The town of Lucq-de-Béarn developed in the tenth century around the Abbey of Saint Vincent, founded around 970 AD. It has a great reputation at the end of the thirteenth century by hosting several times the King of England Edward I and part of his court came to settle a conflict between the kings of France and Aragon. This charming little medieval village has also suffered religious wars which it will be very difficult to recover.
St Vincent church is in Romanesque-Gothic style church built between 12th and 16th centuries. The bell-tower entrance and its door in basket weave patterns and the doorway which dates from the 16th century invite you to enter the church.
There is a fifth century sarcophagus in the church. Sculpted entirely from white marble it was discovered in the 19th century under the church floor-tiles and now serves as the altar. Capitals sculpted in the 12th century stand side-by-side with altarpieces, pictures and paintings from the 17th and 18th centuries.
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The Château du Lude is one of the many great châteaux of the Loire Valley in France. Le Lude is the most northerly château of the Loire Valley and one of the last important historic castles in France, still inhabited by the same family for the last 260 years. The château is testimony to four centuries of French architecture, as a stronghold transformed into an elegant house during the Renaissance and the 18th century. The monument is located in the valley of Le Loir. Its gardens have evolved throughout the centuries.
