Chenonceau Castle (/ ʃənõ'so /) is a castle located near Chenonceaux in the Indre-et-Loire department in the Loire Valley in France. It has been classified as a Historical Monument of France since 1840 (the park since 1962).
The Loire Valley is one of the best places in the world to see castles.
There are many and all of them could compete in beauty, grandeur and, of course, luxury, to aim for the top spot. But this time we opted for the Chenonceau castle.
All that remains of the original medieval fortification is the Tower of Marques, while the rest was built in the early 16th century in a lavish style more appropriate for the times. The Castle of Chenonceau is known as "The Castle of the Women." Diana de Poitiers, Louise of Lorraine and Catherine de 'Medici stayed there.
Originally on the estate where the present castle was located there was a manor which was burned by the royal troops in 1411 to punish the owner, Jean Marques, accused of a conspiracy. In 1430 Marques rebuilt the castle together with a fortified mill but his heir, heavily indebted, in 1513 sold the castle to Thomas Bohier, treasurer of the kings Charles VIII, Louis XII and Francis I. Bohier destroyed all the existing and ruined buildings except the lookout tower and between 1515 and 1521 he built a new castle for his wife, Catherine Briçonnet, who used to entertain the French nobility and on two occasions also hosted King Francis I.
On the death of Bohier (1524) and his wife (1526), ​​his son Antoine had to surrender the castle to the crown to pay his father's debts. He took possession of the castle the governor of Montmorency in the name of King Francis I engaged in those years in the construction of the castle of Chambord.
His successor, Henry II, offered the castle as a gift to her lover, Diana of Poitiers, in 1551 she became Duchess of Valentinois and acquired ownership of the castle, she too became one of the most influential women of the time .
Diane de Poitiers is largely responsible for the current structure of the castle, she was in fact the construction of the bridge over the river.
She also had beautiful gardens built along the banks of the river.
Chenonceau Castle
Address: 37150
Phone: +33 820 20 90 90
Site:
https://www.chenonceau.com/Location inserted by
giulia