Chateau's de Cheverny and de Chambord 05/15.2024

Today winds up our tour of the homes of the rich and famous. As previously mentioned there are over 1,000 chateaus within driving range of where we are. We selected 5 and were not dissapointed.

I will start off with Chateau de Cheverney. This castle has a long history. There are two things about this property that is of interest. Henry Le Mareschau owned Cheverny in 1315. Jean Huralts bought the property with its "house, presses and vineyards ", in the late 14th century. The chateau was built in the beginning of the 16th century. The estate has been in the same family for more than 6 centuries. It slipped out of the Huralts' hands twice, in the 16th century when Diane Poitier bought it. She decided she did not want it, and the Huralts bought it back. The second time was in the 18th century when the heirs lost interest. Ann-Victor Huralt bought it back in 1825. Today the Hurault descendants maintain a residence in the right wing of the castle. It was opened to the public in 1914. Another interesting part of Cheverny you don't want to miss is the Kennels. They house about 100 French hounds. Feeding time always gathered a crowd of watchers. These hounds are well trained. They would stand back together, while the hounds keeper would distribute their food. When the signal was given to eat, they moved at the same time to enjoy their meal. Unfortunately, the vocal minority felt it was inhumane to feed the dogs in front of the public, so this activity was stopped. Now the dogs eat in private, and the public misses out on a treat.

Chateau de Chambord was the last castle on our list. Chambord was built as a hunting lodge for King Francis I. This castle reminds me of something out of Disney World. It is unlike any hunting lodge I have ever seen or heard of. It is the largest chateau in the Loire Valley. It has 440 rooms and 365 fireplaces. It is Royal Opulance on display. Originally designed to be a simple hunting lodge, through the ages and an unlimited budget, the size of the hunting lodge grew until it was six times as large as most of the chateus in the Loire Valley. Construction began in 1518 and it took 1800 workmen 15 years to complete it. Francis I's living quarters and the Queen's bedchamber is available for viewing. 80 of the 440 rooms are accessible. Architects worldwide have spent countless hours studying the architecture of this structure. The castle was bought by the state in 1930. Today it is a very popular destination for the tourist.

Chateau de Chambord

Chambord served as a repositary location for the art and historical artifacts of France in WWII. In 1939 as war was looming, the Paris museums starting relocating their inventories to Chambord. Here they remained until the end of the war. This is a story in itself.