Spanish conquest of Iberian Navarre Spanish conquest of the Iberian part of Navarre was commenced by Ferdinand II of Aragon and completed by Charles I of Spain in a series of military campaigns extending from 1512 to 1524 , while the war lasted until 1528 in the Navarre to the north of the Pyrenees . Ferdinand the Catholic was in 1512 both king of Aragon and regent of Castile . When Pope Julius II declared a Holy League against France in late 1511 , Navarre tried to remain neutral . Ferdinand used this as an excuse to attack Navarre , conquering it while its potential protector France was beset by England , Venice , and Ferdinand ' s Italian armies . Several attempts were made to reconquer Iberian Navarre starting right after the Castilian invasion ( 1512 ) , notably a halfhearted reconquest attempt in 1516 and a fully - fledged French - Navarrese reconquest campaign in 1521 . All were defeated by the Spanish , and clashes came to halt to the north of the Pyrenees in 1528 , when the Spanish troops withdrew from Lower Navarre . The Treaty of Cambrai between Spain and France in 1529 sealed the division of Navarre along the Pyrenees , while the independent Kingdom of Navarre survived in Lower Navarre ruled by the lineage of the Albrets united to their principality of Béarn , showing close links with France . The kingdom was absorbed into France in 1620 ( nominally in 1790 ) . Background . Navarre was mired in instability over the throne since the mid 15th century . At the same time Navarre split in two main parties and warring factions : the Beaumonts and the Agramonts , with ramifications both within and out of Navarre and subject to external meddling . When Catherine I of Navarre married John III of Albret , many in Navarre contested this arrangement . South of the Pyrenees , in 1492 King Ferdinand II of Aragon and Queen Isabella I of Castile definitely subdued Granada after a 10 - year war , with Castile annexing the emirate and putting an end to the Reconquista . He started to set his eyes now on the neighbouring kingdom of Navarre . After Isabella I of Castile ' s death in 1504 , Ferdinand II of Aragon unexpectedly married the French princess Germaine of Foix , daughter of claimant to the throne of Navarre John of Foix , Viscount of Narbonne , so any children from Ferdinand ' s marriage could entitle him to a claim over the crown of Navarre . Ferdinand also wanted to spite his son - in - law and successor Philip , new ephemeral king of Castile . As of 1507 , with Ferdinand again administering the politics of Castile as a regent , the defiant count of Lerín Louis Beaumont , Ferdinand ' s key ally in Navarre , revolted along with other Beaumont party lords in the context of the Basque inter - clan feuds ( see Foix and Albret dynasties , but the royal authority — Catherine , John III — warned Ferdinand that this time no demands from the count would be accepted and no pardon would be granted to the latter . After an year long stand - off , in 1508 the crown launched an offensive to quell the count ' s rebellion , Lerín was occupied , and a severe defeat inflicted on Louis . The Navarrese authorities struggled to achieve a diplomatic balance in two fronts , but adverse new winds were blowing from France too . Ferdinand and King Louis XII were getting along after the former ' s marriage to Germaine of Foix , with the French king putting pressure on the Albrets to give up on their principalities outside Navarre — Béarn , Bigorre , Foix , etc . — but was met with their strong refusal . In 1507 the Parliament of Navarre appointed a diplomatic task force to France led by John of Jaso , bishop of Lescar and father of Francis Xavier , but that and other diplomatic attempts were halfhearted . Louis XII coveted the Albrets ' territories and resorted to the Parliament of Toulouse , where his ambitions took the form of a confiscation decree . When the Parliament of Navarre ( " The Three States " ) and the States - General of Béarn were confronted with the possibility of a French takeover in 1510 , a military mobilization was decreed and a bill passed to create a Béarn - Navarre confederation securing a permanent joint defense provision against any external assault . Ferdinand II waited and saw , took good note of those fears , and searched again allies for his own designs in the Navarrese Beaumont party . However , in summer 1510 the international scene took a sharp turn in the Italian Wars . Pope Julius II was one of the most ambitious Popes of the era . He had declared a Holy League against Venice in 1508 , and successfully defeated it . The formerly allied Papal States and France went to war with one another , and Julius II declared a new Holy League against France on 4 August 1511 after siding with King Ferdinand in the French - Spanish struggle for power in Italy . Navarre refused to join and kept neutral in a shaky balance , but Ferdinand II declared war on France in March 1512 . Just a month later , Gaston of Foix died , so the full claim over the Pyrenean territories of the Albrets would fall in the hands of Ferdinand ' s wife Germaine of Foix . King Louis then started to show a conciliatory tone with Queen Catherine and King John III , conceding to back down on his territorial demands . Catherine and John III kept negotiations with Ferdinand too , who intertwined proposals , pressure and menaces with actual movement of troops right on the outer borders of Navarre . In February 1512 , Ferdinand allied with England in a move leading to a prompt military intervention in the French royal territory of Guyenne , present - day region Aquitaine , but could hardly disguise his intentions to indefinitely occupy an inconvenient kingdom for the king ' s ambitions . The Navarrese authorities made arrangements for the defense of Navarre , while Ferdinand designed a plan to invade the kingdom , including a propaganda scheme in which the Navarrese crown would be labeled as schismatic with the back - up of Julius II ' s papal bulls . For the purpose , Castilian diplomats negotiated with Rome for months . Castilian - Aragonese invasion of 1512 . Invasion of Navarre . In June 1512 , tension mounted when the Holy League made a formal petition to send English and Castilian troops through Navarre over to France . At the same time a Navarrese diplomatic panel sent to France was holding a round of talks with Louis XII that lasted for a month , while Ferdinand threatened to cross the border if an agreement was reached . The talks led to the 4th Treaty of Blois on 18 July 1512 , providing for a mutual assistance to keep Navarre ' s neutrality , and bringing also the attention to the impending English threat on France after their disembarkation in Hondarribia , Gipuzkoa ( bordeging Basque territory suzerain to Castile ) . The next day Ferdinand sent his troops across the border from Álava into Navarre , commanded by his general Don Fadrique de Toledo , Duke of Alba , one that was involved in the conquest of Granada ( 1492 ) . However , by that time a Gipuzkoan militia had broken into Navarre from the north - western border and captured Goizueta , a village and fortress bordering on Gipuzkoa ( 10 July 1512 ) . In a few days Castilian troops advanced without resistance onto the outskirts of Pamplona , where Ferdinand ' s ally count Juan of Beaumont played host to the invading troops in his fortified palace of Arazuri . The assault troops of the expedition numbered 6 , 000 veterans , but the whole caravan including the rearguard amounted to 15 , 000 . The population of Pamplona did not exceed 10 , 000 inhabitants . Catherine and John III left for Tudela in quest for troops among loyal lords , but managed to get only 500 . Overwhelmed by the sheer size of the Spanish expedition , the loyalists veered east to Lumbier ( Irunberri ) , and on to Lower Navarre . Catherine , John III and their troops retreated to Orthez , Béarn . Pamplona ' s peripheral defense walls were flimsy , and a threat of looting pronounced by the Duke of Alba loomed over the town . In view of the royal family ' s retreat to Lumbier , local authorities surrendered ( 25 July 1512 ) . Without delay , messengers were sent out by the Castilians to the main fortresses across Navarre demanding to follow suit . Most of them submitted , except for Amaiur ( Baztan ) , Estella - Lizarra , Tudela and St - Jean - Pied - de - Port . The authorities of Pamplona were required to vow loyalty to Ferdinand , but they alleged that they could not inasmuch as they had pledged allegiance to king John III , their natural lord , and he was alive . The Spanish king went on to claim that he was King of Navarre " de jure propio " ( late August 1512 ) . Tudela in turn was besieged , and resisted the Aragonese push led by Alfonso of Aragon , a bastard son of Ferdinand II and archbishop of Zaragoza , who was commanding 3 , 000 infantry and 300 cavalry . The determined loyalty of the local authorities to the Navarrese crown could not hide their low morale on account of the Pope ' s bull and the hopelessness of their resistance , as set down on letters to the king by the defenders . The position surrendered by 9 September 1512 in order to avoid pillaging , further confiscations in town , and futile bloodshed . Alfonso took an oath to respect the Navarrese laws that day , following his father Ferdinand ' s instructions . By late August 1512 , virtually all Iberian Navarre was under Spanish sway . The Duke of Alba , commanding a force of 3 , 000 infantry and 300 cavalry supported by a further 400 artillery , occupied the Pyrenean valleys of Aezkoa , Salazar , and Roncal , and undertook the crossing of the Pyrenean passes northbound , taking the Chapel of Roncevaux by surprise , and setting fire to the village . The Castilian forces spearheaded by Colonel Villalba ( or the Beaumont party lord Martin of Ursua , depending on sources ) arrived in St - Jean - Pied - de - Port on 10 September 1512 , only to find that its garrison under the lord of Miossens ( an Albret ) was abandoning the stronghold . Not contented with the takeover of the position and the town , the Castilian forces set about pillaging , burning and spreading out terror throughout the villages of Lower Navarre , a tactic the Castilian commander tried to justify on his letters . Roman Church appears to have approved of the enslavement of the subdued Navarrese population . The Castilians demanded the submission of the all the lords in Lower Navarre ( " Ultrapuertos , Deça - Ports " ) , while the Duke of Alba ordered to pull down all the tower house s in the territory . All the apple and fruit orchards in the St - Jean - Pied - de - Port ( Donibane Garazi in Basque ) area were chopped off , leaving the local population struggling for subsistence . At this point , Ferdinand demanded a capitulation of Catherine and John III , but offered to negotiate their hold on the throne on condition that they sent their new heir apparent to be raised in the court of Castile . The demand was met with a frontal refusal . Meanwhile a French army was stationed in Bayonne ( Labourd , in Guyenne ) watching out for possible English or Castilian moves on the ground . Ferdinand still stack to his plan to invade Guyenne , home to both Albrets ' possessions and French royal lands , or at least Bayonne , a strategic port for Navarre . However , time was running out for the Castilians in Lower Navarre , short of food , supplies and under adverse weather conditions . Discontented veteran troops in St - Jean - Pied - de - Port numbering 1 , 000 mutinied , but managed to negotiate with the Duke of Alba their removal to the less hostile rearguard of Burgui and Salazar , so breaking up the uprising . Navarrese counterattack . By mid - October , John III had raised an army of 15 , 000 Navarrese , Gascons and landsknecht s ready to counterattack . Three columns advanced into Gipuzkoa and the heartland of Navarre . The first laid siege to Hondarribia and Donostia , and occupied a number of small towns of the area to divert the attention of a Castilian relieve on the besieged troops in Pamplona . By then , tired of Ferdinand II ' s unreliable intentions , the English had decided to leave the theater of war back to England after sacking a number of villages and towns ( Errenteria ) . A second expedition commanded by the Duke of Longueville was made up of 8 , 000 Gascons , 1 , 000 Navarrese , 1 , 500 landsknecths , and corresponding artillery . It set off from Peyrehorade , engaged the Castilians in Ainhize , and defeated them on 19 October 2012 . A third column crossed the Pyrenees from Roncal ( Erronkari ) and reached Burgui . Fearing of having his communication line with Pamplona cut off , the Duke of Alba withdrew to the capital , but not before leaving a well equipped detachment in St - Jean - Pied - de - Port . The Navarrese column advanced south across the Pyrenees from Salazar towards Pamplona . On hearing the news of the Navarrese army ' s approach , Estella - Lizarra and the fortress of Monjardin next to it revolted against the occupiers . On 24 October 1512 , the Duke of Alba made it to Pamplona , followed by Navarrese loyalist forces , who laid siege to the capital . In Estella - Lizarra , the rebels led by John Ramirez de Baquedano and Jaime Velaz de Medrano were soon opposed by the forces of Peter of Beaumont , supported by the Castilians Duke of Nájera and the Marquis of Comares . The Navarrese leaders made a last stand on the Monjardin fortress , but eventually a capitulation was signed . The investment of Pamplona lasted for a month , but the coming of winter and new reinforcements from Castile thwarted any prospects of a successful conclusion to the operation . The loyalists retreated and the Castilian troops made their way back across the Pyrenees to St - Jean - Pied - de - Port and Lower Navarre , keeping control of the position , but engaging in regular skirmishes with the disgruntled Beaumont party lord of Luxe ( Lukuze ) . On 7 December 1512 , a detachment of Navarrese army ' s decimated landsknechts on retreat was guarding twelve artillery pieces at the Belate pass , when they encounter a patrol led by the governor of Gipuzkoa Juan de Silva . The Gipuzkoan militia took on the landsknechts , who retreated in disarray , were chased and largely slaughtered . The skirmish was later pumped up to a wholesale battle , with the canons seized being added in 1513 to the official coat of arms of Gipuzkoa . Spanish reoccupation and aftermath . As of December 1512 , the clashes got confined to St - Jean - Pied - de - Port and its hinterland , occupied still by the Castilians . The above Diego Fernandez de Córdoba was appointed first viceroy of Navarre , and on 13 – 23 March 1513 the Parliament of Navarre , greatly reduced to the Beamount party representatives who had sided with the Castilian conquest , was called and accepted Fernando as their " natural lord and king . " Fernando in turn agreed to keep Navarrese institutions and identity . At the same time , the first Castilian viceroy , Diego Fernández de Córdoba , took an oath to respect Navarrese law ( " fueros " ) . Initially the kingdom was attached to Ferdinand — and therefore to the Crown of Aragon — as an " earned good " , falling back on the Papal bulls . Aragon was a Pyrenean realm of a similar confederate institutional make - up , as opposed to the authoritarian Castile , but the pressure of the latter tipped the scale in favour of bequeathing Navarre to Castilian Queen Isabella ' s daughter Joanna of Castile and annexing the Basque kingdom to Castile in 1515 . The annexation was confirmed after taking an oath to respect Navarre ' s laws and institutions ( the " pactum subjectionis " ) , since that was Ferdinand II ' s will . The " Cortes " of Burgos ( 11 June 1515 ) was not attended by any Navarrese representatives , even the Navarrese count of Lerin Louis of Beaumont , Ferdinand II ' s accomplice up to that point , protested at this annexation to Castile , and was incarcerated . Notwithstanding the formal oath requirement , both kingdoms had different institutional and legal systems , and fairly different social and ethnic make - up . Once the Castilian and Aragonese military confirmed their occupation of all the strongholds , the ground was paved for the progressive institutional takeover marked by the centralizing drive of the Spanish - Castilian Crown , source of frequent frictions and tensions . 1513 and 1514 were marked by the Castilian military control of Navarre , with the diplomat and writer Niccolò Machiavelli anticipating an prompt and easy understanding of Ferdinand II with France " " on the only condition of keeping Navarre , giving up instead on the Duchy of Milan for its vicinity to the Helvetians " . " It was decreed the expulsion of the formerly buoyant Jewish community of Navarre and also the Moriscos of Tudela , who became the main victims of the Spanish Inquisition . . Construction of the case for the conquest . Ferdinand showed a deep concern in presenting his military intervention against a backdrop of legal grounds . He was quick to commission a report to the skilled law specialists Antonio de Nebrija and Juan López de Palacios Rubios in order to make the case for his actions with a wide array of claims over the Basque kingdom . During the following decades and centuries the reports were to become a compelling reference when it comes to the debates on the ( im ) morality of the Spanish conquest of Navarre in the following decades and centuries . At any rate , both scholars were acting as servants of their masters King Ferdinand II and the Duke of Alba when they accepted these propaganda assignments , as pointed out by the historian Alfredo Floristan . López de Palacios would design later the doctrine legitimizing the conquest of the West Indies . In late August 1512 , once the conquest of the heartland of Navarre was achieved , Ferdinand issued a statement defending his right to attack France by means of Navarre according to the " iure belli " or " fair war " passed by the Roman Church in 1511 . With Pamplona on his hands and the royal family in Béarn , Ferdinand used this gain on the ground to further justify his claim over the kingdom of Navarre , insisting on his entitlement as king of Navarre " de iure propio " . Another claim insisted on a so - called " right of way " across Navarre in order to achieve military goals in Guyenne , supported by Ferdinand ' s divine and natural right . In addition , Ferdinand would be " observing international treaties " , so allowing him to invade Navarre in order to help his ally England . An additional , peculiar argumentation consisted of claiming that the Navarrese lineage starting with Iñigo Arista ( 824 - 851 ) was an usurpation of the righteous claimant , Castile , the alleged heir to the Visigothic kingdom ( via Kingdom of Asturias ) , holder of Roman Emperor Honorius ' mandate for Hispania . Lastly , Fernando stated a number of claims to the Navarrese throne related to his marriage to Germaine of Foix , and his father John II of Aragon . Ferdinand was informed by spies of the progresses in the negotiations between Navarrese diplomats and Louis XII at Blois . On the eve of the beginning of the invasion , 17 July 1512 , Ferdinand had a forged draft copy of the Treaty of Blois ( signed on 18 July ) circulating aimed at smear . The Papal ruling " Pastor Ille Caelestis " issued on 21 July , just 3 days after the start of the invasion , authorized to wage war on Church enemies and stake a claim over their lands and subjects providing they lie outside Italy , which would apply to Louis XII ' s France and the " heretic " crown of Navarre . This provision was added at the instigation of Ferdinand himself in December 1511 . Back on 5 June 1512 , Ferdinand had addressed a letter to the Pope Julius II urging him to issue a bull excommunicating " " everyone in the kingdom of Navarre and the principality of Béarn " " and allocating him Navarre , or failing that , the right to take over it , and appealing for that to the Pope ' s own interests in Spain ( " " you just need a scroll and ink " " , he added ) . On 7 June 1512 the Spanish king addressed another letter to his ambassador in Rome urging him to secure the bulls as soon as possible , for " " our army is up and the artillery ready " " to invade Navarre . However , the Navarrese crown was not cited explicitly in the " Pastor Ille Caelestis " bull . Echoing Ferdinand ' s claim in late August 2012 , the " Exigit Contumatium " Papal bull was issued half an year later ( 18 February 1513 ) . This time Catherine I and John III were labelled as schismatic and therefore unworthy holders of the royal title , imposing on them an excommunication and confiscation of all their properties . The attending members of the Parliament of Navarre session held in Pamplona on 13 – 24 March 1512 accepted Ferdinand II as king . Despite all the Papal support to his actions , Ferdinand — and his successors — was haunted by tyranny and usurpation allegations , and these concerns were to leave an imprint in the future status Navarre would take after the invasion . The Spanish king made all the necessary arrangements to present the invasion as a mere dynastic change , trying to conceal the fact of the military takeover . Despite the fact that Navarre was considered an " earned good " for the free disposition of Ferdinand , the " pactum subjections " was applied — taking an oath to respect the Navarrese law and identity . Navarre was no Granada , which was considered not only a legitimate conquest by Roman Christian standards but a " reconquest " of the Visigoth Kingdom . On the other side , Navarre was widely held as an old Christian kingdom , with secular institutions and an entrenched identification of its population with the native social order . " Prior tempore , potior iure " , or " earlier in time , stronger in law " , the kingdom was stronger than the crown itself . 1516 reconquest attempt . By 1516 Ferdinand was dead and his sixteen - year - old grandson by Isabella , Charles of Ghent , had ascended to the throne of both Castile and Aragon . However , in 1516 he still lived in the Burgundian Netherlands . John III of Navarre saw a new opportunity to reconquer the Iberian Navarre . The king raised an army in Sauveterre - de - Bearn made up of two columns , one commanded by himself and the other by Peter , Marshal of Navarre . The first column failed to bring to heel the Castilian garrison occupying St - Jean - Pied - de - Port , while the second column was defeated in Isaba , valley of Roncal , so thwarting any advance into the heartland of Navarre . The Spanish cardinal Cisneros acted as regent for the newly proclaimed emperor Charles . As such , that year he decreed all Navarrese castles be pulled down to avoid any resistance , and the expulsion of the Muslim inhabitants in southern Navarre . Not only that , prominent figures of Navarre who had stood up for the Navarrese monarchs were imprisoned in Atienza or forced to exile , while the commander Peter of Navarre was murdered later in Simancas while in custody . The repression was aimed , in cardinal Cisneros ' words , at further " " subjugating and constraining [ Navarre ] , so that no one in that kingdom dares or ventures to rebel . " " 1521 French - Navarrese expedition . From 1520 – 1521 , Castile was distracted by the Revolt of the Comuneros . The Crown of Aragon was also suffering economic difficulties as well as the Revolt of the Brotherhoods . As a result , Spain was seen as a ripe target of opportunity by the French King Francis I . Meanwhile , the young King Henry II of Navarre , based in his domains of Béarn , saw a way through to reconquer Navarre . Taking advantage of the synergies with France , Henry began raising a 12 , 000 - strong army , mainly Gascons and Navarrese exiles , to recapture the Navarre occupied by the Spanish . The large French - Navarrese army commanded by General Asparros ( or Esparre ) crossed the Pyrenees , consisting exactly of 12 , 000 infantry , 800 mounted knights , and 29 pieces of artillery . The Castilian Viceroy of Navarre , Antonio Manrique de Lara , 2nd Duke of Nájera , was caught off - guard . The Duke had the responsibility for guarding the Navarrese lands conquered in 1512 , but he had moved the bulk of his troops away from Navarre to suppress peasant uprisings and raids in his home territory of Castile , within the context of the Revolt of the Comuneros . Much of his artillery and other troops as well had gone to Castile to fight the organized comunero armies . Rumors had abounded of a " French " invasion , with former comunero noble Pedro Girón warning of the impending invasion in April 1521 . Angry at the Castilian takeover of the ecclesiastic , administrative and judiciary institutions in Navarre , the Navarrese quickly rose up across Navarre in support of Henry II and the House of Albret as King on hearing the news of Henry II ' s expedition . Volunteer parties were created in many places to expel the Castilians . As the force approached Pamplona , the citizens revolted and besieged the Castilian military governor , Iñigo de Loyola , in his newly built castle . The garrison surrendered after a few days of resistance in late May 1521 in the Battle of Pampeluna ( Pamplona ) . In less than three weeks , all of Navarre was reconquered . Still , not all was settled . The absence of young King Henry II was disquieting to the population . Additionally , the French general was treating Navarre like a conquered country , which caused some to wonder if the French King Francis wanted the territory to himself . The French - Navarrese then moved out of friendly territory over to Castile , crossing the Ebro and besieging the bordering town of Logroño , where the count of Lerin was stationed with a 4 , 000 - strong force . Here the army commanded by Esparros encountered its first serious resistance . Unfortunately for the King of Navarre and the French , the Revolt of the Comuneros had been crushed at the Battle of Villalar in April . Now , not only was the Castilian government able to send its soldiers back to respond , but a large number of Castilian nobles who had supported the comuneros or vacillated between sides were now presented an opportunity to prove their loyalty to Castile . Many formerly rebel - held towns sent soldiers to Navarre as well . Backed by a suddenly reunified Castile , a huge army of 30 , 000 men approached Navarre to retake it . On June 11 , Asparros abandoned his siege of Logroño and retreated back to Tiebas , Navarre . Asparros desperately requested reinforcements from Béarn , but Henry II refused the request , presumably not wanting to risk them in a battle that was likely already lost in any case . Near Pamplona , the French ( Gascons ) and the Navarrese were completely defeated at the Battle of Esquiroz ( Noáin ) on 30 June 1521 . The French - Navarrese force did not have sufficient artillery to defend themselves , and were outnumbered by more than two - to - one . French and Navarrese losses numbered more than 6 , 000 dead , and General Asparros was captured . The Castilian human losses numbered only 50 to 300 deaths . The victory of Charles I ' s troops was followed by an occupation in which the defeated were subject to abuse , pillaging , marginalization and exile . The new scenario bred despair among many Navarrese , with many lords conveniently opting to switch sides to the victorious Castilians . The Castilians did not relent though , and continued to send reinforcements to the area as Charles V and France went to war across Europe . Charles I ' s goals aimed farther beyond Navarre , including the invasion of Guyenne , supported initially by English troops . The French - Navarrese had reconquered several spots on the Pyrenees in September 1521 under the command of Guillaume Gouffier , seigneur de Bonnivet . After recapturing Baztan ( fortress of Amaiur ) , Guillaume Gouffier headed to Behobia , its fortress was captured , and went on to lay siege on Hondarribia ( Fuenterrabía , Fontarabie ) dated 6 October 1521 , at the tip of Gipuzkoa in the Basque Country . The besieging French - Navarrese forces included the Claude of Lorraine besides the above Guillaume Gouffier . Next year , two hundred Navarrese lords staged a heroic last stand against the Castilians at Amaiur castle , Baztan , where a monolith now commemorates them , but ultimately the position fell to the Count of Miranda on 19 July 1513 . The Battle of Fuenterrabía ( Hondarribia ) would last until September 1524 . The French and Navarrese were able to hold the city for almost three years , but conflict wouldn´t expand back into Navarre . France ' s loss of the wider war , with King Francis ' s capture , ensured that the Iberian part of Navarre would remain under Spanish control . While the Spanish troops struggled to keep the lands of Lower Navarre for a while ( " Nafarroa Beherea " , see map ) , but for an outpost in ( Luzaide / Valcarlos ) the region was abandoned in 1528 due to Charles I ' s loss of interest and the difficulties to defend it .