A Land of Kings and Royalty

• The Loire Valley traverses two French regions. Centre [Region 6] and Pays de la Loire [Region 18].
• The Loire Valley  is also known as Chateaux de la Loire.
• What is a Chateau?  Wherever the Romans established themselves they fortified their cities by building a wall around them for protection from their enemies.

Amboise

• The history of the château
• Photos of the château
• The official site of The Royal Château Amboise,. And,  what you see is just a small portion of what the Château was at one time.  Le Clos Luce a residence where Leonardo da Vinci stayed until he died. This photo is not the residence, but rather the chapel. This is Leonardo's Clos Luce and information site
• The town of Amboise Val de Loire
• Discover the Renaissance Spectacle
• The history of the Château and the town

Angers

• The history of the château
• Photos of the château
• Château Angers Information Site
• The town of Angers and it's history and it's Tourisme Office
• A panoramic view of the chateau and surrounding community of Angers.
• Angers is a very impressive architecturally, as well as aesthetically, the governments site on Monuments and 'Le Chateau d'Angers'.
• From Wikipedia - Chateau Angers, a good information site!

Azay-le-Rideau

• The history of the château of azay le rideau
• Photos of the château
• The official website for Azay-le-Rideau.  This is a private château, but one of the more beautiful ones, with some great photos.
• Wikipedia's information on the beautiful Azay-le-Rideau on the Indre River.

Blois

• The history of the château de blois
• Photos, or castle pics, of the chateau de blois
• The Châteaux de Blois and museum, spectacular photos of château, and the village of Blois where you can walk the streets for pedestrians only
• Virtual visit to Château de Blois - remarkable architectural design
• Wikipedia on The Château de Blois with some architectural and historical information.
• This photo of the spiral staircase shows the truly amazing & elaborate renaissance designs that this chateau is known for. There are many different architectural styles as they added on to the chateau. Catherine de Medici occupied Blois at the end of the 16th century.
• From Castles photos, you'll also see the magnificent equestrian statue of Louis XII on the palace facade [this being Gothic styling].
• A personal site on the château with some great photos.  Again, the architecture of Blois is truly magnificent!

Chambord

• The history of the château
• Photos of the château
• This is one of the most visited & beautiful Château in France, it is truly amazing and not to be missed in touring the Loire Valley. With it's double staircase inside the castle where men could ride the horses up and down the two stairs without seeing each other! With just a mere 440 rooms, and 365 chimneys this is where the Royalty spent a few weekends a year to hunt!
• A virtual visit of Chambord
• Discovering Chambord
• The National Nature Preserve on the estate of Chambord
• The Royal Chateau Chambord from Wikipedia
• Truly a huge fairy tale castle
• Another Chambord site with lots of photos.

Chantilly [Institute de France] and Museum

• The history of the château
• Chateau de Chantilly [Musee Conde] with complete visitors information, and much more
• Les Clouet of the Queen Catherine of Médicis
  Virtual visit of the museum
• Chateau de Chantilly and some history
• Chantilly Lace made famous by Elvis's song, is the silk lace dating from the 18th century.
• Photos of Chantilly
• Photos of Chantilly
• Le Nôtre

Chaumont [also known as Chaumont-Amboise]

• The Château de Chaumont in 1560 became the property of Catherine de Medici [another chateau for Catherine] who in turn forced Diane de Portiers to exchange Chaumont for Chenonceaux.after King Henri II's death.
• The village of Chaumont
• Wikipedia's information on Chaumont, a beautiful fairytale castle.
• Château de Chaumont
• The Festival International des Jardins de Chaumont-sur-Loire

Chenonceaux, le Chateau des Dames

• The history of the château
• Photos of the château
• I believe it's unanimous, this is the most beautiful of the Loire Valley Châteaux, Château de Chenonceaux. The chateau was used during WW I as a hospital, it's owner at the time was Mr. Gaston Menier who did this at his own expense. This château was given to Diane de Poitiers by by King Henri II [she was his lady on the side] and then Catherine de Médici took it over.  Her influence on the Château, as well as several of the other chateaux of royalty, was truly spectacular. This is one you do not want to miss on your tour through the Loire Valley. Chenonceaux is privately owned, and truly wonderful to visit. The stories of the goings on of the Royalty were truly 'Royal' soap-operas.
• The gardens of Chenonceaux [Diane de Poitier's influence] and the wines from the estate as well as a charming hotel/restaurant
• The tourist offfice of Chenonceaux
• Another good information site on Chenonceaux.
• Some architectural information
• The Loire Valley online with more photos and information

Cheverny

• The history of the château
• Photos of the château
• Château-Cheverny, this is a privately owned chateau, and has been lived in by the descendants of the Hurault family [marquis de Vibraye] for over 6 centuries.
• The park of Cheverny
• A virtual visit to Cheverny
• A good information site on Cheverny as well as lots of photos
• The annual marathon [ASJ Athletisme] at Cheverny.

Fontainebleau

• The history of the Château Fontainebleau
• Photos of the château
• The National Museum and Château of Fontainebleau
• Le Chateau de Fontainebleau This is a non-official Fontainebleau site, but has a great deal of  information on the history and all facets of Fontainebleau.
• The click on virtual panoramic visit to the chateau and gardens, c'est magnifique!
• A great historical information site
• Fontainebleau, Forêt d'émotions
• Garden information
• Fontainebleau Tourism Office, and local events & activities
• Concerts and festivals at Fontainebleau
• Architectural information on Fontainebleau
• More photos for you to enlarge
• Le Nôtre

Mont St. Michel

• The history of the Abbaye Mont Saint Michel
• Photos of the château

Usse

• The history of the château
• Château d'Usse, in the Indre Valley, was originally a fortress from the 11th century.  After the main part of the building was destroyed, the château was rebuilt during the late 15th into the 16th century.  The château was added onto through the centuries, turning it into the fairytale castle of today.  Charles Perrault bought Usse [the chateau of dreams] in the 17th century, and supposedly was inspired to write the classic 'Sleeping Beauty' [and all of his other fairy tales].  This is 'The Castle of Sleeping Beauty' fame, and some of the decor inside reflects the fable.
• Visitors Information and Château's site
• A nice information site on Usse, however rumor has it that Disney used Mad Ludwig's favorite castle Neuschwanstein [photo] that sits on top of a mountain over looking a lake [website] as inspiration for Cinderella's Castle.
• More information on Sleeping Beauty's castle
• The virtual visit to Usse
• The gardens of Usse
• A travel guides information & history of Usse.
• A biography of Charles Perrault, Charles Perrault's Mother Goose Tales

Vaux-le-Vicomte

• The Château Vaux-le-Vicomte's History
• Vaux-le-Vicomte,the first French Gardens
• Vaux-le-Vicomte's History
• Photos of the Château
• Map with complete information   Calendar for 2006 information
• Andre le Notre [André le Nôtre], designed the gardens of Vaux-le-Vicomte, then on the Versailles and the list goes on....Andre Le Norte was the supreme architect of châteaux gardens

Versailles Palace

• The history of the château
• Pictures of Palace Of Versaille
• Official site for the Palace of Versailles
• The town of Versaille
• The official tourism site for Versaille
• Photos of Versaille from George d'Alba
• What's happening in Versaille
• Tourist office for Versaille
• The park and gardens of Versaille just beautiful, a great site!
• Le Nôtre

Villandry

• The history of the château
• Photos of the château
• The Château de Villandry is known for it's magnificent gardens.  There isn't much left of the Chateau itself, only the keep, but the gardens are some of the most noted in France and the world.
• The village of Villandry and it's tourism information with events and happenings.
• The gardens and Château de Villandry with some history
• The virtual visit to Villandry.

Chateaux for Rent or Sale is directed towards Château owners in the French speaking countries of Belgium, France, Luxembourg and Switzerland.  This is a great source to take advantage of! Château Advertising Information.  Do you have a château that you would like to rent, lease or sell?  Or, perhaps you have a business housed in a château [such as a B&B, an art school, cooking school, language school, etc.] you would like to advertise.  If so, we have the perfect way for you to advertise, with several great programs!  Sign up your chateau now.  
 

                                               ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Other Chateaux Links to visit include Medieval and Architectural Information

Chateaux Architectural and Parts Lexique and Coats of Arms
La Passion des Chateaux is dedicated to historical chateaux around France, but primarily focuses on the Puy-de-Dome area of Auvergne.  From the evolution of the chateau, architectural terms for the different parts of a chateau, as well as the Coat of Arms explanations and much more. You can view the chateaux here.

Châteaux Foundations [Fondation du Patrimoine] [for the Protection of Historic Monuments]
For Fondation information, click on this page, et La Protection des Monuments Historiques links click here.  For information regarding Restoration, you find the information here.
La Demeure Historique [DH] Association for Owners of Private Historic Monuments
UEHHA  the Union of European Historic Houses Association in France
VMF Les Vielles Maisons Française

Châteaux Information Sites
An individuals website on castles. These châteaux are not as well known to visitors, and the site is not exclusive to French chateaux, you'll get to view the other countries castles if you like. However, the photos and information is great!
Castleland Regional Map of Medieval Châteaux  and Directory by Department, this is a great site with all the contact information as well as links to many of the châteaux associations.
Castles France Châteaux de la Loire
Castles of the world - [huge portail] contains a large collection of castle related information for France and around the world.
Chateau and gardens, drive through wildlife park, in Thoiry-en-Yveline
Châteaux Celtes et Chimères portail with A to T information on medieval times, history, tales myths, legends significant dates and events
Loire Valley Tours website, the virtual visit. Start at Amboise and click on next monument below each château, it will take you alphabetically through all the major châteaux of the Loire Valley. We've already put some of the chateaux on this page, but take a trip to see the rest.  Really nice!.
Pandora Enchanting Castles [Belgium Chateaux Information]  with information by Province

Medieval Châteaux Pictures
Medieval Castles Pictures

The Great Walled Cities [Fortresses] of France

Avignon Avignon France and the Palais de Papes
The official history information for Avignon
Tourism office of Avignon
Information for Avignon

Carcassonne
The grandest walled city of them all is Carcassonne [ancient medieval city].  A Unesco World Heritage site.
Official Tourisme Office in Carcassonne with happenings & events in the medieval city        http://whc.unesco.org/sites/345.htm
A nice information site on Carcassonne, and very impressive night photo of it.
The Cathars from this time period and some information from a visiting writer
Tourism office of Carcassonne

Chinon
Offiical Tourism site for Chinon - Chinon was included in the French royal estates in 1205, this is a very nice site! Be sure and go through the links.
Château de Chinon, the Medieval Fortress in the Loire Valley, and where Charles VII first met Joan of Arc. With photos and a lot of historical information.

Swiss Chateaux
Chateaux listings in Switzerland link.

 

Advertise With us - Advertising Options - Click Here