Caen (UK: /ˈkɒ̃ ˈkɒn/; French: [kɑ̃] ⓘ; Norman: Kaem) is a commune 15 km (9.3 mi) inland from the northwestern coast of France.

[5][6] It is located 200 km (120 mi) northwest of Paris, connected to the South of England by the Caen (Ouistreham) to Portsmouth ferry route through the English Channel.

Situated a few miles from the coast, the landing beaches, the bustling resorts of Deauville and Cabourg, as well as Norman Switzerland and the Pays d'Auge, Caen is often considered the archetype of Normandy.

It remained a minor settlement throughout the Roman period and began to see major development commence in the 10th century, under the patronage of the Dukes of Normandy.

It was expected that a siege of perhaps several weeks would be required, but the army took the city in less than a day, on 26 July 1346, storming and sacking it, killing 3,000 of its citizens, and burning much of the merchants' quarter on the Île St-Jean.

During World War II, Caen was captured by German forces during the Battle of France in 1940 and placed under military occupation.

In 1944, Allied forces launched Operation Overlord, invading German-occupied France and rapidly advancing through Normandy.

From 6 June to 6 August 1944, the British Second Army fought the battle of Caen to dislodge German forces from the city.

During the battle, Allied bombing raids heavily damaged the city and caused numerous French civilian casualties.

Having lost many of its historic quarters and its university campus in the war, Caen does not have the atmosphere of a traditional Norman town such as Honfleur, Rouen, Cabourg, Deauville or Bayeux.

Caen has a large flood zone, named "La prairie", located around the hippodrome, not far from the river Orne, which is regularly submerged.

In spite of this, summers are still cool by French standards and the climate is typically maritime in terms of high precipitation, relatively modest sunshine hours and mild winters.

The population data in the table and graph below refer to the commune of Caen proper, in its geography at the given years.

[25] The castle, Château de Caen, built c. 1060 by William the Conqueror, who successfully conquered England in 1066, is one of the largest medieval fortresses of Western Europe.

Bullet holes are visible on the walls of the castle where members of the French Resistance were shot during the Second World War.

[32] The present tram network officially opened on 27 July 2019 replacing the Caen Guided Light Transit (French: TVR de Caen but known locally as the "tram"), a guided trolleybus network which operated from 2002 to 2017, which was closed due to reliability issues.

The ferry terminal is 15 km (9.3 mi) from Caen with a daytime shuttle bus service for foot passengers.

The Boulevard Périphérique includes a viaduct called the Viaduc de Calix that goes over the canal and River Orne.

The canal links the city to the sea to permit cargo ships and ferries to dock in the port of Caen.

Agrial group processes vegetables, cider apples, milk, poultry and meat with the help of its 12,000 employees and all its partners.