The concept of creating events on the quays of Rouen so that the inhabitants of the city would reclaim their port first came to Patrick Herr in 1983, when he was deputy mayor in charge of public relations, festivals, and ceremonies. The idea of organising a meeting of sailing ships gained ground, and in 1985 the "Sails of Freedom" association was set up. Various events were organised, the most celebrated of all being the "Rouen New York Race for Freedom" for large multi-hulled yachts held in 1986.

The event was so popular that Jean Lecanuet, Mayor of Rouen at that time, approved the idea of bringing together sailing ships on a regular basis, and asked Patrick Herr to organise the gigantic event, inviting the finest and largest sailing ships in the world to take part. The challenge was accepted. A team was set up, signalling the start of an adventure that culminated on July 9, 1989, with the inauguration of the Sails of Freedom, then 5 years later with the Liberty Armada in 1994, and the Armada of the Century in 1999. Four years later, the Armada Rouen 2003 was celebrated.

From the very first edition, the decision to make access to the site and ships free of charge along the 7 km of quays turned the events into the experience of a lifetime for millions of people, dreaming of faraway lands and ocean voyages, creating contacts between dozens of different nationalities and links between thousands of French and foreign sailors.

1989 marked the bicentenary of the French Revolution, the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen… but also that of the "Sails of Freedom". In July 1989 Rouen, a sea and river port in the heart of Normandy, organised its first Tall Ship meeting, thereby becoming for one week the world capital of yachting. Rouen played host to ships of sixteen different nationalities, under the sponsorship of the much-regretted Eric Tabarly.
Visitors were able to approach and board the largest sailing ships in the world, cathedrals of the seas, turning the occasion into an unforgettable experience for all who came.
A large number of events on the quayside further heightened the interest of the 4 million visitors up until July 16, the day of departure, when hundreds of thousands of people lined up along the banks of the River Seine to say good-bye one last time, and salute the crews perched in the yardarms or standing at attention on the decks.
Given the huge success of the event, a new idea was born: why not repeat the Armada a few years later?

After the popular success of the "Sails of Freedom", a second large-scale gathering of sailing ships was organised in 1994, commemorating the fiftieth anniversary of the D-Day landings in Normandy.
This time, as many as seven million people during the eight days of the event from July 10 to 17 came to admire the fifty vessels present, from tall ships to naval vessels and the large numbers of old-rigged sailing ships moored along the quays.
As the climax to the event, the sailing ships sailed down the River Seine in an immense parade thirty kilometres long in front of two million enthralled spectators massed along the one hundred and twenty kilometres separating Rouen from the sea.
Once again, the meeting was a huge success.

For the third edition of the Armada, once again about fifty vessels, including some of the most celebrated and largest tall ships and naval vessels in the world, in all representing some thirty nations, met again in Rouen, from July 9 to 19, 1999. The city played host to 10 million enchanted visitors (the official figures), a human flood of 8 million people along the quays in Rouen during the 10 days of festivities, and 2 million more along the banks of the River Seine during the grand parade, the climax to 10 days of partying.
The meeting was described by its President, Patrick Herr as the "greatest international meeting of sailing ships at the end of millennium", and as "a national Armada party" or a "legendary Armada " by the French newspapers Ouest France and Est Éclair respectively.

As for the first two editions, a large number of other events were organised around the Armada:
- the "Music Armada" which provided concerts for 250,000 spectators each day with show stars such as Dick Rivers, Faudel, Zucchero, Manau amongst others,
- the "Fleet of Follies", a crazy collection of Non-Identified Floating Objects (NIFOs) on the river Seine,
- firework displays every evening and a complete range of other events.

The exceptional success of the meeting fully deserved its name of the "Armada of the Century".

This Armada was held from June 28 to July 6: the dates were slightly advanced because of the availability of many sailing ships present in this region of the world for another gathering of tall ships in the Netherlands, the "Delfsail" from July 10 to 14, then in Poland for the departure of Cutty Sark in Gdynia on July 19.
Once again, the meeting was a great success, with between 6 and 7 million people (the official figures) gathering along the quays of Rouen and along the River Seine for the final Grand Parade, despite weather conditions that were far from perfect for playing host to the ships and their crews, including the "Dewarucci" and her sailors, who were festival favourites.

The media coverage was as gigantic as the event itself: 56 television channels broadcast reports to more than 21 countries, the French TV show Thalassa issued live broadcasts daily from the quays, and the Armada was covered by national and local radio stations and more than 6,000 articles in the press. Once again, the event became a global happening, putting Rouen and Normandy on the map all around the world – and for once that is no exaggeration. The articles in the foreign press are there to prove it.
The economic and financial repercussions for the region and the impact on the tourist trade were also covered in many press reports and articles.

There is little doubt that this fifth edition, to be held from July 5 to 14, will be as successful as its predecessors.

With the entry into service of the 6th bridge of the River Seine in the spring of 2008, forming its own Arc de Triomphe for the "ARMADA ROUEN 2008", Rouen will be in the media spotlight that year as well. The list of tall ships, old-rigged sailing ships, private yachts, and naval vessels that have decided to be present is getting longer by the day.

A noteworthy innovation for the next edition will be the presence of "Sail Training International", an international association that organises races of sailing ships around the world, as a partner of "Armada Rouen 2008".

It has chosen Rouen as the point of departure to Liverpool for the prologue of the "Tall Ships' Races 2008". Liverpool will be the point of departure for the race to Maloy in Norway on July 18 and to Den Helder in the Netherlands.

Equally worthy of note are the institutional and private partners as well as the large numbers of volunteers who selflessly donate their time, efforts and funds, in some cases for years: without them, the festival on the quays of Rouen would not be what it has become.
The fact that the event, including access to the quays and visits to the boats is free of charge, means that no one is excluded, be they rich or poor, alone or with a family to feed. The Armada is for everyone.