Timeline

Heritage classified

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Origin and history

The Vauban Tower was built in 1694 in Port-en-Bessin, Calvados department, on the orders of King Louis XIV. It dominates the port entrance and initially served as an artillery battery to protect ships from private attacks. Its architecture, typical of the fortifications of Vauban, includes four cannon-burning and a crawling cradle vault, with a conical limestone roof.

In the 18th century, the tower lost its offensive function to become a powder keg, following the construction of two adjacent batteries, one on the opposite cliff. It illustrates the evolution of coastal defensive strategies under the Former Regime. Ranked a historic monument in 1948, it remains a private property and bears witness to Norman military heritage.

Historical sources, such as the memoirs of Nicolas-Joseph Foucault (intendant of Caen from 1689 to 1706), confirm his strategic role in protecting merchant ships. The tower, made of local limestone, combines robustness and functional simplicity, characteristic of the works of Benjamin de Combes, its builder. Its present state and its precise location (1 Rue du Castel) make it a visible landmark of the low-norman coast.

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