Château de Chenonceau transports you to the Renaissance-era
France with this charming setting and the romantic appeal that both the gardens
and the magnificent Cher River have to offer. Aside from being the second most visited chateau in France,
next to Versailles, Chenonceau was dubbed as the “ladies chateau,” thanks to
the many powerful women who played their role, not only in French history, but
also influenced the design and its destiny of Chenonceau.
Built by Katherine Briçonnet from 1515-1521, the chateau was
later given by Henri II to his mistress, the famous Diane de Poitiers. She
worked towards the creation of the extensive flower and vegetable gardens and
orchard. The area along the Cher was usually prone to flooding and so she had
stone terraces erected to protect her exquisite gardens of four triangles.
With the death of Henri II, his widow, Catherine de Medici
forced Diane to exchange it with Chateau Chaumont. Catherine de Medici spent a
fortune expanding the chateau, not to mention the lavish nighttime parties she
had thrown there. An ambitious plan to enlarge the chateau did not materialize,
but if it did, it could have looked like an enormous manor laid out "like
pincers around the existing buildings," very different to how it looks
like today.
The castle passed on the Catherine’s daughter-in-law, Louise
de Lorraine, who spent her days after the assassination of her husband, Henri
III. It was eventually acquired by Henri IV for his illegitimate son, the Duke
of Vendome, whose descendants retained ownership for the next 100 years until
the Duke of Bourbon purchased the property.
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| Chenonceau's view from the southeast. Image: Wikimedia Commons |
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| The Caryatids. They were originally located in the north facade but was moved to the park some time in 1875. Image: Wikimedia Commons |
In 1733, Chenonceau was acquired for 130,000 livres by
Claude Dupin, a wealthy squire. His Louise Dupin, was famous for being "an
intelligent, beautiful, and highly cultivated woman who had the theater in her
blood." Louise transformed Chenonceau as hub of some of the most popular
figures during the Enlightenment, like Voltaire, Montesquieu, and Fontenelle.
It was also because of Louise’s effort that the château was saved during the
French Revolution. When the Revolutionary Guard were about to destroy it, she
reasoned out that Chenonceau "it was essential to travel and commerce,
being the only bridge across the river for many miles."
In 1864, Chenonceau was acquired by Marguerite Pelouze who
commissioned architect Félix Roguet to restore it, refurbishing the interior
and eliminating most of Catherine de' Medici's additions. Thus, the rooms
between the library and the chapel and her alterations to the north façade were
cleared, including figures of Hercules, Pallas, Apollo, and Cybele.
Marguerite’s excessive spending, though, proved too much for her finances. The château
was forfeited and sold.
Chenonceau passed hands to many owners, was badly damaged
during World War II, until Bernard Voisin painstakingly worked hard to restore
the structure and the gardens back to its original grandeur.
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| The Gallery at Chenonceau. Image: Wikimedia Commons |
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| Diane de Poitiers' bedchamber. Image: Wikimedia Commons |
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| Francis I's drawing room. Image: Wikimedia Commons |
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| Catherine de Medici's bedchamber. Image: Wikimedia Commons |
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