Château d'Ivry-la-Bataille

Ivry-la-Bataille

Standing on the Butte Talbot above the valley of the Eure, the château d'Ivry is held to be one of the very first stone castles in Normandy, raised around the year 1000 for Raoul d'Ivry, half-brother on his mother's side of Duke Richard I. Chroniclers describe a "famous tower, enormous and very strongly fortified", and legend has it that the architect Lanfred was beheaded once the work was finished, so that he could never give away its construction secrets. This monumental keep is said to have served as the model for the White Tower of London, built by William the Conqueror. A frontier fortress between the duchy of Normandy and the Capetian domain, the site was occupied and remodelled until the Hundred Years' War, notably enduring a siege in 1419 during the conquest of Normandy by Henry V of England. On 14 March 1590, the Battle of Ivry, Henri IV's victory over the Leaguers of the duke of Mayenne, earned the locality its byname of "la Bataille". Excavations conducted from 1968 by Robert Baudet uncovered the remains of the tower to a depth of several metres, making the castle an international reference for the study of the earliest keeps; protected as a monument historique in 1990, it offers a pleasant panoramic walk.

Getting there : Butte Talbot, 27540 Ivry-la-Bataille; access on foot from the village church; free, unaccompanied visit at all times, all year round; animals allowed; information from the town hall on 02 32 36 40 19.

Opening times and access details are given as a guide only: check before you set out.

Ambient sound