

Duchy of Normandy The Duchy of Normandy grew out of the 911 Treaty of Saint-Clair-sur-Epte between King Charles III of West Francia and the Viking leader Rollo. The duchy was named for its inhabitants, the Normans. From 1066 until 1204, as a result of the Norman c ...

and residence of the local dukes, until

William the Conqueror William I; ang, WillelmI (Bates ''William the Conqueror'' p. 33– 9 September 1087), usually known as William the Conqueror and sometimes William the Bastard, was the first House of Normandy, Norman List of English monarchs#House of Norman ...

moved his residence to Caen. In 1150, Rouen received its founding charter which permitted self-government. During the 12th century, Rouen was the site of a

yeshiva A yeshiva (; he, ישיבה, , sitting; pl. , or ) is a traditional Jewish educational institution focused on the study of Rabbinic literature, primarily the Talmud and halacha (Jewish law), while Torah and Jewish philosophy are st ...

known as La Maison Sublime. Discovered in 1976, it is now a museum. At that time, about 6,000 Jews lived in the town, comprising about 20% of the population. On 24 June 1204, King

Philip II Augustus Philip II (21 August 1165 – 14 July 1223), byname Philip Augustus (french: Philippe Auguste), was King of France from 1180 to 1223. His predecessors had been known as kings of the Franks, but from 1190 onward, Philip became the first French ...

of France entered Rouen and definitively annexed Normandy to the

French Kingdom The Kingdom of France ( fro, Reaume de France; frm, Royaulme de France; french: link=yes, Royaume de France) is the historiographical name or umbrella term given to various political entities of France in the medieval and early modern perio ...

. He demolished the Norman castle and replaced it with his own, the Château Bouvreuil, built on the site of the Gallo-Roman amphitheatre. A textile industry developed based on wool imported from England, for which the cities of Flanders and Brabant were constantly competitors, and finding its market in the Champagne fairs. Rouen also depended for its prosperity on the river traffic of the Seine, on which it enjoyed a monopoly that reached as far upstream as

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...

. In the 13th and 14th centuries urban strife threatened the city: in 1291, the mayor was assassinated and noble residences in the city were pillaged. Philip IV reimposed order and suppressed the city's charter and the lucrative monopoly on river traffic, but he was quite willing to allow the Rouennais to repurchase their old liberties in 1294. In 1306, he decided to expel the Jewish community of Rouen, then numbering some five or six thousand. In 1389, another urban revolt of the underclass occurred, the '' Harelle''. It was suppressed with the withdrawal of Rouen's charter and river-traffic privileges once more. During the Hundred Years' War, on 19 January 1419, Rouen surrendered to Henry V of England, who annexed

once again to the Plantagenet domains but Rouen did not go quietly:

Alain Blanchard Alain Blanchard (born 14th century, executed in Rouen in 1419) was a commander of the crossbowmen of Rouen during the Hundred Years' War. He was active in the defence of the city during its siege by king Henry V of England. His habit of hangin ...

hanged English prisoners from the walls, for which he was summarily executed while

Canon Canon or Canons may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Canon (fiction), the conceptual material accepted as official in a fictional universe by its fan base * Literary canon, an accepted body of works considered as high culture ** Western ca ...

and

Vicar General A vicar general (previously, archdeacon) is the principal deputy of the bishop of a diocese for the exercise of administrative authority and possesses the title of local ordinary. As vicar of the bishop, the vicar general exercises the bishop' ...

of Rouen Robert de Livet became a hero for excommunicating the English king, resulting in de Livet's imprisonment for five years in England.

, who supported a return to French rule, was

burned at the stake Death by burning (also known as immolation) is an execution and murder method involving combustion or exposure to extreme heat. It has a long history as a form of public capital punishment, and many societies have employed it as a punishment f ...

on 30 May 1431 in this city, where most inhabitants supported the duke of Burgundy, the French king's enemy. The king of France, Charles VII, recaptured the town in 1449. Rouen was staunchly Catholic during the

French Wars of Religion The French Wars of Religion is the term which is used in reference to a period of civil war between French Catholics and Protestants, commonly called Huguenots, which lasted from 1562 to 1598. According to estimates, between two and four mi ...

, and underwent an unsuccessful five-month siege in 1591/2 by the Protestant King Henry IV of France and an English force commanded by the Earl of Essex. A brief account by an English participant has survived. See 'Memoirs of Robert Carey', (F.H.Mares (ed.), Oxford, 1972), pp. 18–21. The first competitive motor race ran from Paris to Rouen in 1894. During the German occupation in World War II, the Kriegsmarine had its headquarters located in a chateau on what is now the Rouen Business School. The city was heavily damaged during the same war on D-day, and its famed cathedral was almost destroyed by Allied bombs.

Main sights

Rouen is known for its

, with its ''Tour de Beurre'' (''butter tower'') financed by the sale of

indulgences In the teaching of the Catholic Church, an indulgence (, from , 'permit') is "a way to reduce the amount of punishment one has to undergo for sins". The '' Catechism of the Catholic Church'' describes an indulgence as "a remission before God o ...

for the consumption of butter during

Lent Lent ( la, Quadragesima, 'Fortieth') is a solemn religious observance in the liturgical calendar commemorating the 40 days Jesus spent fasting in the desert and enduring temptation by Satan, according to the Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke ...

. The cathedral's gothic façade (completed in the 16th century) was the subject of a series of paintings by

Claude Monet Oscar-Claude Monet (, , ; 14 November 1840 – 5 December 1926) was a French painter and founder of impressionist painting who is seen as a key precursor to modernism, especially in his attempts to paint nature as he perceived it. Durin ...

, some of which are exhibited in the Musée d'Orsay in Paris. The ''

Gros Horloge The Gros-Horloge ( en, Great-Clock) is a 14th century astronomical clock in Rouen, Normandy. The clock is installed in a Renaissance arch crossing the Rue du Gros-Horloge. The mechanism is one of the oldest in France, the movement having been ma ...

'' is an

astronomical clock An astronomical clock, horologium, or orloj is a clock with special mechanisms and dials to display astronomical information, such as the relative positions of the Sun, Moon, zodiacal constellations, and sometimes major planets. Definition ...

dating back to the 14th century. It is located in the ''Gros Horloge'' street. Other famous structures include Rouen Castle, whose keep is known as the ''tour Jeanne d'Arc'', where

was brought in 1431 to be threatened with torture (contrary to popular belief, she was not imprisoned there but in the since destroyed ''tour de lady Pucelle''); the '' Church of Saint Ouen'' (12th–15th century); the '' Palais de Justice'', which was once the seat of the '' Parlement'' (French court of law) of Normandy; the

Gothic Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths **Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...

'' Church of St Maclou'' (15th century); and the Museum of Fine Arts and Ceramics which contains a splendid collection of

faïence Faience or faïence (; ) is the general English language term for fine tin-glazed pottery. The invention of a white pottery glaze suitable for painted decoration, by the addition of an oxide of tin to the slip of a lead glaze, was a major ...

and

porcelain Porcelain () is a ceramic material made by heating substances, generally including materials such as kaolinite, in a kiln to temperatures between . The strength and translucence of porcelain, relative to other types of pottery, arises main ...

for which Rouen was renowned during the 16th to 18th centuries. Rouen is also noted for its surviving half-timbered buildings. There are many museums in Rouen: the

Musée des Beaux-Arts de Rouen The Musée des Beaux-Arts de Rouen is an art museum in Rouen, in Normandy in north-western France. It was established by Napoléon Bonaparte in 1801, and is housed in a building designed by and built between 1877 and 1888. Its collections include ...

, an art museum with pictures of well-known painters such as

and Géricault; the Musée maritime fluvial et portuaire, a museum on the history of the port of Rouen and navigation; Musée des antiquités, an art and history museum with local works from the Bronze Age through the Renaissance, the Musée de la céramique and the Musée Le Secq des Tournelles. The Jardin des Plantes de Rouen is a notable

botanical garden A botanical garden or botanic gardenThe terms ''botanic'' and ''botanical'' and ''garden'' or ''gardens'' are used more-or-less interchangeably, although the word ''botanic'' is generally reserved for the earlier, more traditional gardens, an ...

once owned by Scottish banker

John Law John Law may refer to: Arts and entertainment * John Law (artist) (born 1958), American artist * John Law (comics), comic-book character created by Will Eisner * John Law (film director), Hong Kong film director * John Law (musician) (born 1961) ...

, dating from 1840 in its present form. It was the site of Élisa Garnerin's parachute jump from a balloon in 1817. There is also a park and garden at the Champs de Mars, to the east of the city centre. The Paris–Rouen motor race of 1894, ''Le Petit Journal'' Horseless Carriages Contest, ended at the Champs de Mars. In the centre of the Place du Vieux Marché (the site of Joan of Arc's pyre) is the modern

church of St Joan of Arc The Church of Saint Joan of Arc (French: ''L'église Sainte-Jeanne-d'Arc'') is a Catholic church in the city centre of Rouen, northern France. The church of Saint Joan of Arc was completed in 1979 in the centre of the ancient market square, known ...

. This is a large, modern structure which dominates the square. The form of the building represents an upturned

viking Vikings ; non, víkingr is the modern name given to seafaring people originally from Scandinavia (present-day Denmark, Norway and Sweden), who from the late 8th to the late 11th centuries raided, pirated, traded and se ...

boat and a fish shape. Rouen was also home to the

French Grand Prix The French Grand Prix (french: Grand Prix de France), formerly known as the Grand Prix de l'ACF (Automobile Club de France), is an auto race held as part of the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile's annual Formula One World Championsh ...

, hosting the race at the nearby

Rouen-Les-Essarts Rouen-Les-Essarts was a motor racing circuit in Orival, near Rouen, France. From its opening in 1950, Rouen-Les-Essarts was recognized as one of Europe's finest circuits, with modern pits, a wide track, and spectator grandstands. The street ci ...

track sporadically between 1952 and 1968. In 1999 Rouen authorities demolished the grandstands and other remnants of Rouen's racing past. Today, little remains beyond the public roads that formed the circuit. Rouen has an

opera house An opera house is a theatre building used for performances of opera. It usually includes a stage, an orchestra pit, audience seating, and backstage facilities for costumes and building sets. While some venues are constructed specifically fo ...

, whose formal name is "Rouen Normandy Opera House – Theatre of Arts" (in French: ''Opéra de Rouen Normandie – Théâtre des arts'').

Climate

Rouen has an oceanic climate (''Cfb'' in the Köppen climate classification).

Transport

Mainline trains operate from

Gare de Rouen-Rive-Droite Rouen-Rive-Droite is a large railway station serving the city of Rouen, Normandy, France. The station is on Rue Verte in the north of the city. Services are mainly intercity but many services are local. There are also TGV from Le Havre to Marseil ...

Le Havre Le Havre (, ; nrf, Lé Hâvre ) is a port city in the Seine-Maritime department in the Normandy region of northern France. It is situated on the right bank of the estuary of the river Seine on the Channel southwest of the Pays de Caux, very ...

and Paris, and regional trains to Caen,

Dieppe Dieppe (; Norman: ''Dgieppe'') is a coastal commune in the Seine-Maritime department in the Normandy region of northern France. Dieppe is a seaport on the English Channel at the mouth of the river Arques. A regular ferry service runs to N ...

and other local destinations in

. Daily direct trains operate to

Amiens Amiens (English: or ; ; pcd, Anmien, or ) is a city and commune in northern France, located north of Paris and south-west of Lille. It is the capital of the Somme department in the region of Hauts-de-France. In 2021, the population of ...

and

Lille Lille ( , ; nl, Rijsel ; pcd, Lile; vls, Rysel) is a city in the northern part of France, in French Flanders. On the river Deûle, near France's border with Belgium, it is the capital of the Hauts-de-France region, the prefecture of the N ...

, and direct

TGV The TGV (french: Train à Grande Vitesse, "high-speed train"; previously french: TurboTrain à Grande Vitesse, label=none) is France's intercity high-speed rail service, operated by SNCF. SNCF worked on a high-speed rail network from 1966 to 19 ...

s (high-speed trains) connect daily with

and

Marseille Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Fra ...

. City transportation in Rouen consists of a tram and a bus system. The tramway branches into two lines out of a tunnel under the city centre. Rouen is also served by TEOR ( Transport Est-Ouest Rouennais) and by buses run in conjunction with the tramway by TCAR (Transports en commun de l'agglomération rouennaise), a subsidiary of

Transdev Transdev, formerly Veolia Transdev, is a French-based international private-sector company which operates public transport. It has operations in 17 countries and territories as of November 2020. History The group was formed by the merger of ...

. Rouen has its own

airport An airport is an aerodrome with extended facilities, mostly for commercial air transport. Airports usually consists of a landing area, which comprises an aerially accessible open space including at least one operationally active surfa ...

. The Seine is a major axis for maritime cargo links in the Port of Rouen. The Cross-Channel ferry ports of Caen,

(50 minutes) and Calais, and the Channel Tunnel are within easy driving distance (two and a half hours or less). Gros-Horloge, détail

Administration

Rouen and its metropolitan area of 70 suburban communes form the

Métropole Rouen Normandie __NOTOC__ Métropole Rouen Normandie is the ''métropole'', an intercommunal structure, centred on the city of Rouen. It is located in the Seine-Maritime department, in the Normandy region, north-western France. It was created in January 2015, re ...

, with 494,382 inhabitants at the 2010 census. In descending order of population, the largest of these suburbs are

Sotteville-lès-Rouen Sotteville-lès-Rouen (, literally ''Sotteville near Rouen'') is a commune and railway town in the Seine-Maritime department in the Normandy region in northern France. Geography It is the largest suburb of the city of Rouen and adjacent to it, ...

, Saint-Étienne-du-Rouvray,

Le Grand-Quevilly Le Grand-Quevilly is a commune in the Seine-Maritime department in the Normandy region in north-western France. Geography The town is third largest suburb of Rouen, a port with considerable light industry situated just southwest of the centre o ...

Le Petit-Quevilly Le Petit-Quevilly (, locally ) is a commune in the Seine-Maritime department, region of Normandy, France. Geography A residential and light industrial suburb situated inside a meander of the river Seine on the opposite bank to Rouen city centre, ...

, and

Mont-Saint-Aignan Mont-Saint-Aignan () is a commune in the Seine-Maritime department in the region of Normandy, northwestern France. The inhabitants of the town of Mont-Saint-Aignan are called ''Mont-Saint-Aignanais'' in French. Due to the presence of higher educ ...

, each with a population exceeding 20,000.

Population

Education

The main schools of higher education are the

University of Rouen The University of Rouen Normandy (''Université de Rouen Normandie'') is a French university, in the Academy of Rouen. History and demographics Located not in Rouen, but in the suburb of Mont-Saint-Aignan (a "township" in the Normandy region), th ...

and NEOMA Business School (former

École Supérieure de Commerce de Rouen The Rouen Business School (french: Ecole Supérieure de Commerce de Rouen) was a leading French business school. It was founded in 1871 and on 24 April 2013, Rouen Business School and Reims Management School announced the merger of the two Schoo ...

), Unilasalle (agronomy and agriculture), both located at nearby

, and the

INSA Rouen The Intelligence and National Security Alliance (INSA) is a non-profit, nonpartisan 501(c)(6) professional organization based in Arlington Virginia for public and private sector members of the United States Intelligence Community. History ...

, ESIGELEC, ESITech and the CESI, the three at nearby Saint-Étienne-du-Rouvray.

Culture

The main opera company in Rouen is the Opéra de Rouen – Normandie. The company performs in the Théâtre des Arts, 7 rue du Docteur Rambert. The company presents opera, classical and other types of music, both vocal and instrumental, as well as dance performances. Every five years, the city hosts the large maritime exposition, L'Armada. The city is represented by Quevilly-Rouen football club, currently in Ligue 2. Officially called Union Sportive Quevillaise-Rouen Métropole, the club play at the 12.018 capacity

Stade Robert Diochon The Stade Robert-Diochon is a stadium in Le Petit-Quevilly, France. It is currently used for football matches and is the home stadium of both FC Rouen and US Quevilly-Rouen. As of 2022, the Rugby Union club Rouen Normandie Rugby Rouen Norma ...

in nearby

Rouen Normandie Rugby Rouen Normandie Rugby is a French rugby union club from Rouen, currently playing in the second level of the country's professional rugby system, Pro D2. The team plays in red and black shirts. It plays their home matches at Stade Robert Diocho ...

represent the city in Rugby Union. One of few professional rugby teams from northern France,

, currently play in the second-tier

Pro D2 Rugby Pro D2, also known as Pro D2 is the second tier of rugby union club competition division in France. It is operated by Ligue Nationale de Rugby (LNR) which also runs the division directly above, the first division Top 14. Rugby Pro D2 was in ...

. Dragons de Rouen, an ice hockey club, play in the top-tier

Ligue Magnus The Ligue Magnus, currently known as Synerglace Ligue Magnus for sponsorship reasons, is the top men's division of the French ice hockey pyramid, established in 1906. The league operated under a variety of names before taking that of its champio ...

at the Île Lacroix arena.

Baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding t ...

is also played in the city at Stade Saint Exupéry. The local team,

Huskies de Rouen The Rouen Baseball 76 is a French professional baseball team. Founded in 1986, the team competes in the top league in France. The Huskies home stadium is Terrain Pierre Rolland, located in the capital city of Normandy, Rouen. Rouen has won 15 ...

play in the top French tier, they also play some games in European competition.

Notable residents

Maurice Quentin de La Tour - Jean Restout - Musée Antoine-Lécuyer

Rouen was the birthplace of: * Edward IV (1442–1483), King of England. *

Elizabeth of York, Duchess of Suffolk Elizabeth of York, Duchess of Suffolk also known as Elizabeth Plantagenet (22 April 1444 – c. 1503) was the sixth child and third daughter of Richard Plantagenet, 3rd Duke of York (a great-grandson of King Edward III) and Cecily Neville.Halst ...

(1444-c1503), sister of Edward IV, married John de la Pole, Plantagenet. * (b. 1500s), explorer * (1507–1569), poet *

François de Civille François de Civille, seigneur de Saint-Mards (1537–1610), was a French soldier and diplomat. The Civille family of Rouen was of Spanish origin. Buried alive François de Civille was a soldier in the French Wars of Religion. He wrote a memoir ...

(1537–1610), military commander *

Isaac Oliver Isaac Oliver (c. 1565 – bur. 2 October 1617) or Olivier was an English portrait miniature painter.Baskett, John. ''Paul Mellon's legacy: a passion for British art'' (Yale University Press, 2007) pp. 240-1. Life and work Born in Rouen, ...

(1556–1617), French-born English painter. *

Guy de la Brosse Guy de La Brosse (1586 – 1641 in Paris), was a French botanist, medical doctor, and pharmacist. A physician to King Louis XIII of France, he is also notable for the creation of a major botanical garden of medicinal herbs, which was commissioned ...

(1586–1641), botanist and pharmacist * Antoine Girard de Saint-Amant (1594–1661), poet. *

Samuel Bochart Samuel Bochart (30 May 1599 – 16 May 1667) was a French Protestant biblical scholar, a student of Thomas Erpenius and the teacher of Pierre Daniel Huet. His two-volume '' Geographia Sacra seu Phaleg et Canaan'' (Caen 1646) exerted a profound in ...

(1599–1667), Protestant theologian. * Pierre Corneille (1606–1684), tragedian. *

Guillaume Couture Guillaume Couture (January 14, 1618 – April 4, 1701) was a citizen of New France. During his life he was a lay missionary with the Jesuits, a survivor of torture, a member of an Iroquois council, a translator, a diplomat, a militia captain, a ...

(1617–1701), lay missionary and diplomat *

Adrien Auzout Adrien Auzout ronounced in French somewhat like o-zoo(28 January 1622 – 23 May 1691) was a French astronomer. He was born in Rouen, France, the eldest child of a clerk in the court of Rouen. His educational background is unknown, although ...

(1622–1691), astronomer *

Thomas Corneille Thomas Corneille (20 August 1625 – 8 December 1709) was a French lexicographer and dramatist. Biography Born in Rouen some nineteen years after his brother Pierre, the "great Corneille", Thomas's skill as a poet seems to have shown itself e ...

(1625–1709), dramatist, brother of Pierre Corneille. * Noel Alexandre (1639–1724), theologian and ecclesiastical historian. * Robert Hubert (c.1640-1666), executed in England for falsely confessing to starting the Great Fire of London *

Marie Champmeslé Marie Champmeslé ('' née'' Desmares; 18 February 1642 – 15 May 1698) was a French stage actress. Biography She was born in Rouen of a wealthy family; her father's name was Desmares. She made her first appearance on the stage at Rouen with ...

(1642–1698), actress. * René-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle (1643–1687), explorer. *

Jean Jouvenet Jean-Baptiste Jouvenet (1 May 1644 – 5 April 1717) was a French painter, especially of religious subjects. Biography He was born into an artistic family in Rouen. His first training in art was from his father, Laurent Jouvenet; a generation ea ...

(ca.1644–1717), painter of religious subjects. *

Nicolas Lemery Nicolas Lémery (or Lemery as his name appeared in his international publications) (17 November 1645 – 19 June 1715), French chemist, was born at Rouen. He was one of the first to develop theories on acid-base chemistry. Life After learning ph ...

(1645–1715), chemist. *

Pierre Le Pesant, sieur de Boisguilbert Pierre le Pesant, sieur de Boisguilbert or Boisguillebert (; 17 February 164610 October 1714) was a French lawmaker and a Jansenist, one of the inventors of the notion of an economic market. Early life He was born at Rouen of an ancient noble fam ...

(1646–1714) economist and lawmaker. * Gabriel Daniel (1649–1728), Jesuit historian. * Anne Mauduit de Fatouville (mid 17th C – 1715), playwright *

(1647–1717), painter. * (1652–1721), Catholic writer *

Jacques Basnages Jacques Basnage De Beauval (8 August 165322 December 1723) was a celebrated French Protestant divine, preacher, linguist, writer and man of affairs. He wrote a ''History of the Reformed Churches'' and on ''Jewish Antiquities''. Biography Jacques ...

(1653–1723), Protestant theologian. * Bernard le Bovier de Fontenelle (1657–1757), author, nephew of Pierre Corneille. * François Raguenet (1660–1722), historian, biographer and musicologist *

Pierre Antoine Motteux Peter Anthony Motteux (born Pierre Antoine Motteux ; 25 February 1663 – 18 February 1718) was a French-born English author, playwright, and translator. Motteux was a significant figure in the evolution of English journalism in his era, as the ...

(1663–1718), French-born English dramatist. * Pierre Dangicourt (1664–1727), mathematician * François Blouet de Camilly (1664–1723), Catholic Archbishop * Jean-Laurent Le Cerf de La Viéville (1674–1707), musicographer *

Pierre François le Courayer Pierre François le Courayer (17 November 1681 – 17 October 1776) was a French Catholic theological writer, for many years an expatriate in England. Life Pierre François le Courayer was born at Rouen. While canon regular and librarian of the ...

(1681–1776), theologian. *

François d'Agincourt François d'Agincourt (also d'Agincour, Dagincourt, Dagincour) (1684 – 30 April 1758) was a French harpsichordist, organist, and composer. He spent most of his life in Rouen, his native city, where he worked as organist of the Rouen Cathedra ...

(1684–1758), composer * Jean II Restout (1692–1768), painter. * Louise Levesque (1703–1745), playwright, poet *

Jacques-François Blondel Jacques-François Blondel (8 January 1705 – 9 January 1774) was an 18th-century French architect and teacher. After running his own highly successful school of architecture for many years, he was appointed Professor of Architecture at the Acad ...

(1705–1774), architect. * Marie-Madeleine Hachard (1708–1760), nun and abbess *

Jeanne-Marie Leprince de Beaumont Jeanne-Marie Leprince de Beaumont (; 26 April 17118 September 1780) was a French novelist who wrote the best known version of ''Beauty and the Beast''. Her third husband was the French spy Thomas Pichon (1757–1760). Life and work Christened Ma ...

(1711–1780), novelist *

Jacques Duphly Jacques Duphly (also Dufly, Du Phly; 12 January 1715 – 15 July 1789) was a French harpsichordist and composer. Early career as an organist He was born in Rouen, France, the son of Jacques-Agathe Duphly and Marie-Louise Boivin. As a boy, h ...

(1715–1789), composer * Pierre-Antoine Guéroult (1749–1816), scholar * François-Adrien Boïeldieu (1775–1834), composer. *

Pierre Louis Dulong Pierre Louis Dulong FRS FRSE (; ; 12 February 1785 – 19 July 1838) was a French physicist and chemist. He is remembered today largely for the law of Dulong and Petit, although he was much-lauded by his contemporaries for his studies into ...

(1785–1838), physicist and chemist. *

Théodore Géricault Jean-Louis André Théodore Géricault (; 26 September 1791 – 26 January 1824) was a French Painting, painter and Lithography, lithographer, whose best-known painting is ''The Raft of the Medusa''. Although he died young, he was one of the pi ...

(1791–1824), painter. *

Armand Carrel Armand Carrel (8 May 1800 – 25 July 1836) was a French journalist and political writer. Early life Jean-Baptiste Nicolas Armand Carrel was born at Rouen. His father was a wealthy merchant, and he received a liberal education at the '' Lyc ...

(1800–1836), writer. * Jean-Amédée Méreaux (1802–1874), musicologist, pianist and composer * Pierre Adolphe Chéruel (1809–1891), historian. * Alphonse Maille (1813–1865) botanist *

Gustave Flaubert Gustave Flaubert ( , , ; 12 December 1821 – 8 May 1880) was a French novelist. Highly influential, he has been considered the leading exponent of literary realism in his country. According to the literary theorist Kornelije Kvas, "in Flauber ...

(1821–1880), novelist. *

Joseph-Henri Altès Joseph-Henri Altès (18 January 1826 – 24 July 1899) was a 19th-century French flautist, composer and pedagogue. Biography Born in Rouen, Joseph-Henri Altès was the son of a soldier. Violinist and conductor Ernest Eugène Altès was his youn ...

(1826–1895), flautist and pedagog * Eugène Ketterer (1831–1870), composer * Eugène Caron (1834–1903), opera singer *

Maurice Leblanc Maurice Marie Émile Leblanc (; ; 11 December 1864 – 6 November 1941) was a French novelist and writer of short stories, known primarily as the creator of the fictional gentleman thief and detective Arsène Lupin, often described as a French c ...

(1864–1941), novelist *

Charles Nicolle Charles Jules Henri Nicolle (21 September 1866 – 28 February 1936) was a French bacteriologist who received the Nobel Prize in Medicine for his identification of lice as the transmitter of epidemic typhus. Family Nicolle was born to Aline L ...

(1866–1936), bacteriologist * Léon de Saint-Réquier (1872–1964), organist and composer *

Georges Guillain Georges Charles Guillain () (3 March 1876 – 29 June 1961) was a French neurologist born in Rouen. He studied medicine in Rouen and Paris, where he learned clinical education at several hospitals. He developed an interest in neurology, and his ...

(1876–1961), neurologist *

Robert Antoine Pinchon Robert Antoine Pinchon (, 1 July 1886 in Rouen – 9 January 1943 in Bois-Guillaume) was a French Post-Impressionist landscape painter of the Rouen School (''l'École de Rouen'') who was born and spent most of his life in France. He was consist ...

(1886–1943), painter *

Marcel Dupré Marcel Jean-Jules Dupré () (3 May 1886 – 30 May 1971) was a French organist, composer, and pedagogue. Biography Born in Rouen into a wealthy musical family, Marcel Dupré was a child prodigy. His father Aimable Albert Dupré was titular o ...

(1886–1971), composer *

Marcel Duchamp Henri-Robert-Marcel Duchamp (, , ; 28 July 1887 – 2 October 1968) was a French painter, sculptor, chess player, and writer whose work is associated with Cubism, Dada, and conceptual art. Duchamp is commonly regarded, along with Pablo Picasso ...

(1887–1968), artist *

Philippe Étancelin Philippe Étancelin (28 December 1896 – 13 October 1981) was a French Grand Prix motor racing driver who joined the new Formula One circuit at its inception. Biography Born in Rouen, Seine-Maritime, in Normandy, he worked as a merchant in the w ...

(1896–1981), race car driver *

Armand Salacrou Armand Camille Salacrou (9 August 1899 – 23 November 1989) was a French dramatist. Biography He was born in Rouen, but spent most of his childhood at Le Havre, and moved to Paris in 1917. His first works show the influence of the Surrealis ...

(1899–1989), dramatist *

Roger Apéry Roger Apéry (; 14 November 1916, Rouen – 18 December 1994, Caen) was a French mathematician most remembered for Apéry's theorem, which states that is an irrational number. Here, denotes the Riemann zeta function. Biography Apéry was born ...

(1916–1994), mathematician *

Jean Lecanuet Jean Adrien François Lecanuet (4 March 1920 – 22 February 1993) was a French centrist politician. Biography Lecanuet was born to a family of modest means in Neuilly-sur-Seine, and gravitated towards philosophy studies. He received his di ...

(1920–1993), politician *

Jacques Rivette Jacques Rivette (; 1 March 1928 – 29 January 2016) was a French film director and film critic most commonly associated with the French New Wave and the film magazine '' Cahiers du Cinéma''. He made twenty-nine films, including '' L'amour f ...

(1928–2016), film director *

Jean-Yves Lechevallier Jean-Yves Lechevallier, ʒɑ̃ iv ləʃəvæljeɪ born in 1946 in Rouen, Normandy, is a French sculptor painter, and laureate of the ''Flame of Europe'' art competition organized by the '' Robert Schuman association for Europe'' in 1977 to com ...

(b. 1946), sculptor *

Anny Duperey Anny Duperey (born Annie Legras; 28 June 1947) is a French actress, published photographer and best-selling author with a career spanning almost six decades as of 2021 and more than eighty cinema or television credits, around thirty theatre pr ...

(b. 1947), actress and novelist * Dominique Lokoli (b. 1952), footballer * François Hollande (b. 1954), 24th

President of the French Republic The president of France, officially the president of the French Republic (french: Président de la République française), is the executive head of state of France, and the commander-in-chief of the French Armed Forces. As the presidency is ...

* Hubert Wulfranc (b. 1956), Member of Parliament * Élise Lucet (b. 1963), journalist * Stéphan Caron (b. 1966), swimmer * Karin Viard (b. 1966), actress * Céline Minard (b. 1969), writer * Frédéric Cissokho (b. 1971), former professional footballer * Christophe Mendy (b. 1971), boxer * David Trezeguet (b. 1977), footballer * Thomas Pesquet (b. 1978), astronaut * Nathalie Péchalat (b. 1983), ice dancer * Ian Mahinmi (b. 1986), basketball player * Fayçal Fajr (b. 1988), footballer * Benjamin Police (b. 1988), professional footballer * Amaury Vassili (b. 1989), singer * Alexis Gougeard (b. 1993), cyclist * Pierre Gasly (b. 1996), Formula One driver * Petit Biscuit (b. 1999), music producer * Aurélien Tchouaméni (b. 2000), footballer * Théo Maledon (b. 2001), basketball player

International relations

Rouen is Twin towns and sister cities, twinned with: * Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, United States, since 1963 * Hannover, Germany, since 1966 * Norwich, Norfolk, England, United Kingdom, since 1959 * Cleveland, Ohio, United States, since 2008 * Pomeranian Voivodeship, Poland, since 1992 * Province of Salerno, Salerno, Campania, Italy, since 2002 * Zhejiang, China, since 1990 ArneQuinze byDaveBruel (cropped)

Sculpture

During the second half of the 20th century, several sculptures by

were erected in the city. Inaugurated in 2010, the Rouen Impressionnée hosted the contemporary urban (re)development installation sculpture 'Camille' by Belgian artist Arne Quinze. Quinze's use of interlocking systems in sculpture employ wood, concrete, paint and metal. The Quasi-Quinze method of sculpture utilizes structural integrity and randomness as key elements for 'Camille'. Located on the Boieldieu Bridge in the center of Rouen, this intentional location was chosen by the artist to magnify the historical separation of its city's citizens. Fleur d'eau Rouen

Representations in art

Rouen cathedral (Monet painting), Rouen Cathedral is the subject of a series of paintings by the Impressionism, Impressionist painter

, who painted the same scene at different times of the day. Two paintings are in the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C.; two are in the Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts in Moscow; one is in the National Museum of Serbia in Belgrade. The estimated value of one painting is over $40 million.

Heraldry

References

External links

*
Rouen Tourist Board
{{Authority control Rouen, Communes of Seine-Maritime Viking Age populated places Prefectures in France Veliocasses Gallia Lugdunensis Normandy region articles needing translation from French Wikipedia Cities in France