Château de Navarre

The Château de Navarre was a château near Évreux in Normandy. The medieval structure was built for Queen Joan II of Navarre and later came into the possession of the House of La Tour d'Auvergne.

In 1750 a new Chateau was built possibly incorporating part of the medieval structure and two towers dating from the seventeenth century. Built by a relative of the great marshal General of France Henri de la Tour d'Auvergne, Vicomte de Turenne the new building was created in the form of a cube surmounted by a large dome. It was intended that a large statue of Marshal Turenne be placed on top of the dome but this never eventuated. The Chateau was burned down in 1834 and the remains were demolished two years later.

The chateau was surrounded by the forest of Everux, being part of the principality of Bearn.
Joan and Antoine lived here during their rule. From there it passed on to other families and in 1810 became the home of Napoleon’s ex-wife Josephine. After Josephine the Comte Roy, minister of Finance, gained possession of the property. It became the residences of the Duke of Bouillon and then later the Duke of Leuchtenberg, his grandson, who authorized by an Act, sold the property in 1834 to the Marquis de Dauvet, for the sum of 1.2 million francs.

The chateau caught fire in 1834, and the burnt out shell was demolished in 1836. On the land a factory was built and the land and meadows were sold. As for the forest of Évreux, depending formerly the domain of Navarre, it was not part of the prerogative of the Empress Josephine. This forest was sold at around the same time as the castle, by the princes of Rohan, heirs of the last duke of Bouillon. It did not become the property of the City of Évreux until 1981. On the location of the castle is now a racecourse and the area became known as the "neighborhood of Navarre."

The building was in the shape of a cube. It was fenced in on four sides by balustrades and had four granite stairways leading to four entrances. The chateau was topped with a dome that was covered in lead.

In the 16th century, Queen Joan ruled with her husband Antoine of Navarre for many years, during this time they were called to the King of France and it proposed that Joan and Antoine give up their lands to the Kingdom of France in exchange for territory in France. The Kingdom of Navarre would have passed into French control and they royalty of Navarre would become princelings. Joan refused this offer and the Kingdom of Navarre stayed as it was until her death. Henry IV was the son of Jeanne and Antoine and would gain the title King of France and Navarre when he became king.

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