Chateaux de la
Loire – April 2015
According to a
publication, there are 71 of them (from Chateau des Ducs de Bretagne in the
west, to Chateau de la Buissière in the east) ! We aim at seeing 3 or 4 at
maximum. La Vallée de la Loire was made a UNESCO historical site (part of the
“Patrimoine Mondial”) at the very beginning of the 21c
.JPG)
We visited Chambord on the way down, part of a
long Easter weekend. Fascinating! Chambord is the largest and best known
chateau! That kings could permit themselves to engage in such expenditures
(François 1er in this case)! Was built over 28 years, we read - from 1519!
According to plans Da Vinci would had had a say on (a pleasing hypothesis!) – He
died nearby at Amboise, shortly before construction started. Leonardo Da Vinci,
mentor to François 1er who brought him from Italy (Milano or Firenze!) In
Leonardo’s dying years (Cynthia visited in March the modest mansion – Le Clos
Lucé – in Amboise where he spent the last years of his life – from 1516 to May
1519 when he died, leaving behind there some of his giant machines and the Mona
Lisa painting which he had brought with him – she (Cynthia) was quite impressed
by Da Vinci!) Chambord was restored mainly after WWII, but also more recently
2006-09! François 1er stayed 18 times (for a total of 72 days!) at Chambord.
Louis the 14th made it “habitable” later on (he stayed there 9
times, between 1660 and 1685).
Stayed at a
B&B recommended by Canadians living in Fonty, “l’Ange est Rêveur” in Langeais. Room (one of 5) above a decoration
store – very good! Full house for breakfast! Had dinner the first night we
arrived at nearby resto, “Au Coin des
Halles” (asparagus and gambas as starter with a half bottle of Sancerre for
both of us, then chicken and salmon) – very fine dining!
.JPG)
Le lendemain, ai visité le Chateau de Langeais, bâti sur l’ordre de Louis XI par son contrôleur
des Finances en 1465. Avons passé la matinée à visiter les intérieurs (15
salles) complètement et minutieusement rénovés avec ameublement par
l’industriel et collectionneur Jacques Siegfried, son dernier propriétaire, au
19c. It was also the
site of the famous (and secret!) marriage of Anne de Bretagne (15 years old!)
and Charles VIII that attached definitely Britany to the kingdom of France in
1491; the marriage “scéance” is totally reconstituted with a good story! The
Chateau is located in the center of town, near the B&B where we stayed. We
visited, late afternoon, the park at the back of the Chateau; it showcased the
remnants of the tower erected at the end of the 10c, along with a reconstituted
medieval scaffolding. There is also in the park a belvedere from which one can
observe the river (la Loire) and the Langeais bridge that spans it.
After a copious
lunch at the Colombien Hotel (on
gigot d’agneau and a bottle of Chinon, a red from the 2010 cuvée!) in Villandry,
visited the chateau located there. Better known for its gardens, sumptuously
deployed! Owned privately by the descendants of Joachim Carvallo, a local
Spanish restaurateur, who bought the castle in 1906 and fully furnished it (it
looks as if someone lives there!)
The following
and last day, we visited Chenonceau.
A marvel! Known as «le chateau des Dames» - Katherine Briçonnet, la bâtisseuse
(with her husband’s money!) in the 16c, Diane de Poitiers (the king– Henri II –
‘s mistress), Catherine de Médicis, the wife of Henri II who chased Diane once
a widow; Louise de Lorraine, the daughter (who mourned her king-husband, Henri
III who died in a tournament!), and Louise Dupin, who saved the château from
the Revolution! Catherine de Medicis built up into a gallery the long bridge
that Diane had built on the Cher River. A quite spectacular chateau!. Well-preserved,
with all the furniture and the paintings, tapisseries and other decoration!
An extensive (and expansive!) lunch at l’Orangerie, on the grounds of Chenonceau.
.JPG)
Drove back
home via Orléans late afternoon!
Vallée de la Loire, April 7, 2015
