Rouen is located northeast of Paris, and thanks to its harbor, the town was always a major trading community.  The Seine river flows through the town.  The city was damaged during the  One Hundred Years' War, devastated by the plague epidemics of 1348 and 1379 and finally during the second half of the 16th century, peace was shattered by the Wars of Religion, and of course, it was bombed heavily during WW II.

The Abbey Church of St. Ouen seen from the chevet of the cathedral.