See www.normandie-tourisme.fr. Crouched in a steep-sided valley and guarded by its vast 12thC château, Falaise was the birthplace of William the Conqueror, though hereabouts he is still better known as William the Bastard. So the story goes, his young father Robert, Duke of Normandy, was captivated by a lovely laundress, Arlette, who bore him a son. As she carried the unborn child she dreamt of a tree which would cast its shadow over Normandy and as far afield as England.

A quick detour off the main road will take you past a massive equestrian statue depicting a chain-mail clad William, surrounded by the first six dukes of Normandy. Opposite, the Eglise de la Trinité still bears the vestiges of its Renaissance decoration, but most of the town has been rebuilt since 1944.