leave London Embankment 8:00 a.m. travel via the Channel Tunnel to Calais and then on to Dieppe where we will stay overnight.

Jumièges There are two churches at abbey of Jumièges: the Carolingian church of St Pierre and the 11th century church of Notre Dame. Notre Dame was a sister church to the Abbey at Westminster built by Edward the Confessor.

Honfleur The old dock and the old town of Honfleur make a picturesque stop for lunch.

Caen where we will be staying for the week

We will spend all day in Caen, where we will visit:

The Abbaye aux Hommes – the church of St-Étienne was founded by William the Conqueror and started in 1066 and consecrated in 1077. Lanfranc was Abbot here before being appointed Archbishop of Canterbury.

The Abbaye aux Dames, founded in 1062 by Queen Matilda. The church of la Trinité is a a fine example of Romaesque art.

The Château was created in 1060 by William and further strengthened by Henry Beauclerk in 1123. Fzrther additions and alterations occurred in the 13th, 14th, and 15th centuries.

Abbaye d’Ardenne (between Ste-Germain-la-Blanche-Herbe and Authie).

The mainly Romanesque abbey church of St-Vigor at Cerisy-la-Forêt, in what survives of the medieval Forêt de Bur.

Bayeux, where we will visit the Bayeux Tapestry Museum, the Cathedral and the old town.

The town of St-Pierre-sur-Dives developed around its important abbey and its market.

Falaise was the birthplace of William the Conqueror. The impressive Château de Falaise was begun on the site of an earlier castle in 1123 by Henry I of England. In the early 13th century, Philippe Auguste ordered the construction of a massive round tower.

Jublains is the site of ancient Noeodunum, the capital of the ancient Gallic tribe of the Diablintes, later occupied and settled by Romans and called Civitas Diablintum.

Carentan was once an important medieval centre controlling the salt marshes of the Contentin Pass and passage across the Baie des Veys.

Portbail the church of Notre-Dame and 6th century baptistery.

Coutances Cathedral and old town.

Leave Caen and drive to Étretat. The church of Notre-Dame was a dependency of the Abbey of Fécamp.

The Abbey of Fécamp was founded in 660 by St-Waninge, but the majority of the church dates from the late 11th – early 12th century.

Sainte-Marguerite-sur-Mer with its 11th century church.

Drive to Dieppe where we will stay Overnight.

Leave Dieppe and drive to Eu with its church and château.

The medieval town of St-Valéry-sur-Somme is where William assembled his fleet before setting sail for England.

Return via Calais and Channel Tunnel to London Embankment.