A fairytale setting…
Overlooking the town of Gaillon and the Seine valley, this real architectural treasure offers you a wonderful journey back in time. Get your little princesses and princes on board for a fabulous family discovery.
A Norman architectural gem!
At the height of summer, the Château de Gaillon welcomes you for a fairytale-like visit that will immerse you in its history and incredible destiny.
Built between 1500 and 1509 on the site of a medieval castle, the Château de Gaillon is considered to be the first Renaissance-style castle in France, built a few years before the very famous châteaux of the Loire. Often referred to as an architectural jewel of the transition between the flamboyant Gothic and Renaissance styles, it is resplendent in its elegance and harmony. A perfect blend of French tradition and innovative decors from Renaissance Italy, the Château de Gaillon is the symbol of a new way of building castles in the early 16th century.
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Let yourself be enchanted by this veritable open-air museum. Discover the main courtyard, the lower chapel, the kitchens of the former prison or the lapidary repository and its hidden treasures, not forgetting its impressive gallery overlooking the Val and its incomparable view.
View of the Val gallery at Château de Gaillon
Children enjoying the view from the Val gallery at Château de Gaillon
Side view of Château de Gaillon, blue sky, wall in foreground, raised castle.Dominating the Seine valley, it was on a strategic position in the conflict between France and the Duchy of Normandy that the first castle buildings were erected from 1200 onwards. In 1262, the archbishop of Rouen, Eudes Rigaud, obtained the castle from King Louis IX in exchange for the mills of Rouen and 4,000 pounds. The castle then became the property of the archbishops of Rouen and their summer residence.
Embellished by Archbishop Guillaume d’Estouteville in 1454, it was Archbishop Georges d’Amboise who carried out major work on the castle to transform it into a Renaissance chateau. Amazed by the art and architecture of Italy, Georges d’Amboise was inspired by the Italian Renaissance to break with the architectural conventions of the time and build his “Italian palace” in Normandy. To achieve this, Georges d’Amboise hired talented builders from the Loire Valley between 1502 and 1506, and then called on numerous artists from Rouen and Italy. From 1506 onwards, the Château de Gaillon became the first Renaissance château in France, referred to in 1508 in a handwritten letter as “the most beautiful and superb place there is in the whole of France”.
Discover the model of Gaillon castle with your family
Gaillon Castle
family discovery of the Gaillon castle chapelAt the time of the French Revolution, the Château de Gaillon, which had fallen prey to looting, was transformed into a “regional” central prison. Inaugurated in November 1816, between 1824 and 1868 the Gaillon penitentiary took in a growing number of offenders, particularly juveniles, often from Rouen, Paris and its suburbs. The Gaillon central prison quickly established itself as one of the largest detention centres in France.
Classified as a historic monument in 1862, the château was sold at auction in 1925 and, following a lengthy legal procedure, became the property of the State in 1975. Restoration work on the building was entrusted to the chief architect of Monuments Historiques, Georges Duval, and began in 1977. Since then, the château has regained some of its former splendour, evoking the marvel it once was, integrating its prison past and promoting its prison heritage, which is unique in France.
