I drive you down to a wonderful region of my belle France and its wonders.This time let’s travel to the south the old Aquitaine. The town of Nérac is located in the Lot et Garonne department no 47 of the Nouvelle Aquitaine region of my belle France, Therefore, let me tell you on this is Nérac !!! Hope you enjoy it as I
The town of Nérac is 26 km from Agen, 119 km from Toulouse, 116 km from Bordeaux, 632 km from Versailles,and 552 km from my current home, The main roads here are the D930 which connects with the A62 autoroute Bordeaux-Toulouse, and the D656 which at Gabarret connect with the N524 to Eauze or north to Agen, We have come here on the N165 to Nantes, then A83 to connect with the A10 dir Bordeaux and get on the rocade N230/A630 to connect with the A62 autoroute dir Toulouse, then get off at sortie/exit 6 taking the road D108 crossing underneath the A62 dir Lavardac and here take the D930 to Nérac.
Going south on our road warrior trails we were able to briefly stop at the Château Musée Henri IV, a Louis XII style building, forming the transition between Gothic art and the Early Renaissance. Completed during the reign of Jeanne d’Albret, who held her court there, the castle was dismantled during the French revolution. The north wing, the only one to have been preserved, now houses a museum, presenting archaeological collections tracing the history of the Albret region from prehistory to the Roman conquest, as well as memorabilia from the Albret house and the court of Navarre. The museum was established in the castle in 1934.
This was a stately home predating the current castle and belonging to Arsieu d’Olbion is mentioned in 1088. In the 12C, the monks of the Abbey of Saint-Pierre de Condom were given possession of the town and the lordship of Nérac. To guard it, they chose Amanieu d’Albret as their attorney or defender of the abbey. A castle was subsequently occupied by Amanieu VI d’Albret in 1259. In 1306, the Albrets eventually supplanted the monks, as a transaction was made between the monks and Amanieu VII d’Albret, who was recognized as Lord of Nérac. The Château was rebuilt between the 14C and 16C, at the height of the d’Albret family’s fortunes. In the 16C, it comprised four buildings: A flight of steps provided access to the King’s Garden, with a terrace along the Baïse River ending with the King’s Pavilion.
Other things to see here and definitively will be back eventually are : The Roman ruins , the ruins of an ancient Roman villa located in the Garenne park, The Commandery of Argentens was a hospital commandery whose origins date back to the Templars, The Commandery of Puy Fort Éguille is a former Templar establishment before becoming a hospital commandery of the Hospitallers of the Order of Saint John of Jerusalem , The Conference House located at 10, 12 Place Saint-Nicolas, between Rue de l’École and Rue des Conférences The so-called Maison Sully located at 7 Rue Sully, The Old Bridge structure dates back to the 16C, but there must already have been a bridge in the Middle Ages. The Garenne Park or Royal Park of Garenne was first a royal warren whose development began at the dawn of the 16C. It quickly became a popular place for the court of Navarre, serving as a place for hunting walks and games, particularly for the game of mail. Monastery of Sainte-Claire, founded in 1358. The community of Poor Clares was restored in 1935. Church of Saint-Nicolas, at Place Saint-Nicolas, and Church of Notre-Dame, at Place Saint-Marc.
A bit of history tell us that Nérac is on the edge of the Landes forest, The town reached its peak in the 16C, when the lords of Albret, who had settled there around the 11C became kings of Navarre following the marriage of Jean III d’Albret to Catherine de Foix in 1484. Shortly after, their son Henri II d’Albret married Marguerite d’Angoulême in 1527, sister of François I, one of the first writers in the French language, She attracted humanists and writers to Nérac (Lefèvre d’Etaples, Marot). His daughter Jeanne d’Albret married Antoine de Bourbon in 1548, and converted to the Protestant religion. In the 1530s and following, under the influence of Jeanne d’Albret, the population of Nérac converted to Protestantism, becoming entirely Huguenot at the start of the Wars of Religion. After Angoulême, Calvin stayed in Nérac in April 1534 where he met Jacques Lefèvre d’Étaples before visiting Gérard Roussel, Abbot of Clairac, and resigning his benefices on May 4, 1534. Charles IX passed through the town during his royal tour of France (1564-1566), accompanied by the court and the nobles of the kingdom: his brother, the Duke of Anjou, Henry of Navarre, and the cardinals of Bourbon and Lorraine. In 1572, Jeanne d’Albret and Catherine de’ Medici, respectively Queen of Navarre (Protestant) and Queen of France (Catholic), married their children: Henry of Navarre and Marguerite de Valois. Later, Henry of Navarre-Bourbon-Albret became King of France under the name Henry IV. When the gates of Paris opened to Henry, those of fame closed for Nérac. From June 28 to July 6, 1940, the French Admiralty was based in Nérac. Having retreated to Bordeaux with the government during the debacle of June 1940, it sought to quickly reach the free zone defined in the armistice of June 22.
The official Château Musée Henri IV of Nérac : https://chateau-nerac.fr/
The town of Nérac on the castle museum Henri IV : https://www.nerac.fr/touriste/chateau
The local Albret area tourist office on Nérac) : https://albret-tourisme.com/nerac/
The Lot et Garonne dept 47 tourist office on Nérac : https://www.tourisme-lotetgaronne.com/culture-patrimoine/ville-de-nerac/
The Nouvelle Aquitaine region tourist office on Nérac : https://www.nouvelle-aquitaine-tourisme.com/fr/sit/poi/1631463/ville-de-nerac/94587
There you go folks,a brief but good me think presentation of a lovely historical town of France and not many tourist yet oh well read the story and you will be there too. Again, hope you enjoy this post on this is Nérac !!! as I.
And remember, happy travels, good health and many cheers to all !!!
Paris1972-Versailles2003 