| Châteaux of the Loire Valley | |
| Location: | France (Centre, Pays de la Loire) |
| Built: | Renaissance period |
| Architecture: | French Renaissance architecture |
| Designation1: | World Heritage Site |
| Designation1 Partof: | The Loire Valley between Sully-sur-Loire and Chalonnes |
| Designation1 Date: | 2000 |
| Designation1 Type: | Cultural |
| Designation1 Number: | 933 |
| Designation1 Free1name: | Country |
| Designation1 Free1value: | France |
| Designation1 Free2name: | Region |
| Designation1 Free2value: | Europe and North America |
The châteaux of the Loire Valley (French: châteaux de la Loire) are part of the architectural heritage of the historic towns of Amboise, Angers, Blois, Chinon, Montsoreau, Orléans, Saumur, and Tours along the river Loire in France. They illustrate Renaissance ideals of design in France.[1]
The châteaux of the Loire Valley number over three hundred,[2] ranging from practical fortified castles from the 10th century to splendid residences built half a millennium later. When the French kings began constructing their huge châteaux in the Loire Valley, the nobility, drawn to the seat of power, followed suit, attracting the finest architects and landscape designers. The châteaux and their surrounding gardens are cultural monuments which embody the ideals of the Renaissance and Enlightenment. Many of the châteaux were built on hilltops, such as the Château d'Amboise, while the only one built in the riverbed is the Château de Montsoreau. Many had exquisite churches on the grounds or within the château.
With the Hundred Years' War concluded, Charles VII, Louis XI, and their successors preferred to spend the bulk of their time in the "garden of France" along the banks of the Loire. In the late 15th century Tours, then Blois, and later Amboise became the preferred locations of the French royal court. Many courtiers bought dilapidated castles built by the medieval Counts of Blois and of Anjou, and they had them reconstructed in the latest Italianate fashion. Leonardo da Vinci and other Italian artists arrived to design and beautify these residences.
In the 16th century, Francis I moved his main residence back to the Louvre, in Paris. With him went the great architects, but the Loire Valley continued to be the place where French royalty preferred to spend their time when not in the capital. Toward the end of the 17th century, Louis XIV made the Île-de-France the permanent locale for great royal residences when he built the Palace of Versailles. Nonetheless, those who gained the king's favour, as well as the wealthy bourgeoisie, continued to renovate existing châteaux or build lavish new ones in the Loire Valley as summer residences.
The French Revolution saw a number of the great châteaux destroyed and many ransacked, their treasures stolen. The overnight impoverishment of many French noble families, usually after one of their members lost his or her head to the guillotine, saw many châteaux demolished. During World War I and World War II, various chateaux were commandeered as military headquarters. Some of these continued to be so used after the end of World War II.
Today, the remaining privately owned châteaux serve as homes and some of them open their doors to tourists, while others operate as hotels or bed-and-breakfasts. Many others have been taken over by local governments, and the grandest, like those at Chambord, are owned and operated by the national government and are major tourist sites, attracting hundreds of thousands of visitors each year.
Though there may be no universally accepted definition for the designation, the main criterion is that the château must be situated close to the Loire or one of its tributaries (such as the Maine, Cher, Indre, Creuse or Loir). Châteaux further upstream than Gien are generally not included, with the possible exception of the Bastie d'Urfé for its historical significance.
| Château | Commune | Département | Coordinates | Historic Events | Image | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 47.4131°N 0.9858°W | Accidental death of Charles VIII (1498)[3] Amboise conspiracy (1560) Edict of Amboise with the Calvinists (1563) | |||||
| 47.47°N -0.56°W | ||||||
| Blois | Blois | Loir-et-Cher | 47.5856°N 1.3308°W | Assassination of Henry I, Duke of Guise (1588) | ||
| 47.6161°N 1.5172°W | Considered the most magnificent Loire château Treaty of Chambord (1552) | |||||
| 47.3253°N 1.0703°W | Owned by Diane de Poitiers (1547–1559) et Catherine de Médicis (1559–1589) | |||||
| 47.1681°N 0.2361°W | Meeting between Charles VII and Joan of Arc (1429) | |||||
| 47.3247°N 0.4061°W | Marriage of Charles VIII and Anne of Brittany (1491) | |||||
| 47.1247°N 0.9967°W | Captured by Richard the Lionheart (1194) Residence of Agnès Sorel (1443–1450) | |||||
| Plessis-lez-Tours | La Riche | Indre-et-Loire | 47.3825°N 0.6606°W | Treaty of Tours (1444) Death of Louis XI (1483) Death of Francis of Paola (1507), founder of the Order of Minims Treaty of Plessis-les-Tours (1580) Meeting between Henry III and the king of Navarre, future Henry IV, who allied against the Catholic League (1589) | ||
| 47.2561°N -0.0725°W | "Château d'amour" of the king René of Anjou (1454–1472) Place of sanctuary for Protestants (1589) | |||||
| 47.3969°N 0.6928°W | Marriage of the future Louis XI and Margaret of Scotland (1436) Imprisonment of Charles, Duke of Guise (1588–1591) |
| Château | Commune | Département | Coordinates | Notes | Image | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 47.2592°N 0.4661°W | Masterpiece of the first French Renaissance | |||||
| 47.1297°N 0.0028°W | Loches Château of Count Arthur de Marsay | |||||
| 47.5369°N 1.3842°W | Art gallery | |||||
| 47.1744°N -0.0575°W | Artifacts of Troglodytes under the château Deepest moats in France | |||||
| 47.3531°N -0.4497°W | Tallest château in France | |||||
| 47.3911°N 0.9703°W | Property of Duke of Choiseul (1760–1785) | |||||
| 48.0708°N 1.3236°W | Property of Jean de Dunois (1439–1468) | |||||
| 47.4792°N 1.1819°W | Property of Catherine de' Medici (1550–1559) et Diane de Poitiers (1559–1566) | |||||
| 47.5003°N 1.4581°W | Inspiration for Hergé's Marlinspike Hall | |||||
| 47.41°N 0.9919°W | Home to Leonardo da Vinci (1516–1519) | |||||
| 46.7831°N 2.5042°W | Contains the famous Tour du Lion | |||||
| 47.2156°N 0.0622°W | Only Château in the Loire Valley constructed in the Loire riverbed Château de Montsoreau-Museum of Contemporary Art has the world's largest holding of Art & Language works[4] | |||||
| 47.0072°N 0.3258°W | Property of Cardinal Richelieu (1621-1642) | |||||
| 47.7678°N 2.3753°W | Property of Maximilien de Béthune, Duke of Sully (1602–1641) | |||||
| 47.2497°N 0.2911°W | Inspiration for Charles Perrault's Sleeping Beauty[5] | |||||
| 47.1575°N 1.5633°W | Property of Talleyrand (1803–1838) | |||||
| 47.3406°N 0.5142°W | Famous for its French formal gardens |