Nérac

Nérac lies on the Baïse, beneath the château of the lords of Albret. Its court became a centre of political and cultural life in southwest France. Marguerite of Angoulême, sister of Francis I, held court here, as did her daughter Jeanne d'Albret. The gardens and galleries of the château provided a setting for a succession of distinguished visitors.

In the second half of the sixteenth century, Nérac acquired particular importance for the rulers of Navarre. In 1576 Henri III of Navarre, the future Henri IV of France, established his government at Nérac. He and his wife Marguerite de Valois presided over a court that rivalled the French court in prestige. Amid the Wars of Religion, Nérac was both a princely residence and a place where affairs of state were conducted.