Châteaux de la Loire 3: Chambord

Chambord was our final destination and it was by far the most impressive building I have ever seen. It is 156 meters long (512 ft), 56 meters high (184 ft), and has 426 rooms, 282 chimneys and 77 staircases—over one room for each day of the year—and its park and game reserve are surrounded by France’s longest wall (30 kilometers or 18.5 miles).

Chambord’s exterior and double helix staircase were jaw-droppingly stunning. Some people believe that Leonardo da Vinci is responsible for designing the staircase, though it has never been confirmed. But I have to say the most marvelous feature was the roof. Walking around the roof was like stepping into another city. As you can see from the skyline of the château, the roof really does resemble a small village placed on top of a building.

The interior was also impressive and many of the fireplaces were actually lit. (Thank goodness! It would have been absolutely freezing without those fires because it had just gotten colder on account of the rain.) My favorite room here was the Apartment de Parade. The furnishings were sumptuous and the gold ornamentation emblazoned on the white walls was spectacular.

The carriage rooms displayed five or six different carriages as well as a gargantuan clock that used to be on the façade of the building. There was also a special exhibit on Chambord as a hostage of war from 1939-1945. It was during World War II that art collections from the Louvre and other museums were stored at Chambord.

When I say this castle was incredible, it was. And the most incredible thing is that it was only a hunting lodge. A hunting lodge?! You’ve got to be kidding me. Seriously, this architectural monster was definitely not my idea of a quaint hunting lodge, but then, I’m not King Francis I. In 1519, Francis I decided he wanted something in the Italian Renaissance style and decided to convert Chambord from the medieval fortress it was, into what it is now. He never saw his project completed (and during his 32 year reign, he stayed at Chambord a grand total of 72 days), but his son King Henry II, who was an equally passionate hunter, transformed it into what it is today. I also thought it was neat that the exiled King of Poland, Stanislaus Leszczynski lived here from 1725 to 1733, but that’s mostly because he’s Polish and so am I.

Even though I thought Chambord was the most beautiful architecturally, I have to say that my favorite of the three châteaux was definitely Chenonceau. It would absolutely be my first recommendation to anyone wondering which castle they should visit. My second pick would be Chambord because it was beautiful, but I felt it lacked a soul, if that makes sense. We took a vote on the bus and one person liked Azay-le-Rideau best, about 15 liked Chenonceau and the rest, about 44, liked Chambord.

At this point, it’s possible you may be wondering what I think of the Château d’Angers now that I’ve seen some truly exquisite castles. I can happily tell you that the Château d’Angers still remains one of my favorites. Of course, it was my first castle sighting and I still think it’s beautiful for the raw power its walls suggest. And unlike the other castles, it best served its intended purpose which was to keep invaders out. (I still can’t get over the fact that Chambord was intended to be a hunting lodge.)

These were truly chouettes châteaux.

Heidi

P.S. Chouette means cool, great or neat.

Châteaux de la Loire 2: Chenonceau

Second on the list was Chenonceau. Chenonceau is definitely the castle I would pick to live in; it was by far the most comfortable and the grounds were the prettiest. It is known as the Châteaux des Dames, or Ladies’ Castle, for all the queens and mistresses who have lived there. Really I’m not being sexist or anything, but I think you can tell that a woman had a hand in its design because it doesn’t dominate the landscape like other castles I’ve seen. Rather, its situation on the Cher River, a tributary of the Loire, creates a harmony between the breathtaking splendor of the castle and its natural surroundings.

Leading up to the castle is a long driveway, with trees on either side of the road. The grounds include two gardens on each side of the château, one designed by Diane de Poitiers, the other by Catherine de Medici, as well as an old 16th century farm, wax museum, labyrinth, caryatides and chapel. Inside, the many rooms house numerous paintings by Reubens, Riguad, Tintoretto, Van Dyck, Van Loo, Veronese, Poussin, hundreds of ancient tapestries and grand furniture. Truly, the interior was unparalleled in beauty.

Each of the rooms are named after its occupants. The most famous of these rooms is the Chamber of Five Queens and its inhabitants were the daughters and grand-daughters of Catherine de Medici: Queen Margaret (wife of Henry IV), Elizabeth of France (wife of Philip II of Spain), Mary Stuart (wife of Francois II), Elizabeth of Austria (wife of Charles IX), and Louise of Lorraine (wife of Henry III).

Another of the rooms was outfitted entirely in black after Louise of Lorraine was widowed. The only disappointment during the entire day was that the façade was being renovated: The château would have been even more remarkable had it not been under construction.

The most fascinating thing about this castle was its history. It was constructed in the 16th century by Thomas Bohier and his wife Katherine Briçonnet. Then, it was given by King Henry II to his mistress, Diane de Poitiers, who was 20 years his senior. However, Henry II was married to Catherine de Medici who was obviously annoyed by her husband’s favoritism because after his death she forced Diane to give her the castle, even though Diane and Catherine are actually descended from the same family.

Gabrielle d’Estrees, mistress of Henry IV, the king who declared “Paris is worth a mass,” was also mistress of Chenonceau. During the Enlightenment, Madame Louise Dupin became its mistress and entertained famous philosophers like Voltaire, Montesquieu, and Rousseau. Madame Dupin also saved the chapel from destruction during the French Revolution by turning it into a wood store and is said to have changed the castle’s name by dropping the royal “x” at the end of “Chenonceaux” to please the local villagers.

During World War I, Chenonceau became a hospital ward and during World War II, it was the divide between Nazi territory and the “free” Vichy zone. In 1988, Prince Charles and Lady Diana stayed here for a time. With that said, I think that Châteaux des Dames is a very fitting title for Chenonceau.

Châteaux de la Loire 1: Azay-le-Rideau

Today I learned that the Châteaux of the Loire are famous for good reason. And hopefully by the end of this three part blog, you’ll have discovered that too.

Around eight this morning we set off down the longest river in France, the Loire—the scenic route to our three destinations: Azay-le-Rideau, Chenonceau and Chambord. Monsieur Melin was once again our commentator and he pointed out to us the many features of the Loire. We went through Saumur which is home to lots of mushrooms and one of the world’s finest cavalry training centers.

As we continued along, we saw the troglodytes (houses built into the cliffside), the place where Rabelais was born (near Chinon, where in 1429, Joan of Arc convinced the Dauphin to claim his throne. The Royal Fortress of Chinon was also the home of Cardinal Richelieu.) and Balzac’s house. I learned that whenever Balzac wanted peace and quiet away from the hustle and bustle of Paris, he had to take a train to Tours and then walk three hours to get home. I learned that the banks of the Loire, like the tides at Mont St Michel, are very dangerous because of the quicksand. Apparently, when the river bank collapses it forms a whirlpool which sucks the swimmer inside. We were told that in a single afternoon, seventeen children died. Ok, so that isn’t very nice to hear, but it is interesting and it should warn you never to swim in the Loire.

We traversed the roads with some minor difficulties (coach buses were not meant for country roads and narrow French streets). We saw the château de Menars (Madame Pompadour’s favorite castle) and an enormous stone bridge, across from the city La Chaussée de Saint-Victor, which had not been repaired since being bombed during World War I. All total, I saw at least 9 castles: Saumur, Montsoreau, Chinon, Azay-le-Rideau, Artigny, Chenonceau, Cheverny, Chambord, and Menars.

Le Château d’Azay-le-Rideau was first on our list. It was the smallest castle of the day (the only one I could actually walk around) and most of it was inaccessible to the public. It was once a fort, but was turned into a castle in 1510. Unlike Chenonceau and Chambord, it is not a royal residence because it was never owned by the crown, though King Louis XIII once stayed there. Even though we couldn’t see a lot of the castle, my favorite room of the entire day was located at Azay-le-Rideau. It was the billiard and card room and it immediately reminded me of the board game Clue.

Not Quite Singing in the Rain

Today it was rainy, as it was yesterday; in fact, yesterday it hailed. Anyway, I had socio-cultural studies from 10-12 today and since my art history class at 1:30 was cancelled and I didn’t have class till 5, I went back to the Foyer. At 4:30 I had to return to school and by then it was pouring when it hadn’t been earlier. Somehow I didn’t realized it was raining and I ended up going out without a hood or umbrella (actually I really don’t like umbrellas and don’t own one so that wouldn’t have mattered). But by forgetting a hood, I rediscovered how much I love the feel of rain on my face. I’d forgotten what it felt like—not caring about my disheveled and wet appearance and allowing the weather to have its way with my hair. I found myself smiling up at the sky and then I realized people might be watching so I tucked my smile inside me. That was until I saw a little boy running, hand in hand with his grandmother, towards me down the pavement. He had, clutched between his body and arm, an enormous baguette. And that’s when my smile came out and wouldn’t go away. For a good twenty minutes I smiled the whole rest of the way, not caring what people thought. The rain was just so beautiful; I just couldn’t contain my sense of joy and contentment. It made me think of Singing in the Rain, which is one of my favorite films and oh man did I feel like dancing in the rain, but I restrained myself, barely. I actually saw Adam on my way back and as I’d been smiling foolishly for a while I buoyantly yelled across the street how much I liked the rain. And he shouted back how much he detested it. Needless to say, it was a great day.

The episode with the rain and the little boy reminds me that a couple weeks ago (jeez I can’t believe it’s that long ago already) I was walking down the street and there was a mother with four little girls (I’m going to assume that they weren’t all hers since three of them looked about the same age.) Anyway three of the little girls, who were probably about five years old, would run on ahead of me, hide behind a niche in the wall or a doorway and then giggle and pop out when their mother came by. By then I would have passed them, but as soon as they popped out they’d come running past me again and do the same thing all over again. I can’t even recall how many times they did this before our paths diverged. But it made me smile. I love little kids and their infinite ability to take pleasure in the simplest things. And I love that they act the same in both the US and France.

The rain also brings to mind a certain event that I always associate with rain and clouds and sunshine. One of the most beautiful things in the entire world happens when there are clouds in the sky and you look toward the sun and suddenly the sky opens up and you can just see the rays of golden light pouring from the heavens. The French have a word for this: éclaircie. I think this is one of the most beautiful French words I know. French is already a very pretty language, but this word in particular strikes me as beautiful, which is fitting since its meaning is so beautiful. As a side note, this is also a feminine word and WordReferenc.com translates it as “sunny spell,” but it is really much more than that.

Since this entry has turned into a meteorological report, I might as well mention that you can really see the stars here. Not that you can’t in Irvine or North Andover, but the smog blocks a lot of the light and there’s a lot less smog here. And there aren’t quite as many street lights to interfere with celestial light. I have to say I prefer the night skies over here.

Good night! Or good morning! Wherever you are…
Heidi