The Château d'Ivry-la-Bataille is a ruinous Norman

castle A castle is a type of fortification, fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by Military order (monastic society), military orders. Scholars usually consider a ''castle'' to be the private ...

in the town of

Ivry-la-Bataille Ivry-la-Bataille () is a commune in the Eure Department in the Normandy region in northern France. Ivry-la-Bataille was formerly known as Ivry. History King Henry IV of France won the Battle of Ivry near Ivry on 14 March 1590. The place was ...

in the

Normandy Normandy (; or ) is a geographical and cultural region in northwestern Europe, roughly coextensive with the historical Duchy of Normandy. Normandy comprises Normandy (administrative region), mainland Normandy (a part of France) and insular N ...

region. It is among the earliest examples of a stone

donjon A keep is a type of fortified tower built within castles during the Middle Ages by European nobility. Scholars have debated the scope of the word ''keep'', but usually consider it to refer to large towers in castles that were fortified residenc ...

or keep, which would become a common feature of later Norman castles in various parts of Europe. The construction of the donjon dates to around AD 1000;Gravett, Christopher (2004)
''Norman Stone Castles (2): Europe, 950-1204''
Osprey Publishing, (p. 12) it was constructed by an architect named Lanfred (or Lansfred, Lanfrai) under the orders of Count Rodulf of Ivry (French: ''Raoul d'Ivry''). According to

Orderic Vitalis Orderic Vitalis (; 16 February 1075 – ) was an English chronicler and Benedictine monk who wrote one of the great contemporary chronicles of 11th- and 12th-century Normandy and Anglo-Norman England.Hollister ''Henry I'' p. 6 Working out of ...

, Rudolf's wife, Aubrey or Aubrée, is said to have had the architect beheaded, so that he couldn't build a similar castle for another warlord. The donjon has marked similarities with later Norman castle keeps, in Normandy notably

Avranches Avranches (; ) is a commune in the Manche department, and the region of Normandy, northwestern France. It is a subprefecture of the department. The inhabitants are called ''Avranchinais''. History Middle Ages By the end of the Roman period, th ...

, and in England notably

Colchester Castle Colchester Castle is a Norman architecture, Norman castle in Colchester, Essex, England, dating from the second half of the eleventh century. The keep of the castle is mostly intact and is the largest example of its kind anywhere in Europe, d ...

and the White Tower at the

Tower of London The Tower of London, officially His Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress of the Tower of London, is a historic citadel and castle on the north bank of the River Thames in central London, England. It lies within the London Borough of Tower Hamle ...

; it has been suggested that Ivry was the model for these buildings. The castle was reconstructed several times up to the 15th century and was repaired by

Philibert de l'Orme Philibert de l'Orme () (3-9 June 1514 – 8 January 1570) was a French architect and writer, and one of the great masters of French Renaissance architecture. His surname is also written De l'Orme, de L'Orme, or Delorme. Biography Early care ...

in 1553. Only ruins now remain, but form an attractive walk overlooking the valley of the river

Eure Eure ( ; ; or ) is a department in the administrative region of Normandy, northwestern France, named after the river Eure. Its prefecture is Évreux. In 2021, Eure had a population of 598,934.historical monument of France (MHC).

References

External links

* Castles in Eure Ruined castles in France Monuments historiques of Eure {{France-castle-stub