CHâTEAU-GAILLARD

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:''For the commune in the Ain département, see Château-Gaillard, Ain.''

Château-Gaillard

'Château-Gaillard' is a ruined medieval castle, located above the town of Les Andelys, in the Eure ''département'' of Normandy, France. It is located some 95 km north-west of Paris and 40 km from Rouen. It is listed as a ''monument historique'' by the French Ministry of Culture.

History

Construction under the Kings of England, Dukes of Normandy

In French hands

Residence of the exiled David II of Scotland

Miscellaneous

Château Gaillard in fiction

History

Construction under the Kings of England, Dukes of Normandy

Richard I of England, simultaneously feudal Duke of Normandy, ordered that the castle be built in little more than 12 months, between 1197 and 1198. The goal was to protect Rouen and Richard's duchy of Normandy from the French kings, but Richard died due to an infected arrow wound on his shoulder before the fortress was complete.

Keep

Buttresses on the inner side of the keep

The construction of Château Gaillard was taken over by his brother John. The building of the castle continued but for two alterations at John's request. One was to have an extra window built on the chapel's outer wall and the other was to have an extra toilet in the chapel.

In French hands

The troops of Philip II of France captured it after a long siege in 1203, some 4 years after Richard's death due to one fault in the fortress. During the siege, Philip ordered a group of his men to look for a weak point in the castle. After an extensive examination, they located the disposal chute for the toilet which John requested. They climbed up it and ended up in the chapel, which was locked from the outside, so they broke a window and climbed along the castle wall. After ambushing several unsuspecting guards, Philip's men then brought down the drawbridge and allowed the sum of their army into the castle. John and Richard's supporters and troops, unprepared for such an encounter, were massacred in the surprise attack.

Residence of the exiled David II of Scotland

Following the defeat at the Battle of Halidon Hill in 1333 during the Second War of Scottish Independence, the child-king David II and certain of his court were forced to flee to France for safety. At the time, Southern Scotland was occupied by the forces of English king Edward III. David, nine years old, and his bride Joan of the Tower, the twelve year old daughter of Edward I, were granted the use of the castle by Philip VI. It remained their residence until David's return to Scotland in 1341. David did not stay out of English hands for long after his return; he was captured after the Battle of Neville's Cross in 1346 and endured an eleven year captivity.
Having lost any strategic value, Château-Gaillard was dismantled under Henry IV of France after 400 years of existence.

Miscellaneous

It is said that Philip II boasted that his troops would take the château "were the walls made of iron"; Richard the Lionheart retorted that his troops would hold the château "were the walls made of butter".