Torp is a place name meaning ‘isolated village’ in the early Nordic languages; the place is a direct remnant of the Viking invasions of north-western Europe in the 9th and 10th centuries.

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A chronological summary of the origins of Normandy in the 10th century:

 

911–932: Rollo, also known as Rolf the Walker or Robert (his baptismal name) I the Rich, born c. 846, jarl of the Normans of the Seine and Count of Rouen

In 911, Charles III, King of West Francia, wishing to put an end to the incessant raids, granted the Viking chieftain Rollo the territory of Normandy – ‘the land of the men of the North’ – under the Treaty of Saint-Clair-sur-Epte: Seine-Maritime and Eure

In 924, King Raoul ceded Hiémois and Bessin to Rollo

932–942: William I of Normandy, known as William Longsword, born c. 930, is assassinated at Picquigny

In 933, King Raoul ceded the Cotentin and Avranches regions to William

943–947: regency

947–996: Richard I of Normandy, known as Richard the Fearless, born c. 930

Then, in the 11th century, the Dukes of Normandy took up residence at the Castle of Falaise

996–1026: Richard II of Normandy, known as Richard the Irascible or Richard the Good, born in 963, friend and ally of Robert the Pious
1026–1027: Richard III, born c. 1008, reigned for only one year; may have been poisoned by his younger brother
1027–1035: Robert I of Normandy, known as Robert the Liberal or Robert the Magnificent, born c. 1010 (died on his return from the Crusades)
1035–1087: William II the Conqueror, born in 1027 (or 1028)

Long before the dukes William the Conqueror and his father Robert the Magnificent made their mark on the history of Falaise, the Chapel of Torp was already in existence. One can imagine that William, a deeply devout man, stopped there during his hunting expeditions – a pastime he was passionate about – or on his way to Caen (the N158 hadn’t been built yet!); it was indeed on the site of Caen, close to the sea and equidistant from Rouen and the Cotentin Peninsula, that he chose to build a fortress from 1058/1060 onwards. All this is, of course, mere speculation...

William maintained ties with the lords of Torp, as evidenced by a document he signed in 1050: it stipulates that ‘the parish church of Villers-Canivet is placed by the lords of Grandmesnil under the patronage of the Abbey of Saint-Evroult, of which the family, in the person of Robert de Torp, is a benefactor’ (M.L. in Patrimoine normand no. 117, 04/2021, p.100)

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Robert de Torp also left his mark on the history of southern Italy, having joined the sons of Tancred de Hauteville (near Coutances) there: he became Roberto del Torpo, Lord of Lacedonia (Apulia) from 1081 to 1120; his son Goffredo de Torpo succeeded him.

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Traces of lords and aristocratic families

 

The chapel of Torp, in addition to its link with Norman history, bears traces of a prominent local family: the Morels. In the chancel, amongst various tombstones, there remain the clearly legible ones of Nicollas de Morel, Lord of Torp and Count of Aubigny, and his son Jean de Morel, buried alongside his wife Marguerite Gillain. These figures were lords of Torp in the 16th century. If we examine their genealogy, we can trace them back to the 14th century to their ancestor Robert-Denis de Morel; the lands of Aubigny were acquired in 1522 by Denis de Morel, Nicollas’s grandfather.

The chapel of Torp maintained links with the Cistercian Abbey of Villers-Canivet, as evidenced by the medieval tombstones of nuns found there (see L. Médér, Heritage Architect, 2007).

Other tombstones are present in the chapel; they date from the 19th century and concern:

Marquis Thomas Marie Louis Geneviève de Morant (1754–1832) and his second wife Marie Sophie Parisot

Sophie Françoise du Plessis d’Argentré (1811–1890): her nephews Olivier and Frédéric Le Gonidec de Traissan erected a cenotaph in memory of their aunt. Indeed, Sophie d'Argentré’s mother was Victoire Le Gonidec; she was also Thomas de Morant’s niece.

These aristocratic Breton families therefore owned the lands of Torp at least during the 19th century.