Chateau de Robert le Diable

Chateau de Robert le Diable (properly albeit less commonly known as Chateau de Moulineaux) is a French feudal castle from the time of the Dukes of Normandy. The chateau is situated at Moulineaux, near Rouen, in the département of Seine-Maritime in Normandy.

Chateau de Robert le Diable history

Chateau de Robert le Diable was built during the 11th and 12th centuries and stands on a hill which dominated the River Seine, the view extending over the whole Rouen region making it a particularly strategic location. The castle takes its name from ‘Robert the Devil’ who according to some was Robert I, Duke of Normandy, the father of William the Conqueror. However, there is no evidence that this person was involved in the castle’s construction.

It is known that the English King Richard I stayed here although his brother, King John, destroyed the castle during his struggle with the King Philip II Augustus of France, who would later rebuild it. During the Hundred Years’ War, the people of Rouen destroyed the towers to prevent the castle being used by the English.

Chateau de Robert le Diable today

Still proudly standing but half ruined, Chateau de Robert le Diable is today furnished with various artefacts as well as reconstructed scenes of local history and life in the Middle Ages. Open between 10am and 6pm, you can freely wonder the remains of this once impressive Norman stronghold. The castle is owned and managed by the Agglomeration community of Rouen and has been classified as a monument historique since 1935.

Getting to Chateau de Robert le Diable

Situated just off the A13 between Paris and Caen, the Chateau de Robert le Diable is hard to miss if you’re headed there by car. The medieval centre of Rouen is also only a 27 minute drive via the N338.