When Napoléon Bonaparte stayed at the castle of Gélos next to Pau in 1808, he decided to establish a stud form on the site of the summer residence of Baron de Duplaa, President of the Parliament of Navarre. In 1817 the property was assigned to the state and the department and the first sires moved in.

The castle is considered to be one of the most beautiful buildings within the region of Béarn. The stables with 100 boxes derive from the 19th century. Today, 40 stallions of 10 different breeds live at Pau-Gélos.