The wonderful memorable city of Dieppe is in the département 76 of Seine-Maritime in the region of Normandie. It has been called the city of the four harbors in the Caux country ,about 170 km from Paris, and north of Rouen; right in the deep valley of the Arques. We have come here often, more when living in Versailles; but still nice memories of Dieppe. I like to tell you more of it with new pictures in my blog. Therefore, this is my take on curiosities of Dieppe !!! Hope you enjoy it as I.
Been the closes beach closest to Paris ,it is easily link by road on the wonderful A13 (autoroute de Normandie), the A151, and then the N27. Dieppe is connected locally by the D925 to the town of Eu and Saint-Valery-en-Caux, D920 to Envermeu and Londinières, the D915 to Forges-les-Eaux, and the N27 to Tôtes and Rouen. All nice roads easy driving, It has been called the city of the four harbors in the Caux country ,about 170 km from Paris, and north of Rouen; right in the deep valley of the Arques. The town has an intense seamen history and a great fishing port, first in France for the St Jacques! or scallops. It is, also, the closest beach to Paris as well as pleasure boating basin.
The Porte de Dieppe gate, also known as the west port gate or the Tourelles or turrets, was built at the end of the 15C. The so-called Tourelles gate consists of a vaulted passage, flanked by two circular towers crowned by two conical roofs. This gate is the only remaining of the seven old town gates, five of which overlooked the sea. Together with the castle and the rampart wall near the old Tour aux crabes,or Crab tower, it constitutes one of the last vestiges of the town’s fortifications. These were probably built as early as the 11C, and then regularly rebuilt to finally be destroyed in the 19C. Over the centuries, the Tourelles bore several names including Porte du Port d’Ouest and served as a prison, probably from the end of the Middle Ages until 1825, when the prisoners were transferred to the new prison built in Pollet, on the site of the Capuchin convent. The building was sold to a private individual in the middle of the 19C and remained private for a century. La Porte des Tourelles or Dieppe now houses the headquarters of the association responsible for the international kite festival which is held in Dieppe every two years. since 1980.
Dieppe has a beach,right off the bd de Verdun, and yes! Casino 3 boulevard de Verdun , 18 hole golf course, racecourse, harbor with ferry service and very nice complex of thalasotherapy on the beach and near the castle such as the Les Bains, Centre Aquatique et Thalasso , 101 bd de Verdun. Since 1980, it host every two years, the biggest kite event on the beach by Bd de Verdun ,on a site Aire de cerf-volant . This is the Festival International de Cerf-Volant, with as much as 44 countries represented and one of the best world events. Their official festival de Cerf-Volant: http://www.dieppe-cerf-volant.org/ukaccueil.html
The Boulevard de Verdun is facing the Dieppe beach, with plenty to do there and around it, There is plenty of on street parking but also an underground Indigo La Plage parking, The street takes you directly to the Castle/museum of Dieppe (see post). Of course, we have stayed there overnight to fully enjoy the city! At the Hotel de la Plage, 20 Bd de Verdun, just across from the beach and near the pool complex ,and castle. Great normandy welcome,friendly, excellent price for a family and great views. Inter Hotels chain we use all over too, webpage: http://inter-hotel-de-la-plage.dieppe.hotels-fr.net/en/
And lastly, we have eaten in a couple places in Dieppe over the years, and for a while the Créperie Ty Breiz was a warm welcome managed by the owner-family with a good feel of the Bretagne. And they are back under new management which not try yet.Ty Breiz, 59 Quai Henri IV, a great creperie in the best area traditon all done on order by mama and son themselves ,right by the harbor. Cant make it any better than like home , More info Groupe Novick: https://maisonnovick.fr/les-etablissements-emblematiques/ty-breiz/
You cannot leave this town without going to the fish market, even if not buying, and we have! This is around quai Henri IV facing the marina. Open Tuesdays to Saturdays from 7h30 to about 13h. The scallop is king here. It has more than one trick in its shell and you will appreciate it in a thousand ways. It can seduce you naturally, raw in carpaccio, or snacked, accompanied by small candied vegetables. It goes great with strong alcohol, preferably a shot of Calvados. This is the white gold of the Dieppois, an institution, an emblem that has stood the test of time. Try it of course from Dieppe! You will see plenty of painters and painters to be around quai Henri IV, lovely spot with a view of the boats, the sea and the cliffs of Dieppe!
The lighthouse – west pier with a concrete tower with dwelling done in1990, The west pier is longer than the east pier facing it. It was indeed extended to better protect the outer harbor during the installation of the ferry terminal there. On the cliff is the
military semaphore. It is operational 24/7. He is in charge of monitoring boats off Dieppe. A meteorological station sends the day’s weather data to Météo France, The current marina is located in the basin which before 1994 welcomed car ferries. This Jehan Ango basin is a tidal basin: the water level changes with the tides. Today fitted out for yachting, it also accommodates service boats (tug, lifeboat, pilot boat, etc.) as well as a few fishing boats along the Quai du Carénage. The advantage of the Dieppe marina is to be accessible at all times, both at high tide and at low tide. The official port of Dieppe : https://www.portdedieppe.fr/-Discovering-the-Port-.html
The Grand Casino de Dieppe is actually the fifth in time in Dieppe. The first casino was established in 1822 thanks to the Count of Brancas, sub-prefect of the city. In 1857, a new casino with vaults and glass roofs was done, On June 15, 1886, the Moorish casino gave Dieppe its brand image. outdated, it was modified to make way for an Art Deco-style casino. This was destroyed during WWII. After the war, from 1946 to 1961, temporary wooden casinos or Villa Rachel on the seafront served as a replacement casino. In 1961, Villa Rachel was demolished to make way for the current casino. The Casino, has a four star Hotel, bistronomic restaurant, shows and concerts, reception rooms, offers you an entertainment complex conducive to relaxation and well-being to satisfy all your needs 93 slot machines state-of-the-art slot including 9 Video Poker. 3D slots, bonus rounds, moving seats… Bring the Bank to its knees on our Blackjack and Ultimate Poker tables. To vary the pleasures, have fun guessing which number will come out in English Roulette. Bet at your fingertips, in privacy, on our 20 electronic terminals. Play English Roulette on two reels and switch to BlackJack. The casino is located at 3 Boulevard de Verdun facing the sea, The
official Casino of Dieppe : https://casino-dieppe.partouche.com/
A bit of history I like (condense) tell us that at the times of the Gallo-Roman period the field of Ceasar aka Cité de Limes, was located north of the current city of Dieppe, and a ramparts attesting to the fact this is one of the oldest human presence in the region. By 910,the Vikings were in the mouth of the Tella river,a deep river that ends at sea. They call the town Djúpr or deep or Djúpá or deep river. The oldest mentioned in text dates from 1030 saying there was a small fishing port called Dieppe!. A castle was built in 1188 by king Henry II Plantagenêt of England. In 1195 the castle is destroyed by fire from the French troops of king Philippe-Auguste, that was at war with Richard the Lion Heart Duke of Normandy. Two years later in 1197 Duke Richard gives the land of Dieppe to the Archidiocese of Rouen; however in 1204, after the falled of the Château-Gaillard and the taking of Rouen, Dieppe and Normandy were annexed by the kingdom of France under king Philippe-Auguste. In 1420, in the battle of Azincourt, Dieppe is occupied by the English and was kept for 15 years; by 1430 ,Dieppe was a temporary detention for Jeanne d’Arc (Joan of Arc) before she was transferred to Rouen where she was tried and ordered burned at the stake. Dieppe was finally liberated from the English occupation in October 1435 when the town was taken by the French led by Captain Charles Desmarets on account of king Charles VII.
The town has a rich seamen tradition and many leave Dieppe to explore new worlds. Given boats by the shipbuilder and explorer Jehan Ango , they reached Sumatra, Brazil, and Canada. Wealth from the gold of the Americas, and the wood of Brazil or even the codfish of Newfoundland, Jehan Ango is notice by the king François Ier that comes to Dieppe in 1534 to name him Viscount and Governor of the city. Dieppe becomes as well the seat of the cartography and hydrography school or École de cartographie de Dieppe et d’hydrographie under the direction of Pierre Desceliers,that designs in 1546 a map of the World with Africa and the Americas ! In 1822, the first bath house in France is built here on the beach under the name of sea baths of Caroline in honor of Caroline de Bourbon, duchesse de Berry, daughter in law of king Charles X. She opened the baths in 1824 that under the Second Empire received great fame and the growth of this pleasure. By 1852 you have here the first race course on horses in the Hippodrome de Dieppe-Rouxmesni. The sea bath gained popularity here,and brings many personalities of the Napoleonic aristocracy such as Hortense de Beauharnais, accompany by her children , including the future Napoléon III. Moving forward in time, we have learned that from August 20 to September 9 1853, Dieppe was the honeymoon residence of the Emperor Napoléon III, and the Empératrice Eugénie , Early on the 20C, the town is at its heights and it is until 1914, the first beach town in France frequent by the famous. Some of these were king Léopold II of Belgium, Duke of Westminster, Camille Saint-Saëns, Claude Debussy, Claude Monet, Madeleine Lemaire, Auguste Renoir, Camille Pissaro, Countess Greffulhe, Jacques-Émile Blanche, Walter Sickert, and Marcel Proust. Robert de Montesquiou, Gabriel Fauré, prince Edmond de Polignac stayed frequently in the house of the Countess Greffulhe in the villa La Case. During WWII, Dieppe is liberated in September 1944 without any combats as the Nazis abandoned the post before the advance of the Allied armies.
Last but not least in this wonderful Norman town , we have the Canadian Cemetary of Dieppe ,located nearby in the village of
Hautot-sur-Mer. Here rest in peace Canadians soldiers killed during the landing at Dieppe on August 19 1942 : 944 soldiers from the allied forces with 761 identified of which 707 are Canadians. The cemetery is south of Dieppe along the road N27, or rue des Canadiens (Canadians street), later becomes rue des Jonquilles,right into the village of Hautot-sur-Mer,next to the hamlet of Vertus de Saint-Aubin-sur-Scie.
The City of Dieppe on its heritage: https://www.dieppe.fr/mes-activites/le-patrimoine/les-batiments-et-lieux-remarquables
The Dieppe tourist office on its heritage : https://uk.dieppetourisme.com/discover/get-some-fresh-air/discover-dieppe/
The Seine Maritime dept 76 tourist office on Dieppe: https://www.seine-maritime-tourisme.com/en/destination/places-not-to-be-missed/#summary-dieppe
The Normandie region tourist board on Dieppe: https://en.normandie-tourisme.fr/unmissable-sites/dieppe/
There you go folks, a memorable town with the whole family for several years, and we have good visits enjoying fully marine Dieppe. Again, hope you enjoy this new post on curiosities of Dieppe !!! as I.
And remember, happy travels, good health, and many cheers to all !!!
