The Château de Pau ( en, Pau Castle, eu, Paueko gaztelua) is a castle in the centre of the city of Pau, the capital of

Pyrénées-Atlantiques Pyrénées-Atlantiques (; Gascon Occitan: ''Pirenèus Atlantics''; eu, Pirinio Atlantiarrak or ) is a department in the southwest corner of France and of the region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine. Named after the Pyrenees mountain range and the Atlant ...

and Béarn. It dominates that quarter of the city. Henry IV of

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

and Navarre was born here on December 13, 1553, and it was once used by

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...

as a holiday home during his period of power. The

château A château (; plural: châteaux) is a manor house or residence of the lord of the manor, or a fine country house of nobility or gentry, with or without fortifications, originally, and still most frequently, in French-speaking regions. Now ...

has been classified as a '' Monument historique'' since 1840 by the

French Ministry of Culture The Ministry of Culture (french: Ministère de la Culture) is the ministry of the Government of France in charge of national museums and the . Its goal is to maintain the French identity through the promotion and protection of the arts (visua ...

. Nowadays, as the Musée national du Château de Pau, it contains a collection of

tapestries Tapestry is a form of textile art, traditionally woven by hand on a loom. Tapestry is weft-faced weaving, in which all the warp threads are hidden in the completed work, unlike most woven textiles, where both the warp and the weft threads may ...

History

Origins

Pau Castle was founded in the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...

. First and foremost a military structure, it is a typical fortified castle built on top of the hill overlooking the

Gave GAVE may refer to: * Gave (Melgaço), a parish in Portugal * Gave (placename element), a French word meaning ''torrential river'' in the west Pyrenees * Gastric antral vascular ectasia (GAVE), a medical condition * Gabinete de Avaliação Educacio ...

bounded by the Hédas ravine. Since its construction, the castle has taken on a symbolic importance: possessing a stockade of piles (''pau'', in Béarnese), it designates, by metonymy, the city itself. These piles, symbolizing loyalty and righteousness, are each like ''axis mundi'' in a Béarnese version. In the twelfth century

Gaston IV of Béarn Gaston is a masculine given name of French origin and a surname. The name "Gaston" may refer to: People First name *Gaston I, Count of Foix (1287–1315) * Gaston II, Count of Foix (1308–1343) *Gaston III, Count of Foix (1331–1391) *Gaston ...

built three towers at the fortress. They are called Mazères

Billère Billère (; oc, Vilhèra) is a commune in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department in southwestern France. It is a northwestern suburb of Pau. Population See also *Communes of the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department The following is a list of ...

and Montauser.

Gaston Fébus

The fourteenth century was troublesome as the region torn between the competing claims of the powerful warring enemy kingdoms of France and England. In contrast, the local lords sought to make Béarn, united and independent, under a sovereign count. Such a man was the formidable

Gaston III, Count of Foix Gaston Fébus (also spelt Phoebus) (30 April 1331 – 1391) was the eleventh count of Foix (as Gaston III) and twenty-fourth viscount of Béarn (as Gaston X) from 1343 until his death. Early life Gaston was born either in Orthez or Foix, the e ...

, better known as Gaston Fébus (also spelt Phoebus). He greatly reinforced the fortress's defences and added a new 33-metres high brick tower, defiantly inscribed in Béarnaise: "Febus me fe" (Fébus made me).

The Kings of Navarre

During the

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history The history of Europe is traditionally divided into four time periods: prehistoric Europe (prior to about 800 BC), classical antiquity (800 BC to AD ...

, the installation of the court of Navarre in 1512 significantly altered the appearance of the castle. Originally a fortress, it now became a pleasure residence. Henri d'Albret resided with his wife Marguerite d'Angoulême, sister of

François I Francis I (french: François Ier; frm, Francoys; 12 September 1494 – 31 March 1547) was King of France from 1515 until his death in 1547. He was the son of Charles, Count of Angoulême, and Louise of Savoy. He succeeded his first cousin once ...

, best known as

Marguerite de Navarre Marguerite de Navarre (french: Marguerite d'Angoulême, ''Marguerite d'Alençon''; 11 April 149221 December 1549), also known as Marguerite of Angoulême and Margaret of Navarre, was a princess of France, Duchess of Alençon and Berry, and Queen ...

, author of The ''

Heptaméron The ''Heptaméron'' is a collection of 72 short stories written in French by Marguerite de Navarre (1492–1549), published posthumously in 1558. It has the form of a frame narrative and was inspired by ''The Decameron'' of Giovanni Boccaccio ...

''. They marked the place with their initials, still present on the walls and ceilings, and great care was taken to maintain and reproduce the initials even over the subsequent restorations.

Henri IV

But their grandson who gives the famous castle it is today: not by any architectural endeavor, nor even by his own will. The future

Henri IV Henry IV (french: Henri IV; 13 December 1553 – 14 May 1610), also known by the epithets Good King Henry or Henry the Great, was King of Navarre (as Henry III) from 1572 and King of France from 1589 to 1610. He was the first monarc ...

takes the trouble to be born December 13, 1553, and the story did the rest. The fame of the king, baby boy cradled in a turtle shell preserved by the Béarn through the vicissitudes of revolutions, gives the castle, which did not see him grow up or die, a particular taste, and the right to claim honors those who give birth supermen. But the real recognition of the king is posthumous, and we soon forgot the castle that he was born, except to gather Navarre and Bearn in the kingdom of France (

Louis XIII Louis XIII (; sometimes called the Just; 27 September 1601 – 14 May 1643) was King of France from 1610 until his death in 1643 and King of Navarre (as Louis II) from 1610 to 1620, when the crown of Navarre was merged with the French crown ...

signed the treaty in 1620). File:Château de Pau - Fonds Ancely - B315556101 A MALBOS 2 006.jpg, The castle in 1843, by the French romantic painter

Eugène de Malbos Eugène de Malbos (21 August 1811 – 29 May 1858) was a French Romantic painter known for his lithographs of the Pyrenees The Pyrenees (; es, Pirineos ; french: Pyrénées ; ca, Pirineu ; eu, Pirinioak ; oc, Pirenèus ; an, Pirineus) is ...

. File:Pati interior del castell de Pau (cropped).jpg, Courtyard of the château in 1905, by the Catalan photographer Josep Salvany i Blanch.

The restoration

Louis-Philippe Louis Philippe (6 October 1773 – 26 August 1850) was King of the French from 1830 to 1848, and the penultimate monarch of France. As Louis Philippe, Duke of Chartres, he distinguished himself commanding troops during the Revolutionary Wa ...

, which would combine the ideals of the

Revolution In political science, a revolution (Latin: ''revolutio'', "a turn around") is a fundamental and relatively sudden change in political power and political organization which occurs when the population revolts against the government, typically due ...

and those of the monarchy, had the idea of restoring the castle of the man who reconciled

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

and

Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century against what its followers perceived to b ...

into a royal residence. Reside there, however. The castle was mostly gilded prison in 1848 the emir

Abd El-Kader Abd al-Qadir or Abdulkadir ( ar, عبد القادر) is a male Muslim given name. It is formed from the Arabic words '' Abd'', '' al-'' and '' Qadir''. The name means "servant of the powerful", ''Al-Qādir'' being one of the names of God in th ...

, conquered by France

Algeria ) , image_map = Algeria (centered orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Algiers , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , relig ...

. As might be that this castle should retain its character Henricians, placed there many objects ''neo-Renaissance'' and ''neo-Gothic'' and a collection of tapestries (16th - 19th century), to recall the halcyon days of good King. Louis-Philippe, in exile in England, could never stay at this place which was visited by

Napoleon III Napoleon III (Charles Louis Napoléon Bonaparte; 20 April 18089 January 1873) was the first President of France (as Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte) from 1848 to 1852 and the last monarch of France as Emperor of the French from 1852 to 1870. A nephew ...

. He is the Renaissance portal through which one enters and who bears the initials of the royal couple of Navarre, founder of the modern castle. File:SchlossPau1900-2.jpg, The château from the east front, 1890–1900 File:SchlossPau1900-1.jpg, The château from the east front, 1890–1900 File:The castle from south front, Pau, Pyrenees, France-LCCN2001698664.jpg, The château from the south front, 1890–1900 File:Pau1900-1.jpg, The château and bridge, 1890–1900

The national museum

Then the castle became a presidential residence in the Republic. It is currently a national museum which houses the works preserved from the days of Henry IV and especially during the restoration made by Louis-Philippe. The collections are increasing every year around the theme Henricians. It currently hosts over 100,000 visitors annually, making it the most visited heritage site of the

French department In the administrative divisions of France, the department (french: département, ) is one of the three levels of government under the national level ("territorial collectivity, territorial collectivities"), between the regions of France, admin ...

Notes

External links

Musée national du château de Pau
- official site

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pau, Chateau De Châteaux in Pyrénées-Atlantiques Buildings and structures in Pau Historic house museums in Nouvelle-Aquitaine Museums in Pyrénées-Atlantiques National museums of France Castles in Nouvelle-Aquitaine Monuments historiques of Nouvelle-Aquitaine Royal residences in France