Page 292 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - France

THE CREATION OF
CHENONCEAU
The women who lived
at Chenonceau each
left their mark on it.
Catherine Briçonnet,
wife of the first owner,
EXPERIENCE The Loire Valley staircases in France.
commissioned the tur­
reted pavil ion and one
of the first straight
Henri II’s mist ress,
Diane de Poitiers,
added the formal gar­
dens and arched bridge
over the river; the
bridge was turned into
an Italian­style gallery
by Catherine de’ Medici.
Louise de Lorraine,
bereaved wife of Henri
III, painted the ceiling
of her bed chamber
black and white. In
1863, Madame Pelouze
undertook a complete The Château de Chenonceau
restoration in 1863. reflected in the limpid
waters of the River Cher

2 "'\=
CHÂTEAU DE

CHENONCEAU

! D3 ⌂ Chenonceaux £ Chenonceaux @ From Tours # Sep–Jun: 9:30am–
5pm daily; Jul & Aug: 9am–7:30pm ∑ chenonceau.com
A romantic pleasure palace, Chenonceau was first built during the
Renaissance and subsequently expanded and improved by a series
of aristocratic women. A magnificent avenue bordered by plane trees
leads to symmetrical gardens and the serene vision that Flaubert
praised as “floating on air and water”.
The château’s distinctive feature is its Florentine-style 60-m
(197-ft) gallery built over a series of arches, its elegant beauty INSIDER TIP
reflected in the languid waters of the River Cher. The grandeur Promenades
continues inside with splendidly furnished rooms, airy bed- Nocturnes
chambers and a wonderful collection of fine paintings and In July and August the
tapestries. The main living area was in the square-shaped grounds are lit up at
turreted pavilion built over the foundations of an old water mill night (9–11:30pm) and
in the middle of the River Cher. Four principal rooms open off visitors can take a stroll
the Vestibule on the ground floor: the Salle des Gardes and the through the illuminated
Chambre de Diane de Poitiers, both hung with 16th-century gardens to the stirring
Flemish tapestries; the Chambre de François I, with a Van Loo sound of music by great
painting; and the Salon Louis XIV. On the first floor, reached Classical composers,
via the Italianate staircase, are other sumptuous apartments, from Handel to Corelli.
including the Chambre de Catherine de’ Médici.
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