Château d ' Ételan The Château d ' Ételan is a historical building in the " commune " of Saint - Maurice - d ' Ételan in the Seine - Maritime département in Normandy , France . Situated on the right bank of the Seine between the Brotonne and Tancarville bridges , the Château d ’ Ételan commands a site overlooking the final loop of the river Seine . Originally designed as a castle , it was later converted to a 15th - century flamboyant gothic mansion . Place name . It is not known if the village gave its name to the first castle , or the opposite . It was called " Esteilant " in 1050 - 1066 , from the Old English " land " and maybe Old English " stēġili " that means " steep " or " sheer " . Many farmers from the Danelaw had settled in Normandy with the Dane s in the 10th century , which explains why there are typical Old English place name elements in the Norman toponymy , for example : " croft " > " crot " > croc ( q ) : Vannecrocq ( " Wanescrotum " 11th century ) = Walshcroft , Lincolnshire or " stān " > " esta ( i ) n , éta ( i ) n " : Fatouville - Grestain ( " Grestano " 11th century ) = Garston , Hertfordshire ( " Grestan " 11th century ) ' great stone ' , etc . Simon the Norman is well known in England from the story of his dismissal and disgrace by Henry III early in 1240 , but less as Master Simon of " Steland " ( or " Steyland " , de " Esteilant " , de " Esteyland " ) whom Henry presented to the archdeaconry of Norfolk in May 1237 . He originated from this place . History . In 1494 Louis Picart , magistrate of Troyes and Tournaisis , friend and chamberlain of King Louis XII with whom he went to Italy , undertook the construction of the chateau . In August 1563 , the Regent , Catherine de ' Medici and the young King Charles IX visited Ételan , having just recaptured Le Havre from the English ( 27 July 1563 ) . Thus it was in Ételan that Regent , advised by Michel de l ' Hôpital decided to proclaim one year early the majority of the King ( 4 August 1563 ) . At Ételan she had drawn up , signed and sealed the letter proclaiming " the King ’ s of age " convening the Parliament of Rouen to register the summons . History or legend tells us that the following people have spent time at Ételan : Louis XI ( 6 June – 13 July 1475 ) , Francis I ( during the construction of le Havre ) , Catherine de ' Medici and Charles IX with the future kings Henry III and Henry IV , Marguerite de Navarre and Michel de l ' Hôpital ( August , 1563 ) , Voltaire ( 1723 – 1724 ) . André Caplet , composer and winner of the Grand Prix of Rome often stayed in Ételan and composed some of his works there including " Mass for three voices " . Description . The château is listed as a " monument historique " in the Historical Monuments File of the French Ministry of Culture . Completed in 1494 by Louis Picart , the Château d ’ Ételan was built on the site of a fortress which has been destroyed under the order of Louis XI . Of the medieval construction , only the cellar , the castle wall and the guard house dating from 1350 remain . Constructed in a flamboyant Gothic style , it is the contemporary with the Law Court and the hôtel de Bourgtheroulde in Rouen and as old as the Château de Clères . The building consists of two dwellings built from layers of bricks and stones and joined together by a magnificent stone staircase dating from the first Renaissance . As integral part of the main building , the Chapel , dedicated to Mary Magdalene , include stained glass windows , wall paintings and statues which characterised the first Norman Renaissance . External links . Ministry of Culture database