Château de Blois
Encyclopedia
The Royal Château de Blois is located in the Loir-et-Cher
département in the Loire Valley
, in France, in the center of the city of Blois
. The residence of several French kings, it is also the place where Joan of Arc
went in 1429 to be blessed by the Archbishop of Reims
before departing with her army to drive the English
from Orléans
.
Built in the middle of the town that it effectively controlled, the château
of Blois
comprises several buildings constructed from the 13th to the 17th century around the main courtyard.
It has 564 rooms and 75 staircases although only 23 were used frequently. There is a fireplace in each room. There are 100 bedrooms.
room remaining. The room was used as a court of justice by the Counts of Blois, and was used in 1576 and 1588 for the "États Généraux".
; after Louis' assassination, his widow, Valentine de Milan, retired to this castle at Blois. It was later inherited by their son, Charles d'Orléans
the poet, who was taken prisoner at Agincourt
and spent twenty-five years as a hostage in England, before returning to his beloved Blois, which he partly rebuilt as a more commodious dwelling. It became the favourite royal residence and the political capital of the kingdom under Charles' son, King Louis XII
. At the beginning of the 16th century, the king initiated a reconstruction of the main block of the entry and the creation of an Italian garden in terraced parterre
s that occupied the present Place Victor Hugo and the site of the railway station. In 1890 the construction of the Avenue Victor Hugo destroyed the remainder of the gardens.
This wing, of red brick and grey stone, forms the main entrance to the château, and features a statue of the mounted king above the entrance. Although the style is principally Gothic
, as the profiles of mouldings, the lobed arches and the pinnacles attest, there are elements of Renaissance architecture
present, such as a small chandelier.
took power in 1515, his wife Queen Claude
had him refurbish Blois with the intention of moving to it from the Château d'Amboise
. Francis initiated the construction of a new wing and created one of the period's most important libraries in the castle. But, after the death of his wife in 1524, he spent very little time at Blois and the massive library was moved to the royal Château de Fontainebleau
where it was used to form the royal library that forms the core now of the Bibliothèque Nationale de France
.
In this wing, the architecture and ornamentation are marked by Italian influence. At the centre is the monumental spiral staircase, covered with fine bas-relief sculptures and looking out onto the château's central court. Behind this wing is the façade of the Loges, characterised by a series of disconnected niches.
, driven from Paris during the French Wars of Religion
, lived at Blois and held the Estates-General
convention there in 1576 and 1588. It was during this convention that the king had his arch-enemy, Henry I, Duke of Guise
, assassinated by the king's bodyguard known as "the Forty-five
", when the duke came to the Chateau for a meeting with Henri in December 1588. They also killed the Duke's brother Louis II, Cardinal of Guise
the following day in the dungeons.
, the first Bourbon monarch. On Henri's death in 1610, it became the place of exile for his widow, Marie de Medici, when she was expelled from the court of her son, Louis XIII.
gave the Château of Blois to his brother Gaston duc d'Orléans
as a wedding gift. In 1635 there was another attempt to develop the castle but on Gaston's death in 1660, it was abandoned. The task of developing this wing was given to François Mansart
, a well-known architect of the time. This wing makes up the rear wall of the court, directly opposite the Louis XII wing. The central section is composed of three horizontal layers where the superposition of Doric, Ionic and Corinthian orders can be seen.
By the time of the French Revolution
the immense castle had been neglected for more than one hundred and thirty years, and the revolutionaries, determined to wipe out any symbol of the old nobility while enriching themselves, ransacked the castle and stole many of its statues, royal emblems and coats of arms. In a state of near total disrepair it was scheduled to be demolished but was given a reprieve as a military barracks.
, the Château de Blois was classified as a historic monument. It was restored under the direction of the architect Felix Duban
, to whom is due the painted decoration on walls and beamed ceilings. The château was turned into a museum
. On view for visitors are the supposed poison cabinets of Catherine de' Medici
. Most likely this room, the "chamber of secrets", had a much more banal purpose: exhibiting precious objects for guests.
Today, the château is owned by the town of Blois
and is a tourist attraction.
Loir-et-Cher
Loir-et-Cher is a département in north-central France named after the rivers Loir and Cher.-History:Loir-et-Cher is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on 4 March 1790. It was created from parts of the former provinces of Orléanais and...
département in the Loire Valley
Loire Valley
The Loire Valley , spanning , is located in the middle stretch of the Loire River in central France. Its area comprises approximately . It is referred to as the Cradle of the French Language, and the Garden of France due to the abundance of vineyards, fruit orchards, and artichoke, asparagus, and...
, in France, in the center of the city of Blois
Blois
Blois is the capital of Loir-et-Cher department in central France, situated on the banks of the lower river Loire between Orléans and Tours.-History:...
. The residence of several French kings, it is also the place where Joan of Arc
Joan of Arc
Saint Joan of Arc, nicknamed "The Maid of Orléans" , is a national heroine of France and a Roman Catholic saint. A peasant girl born in eastern France who claimed divine guidance, she led the French army to several important victories during the Hundred Years' War, which paved the way for the...
went in 1429 to be blessed by the Archbishop of Reims
Archbishop of Reims
The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Reims is an archdiocese of the Latin Rite of the Roman Catholic Church in France. Erected as a diocese around 250 by St. Sixtus, the diocese was elevated to an archdiocese around 750...
before departing with her army to drive the English
Kingdom of England
The Kingdom of England was, from 927 to 1707, a sovereign state to the northwest of continental Europe. At its height, the Kingdom of England spanned the southern two-thirds of the island of Great Britain and several smaller outlying islands; what today comprises the legal jurisdiction of England...
from Orléans
Orléans
-Prehistory and Roman:Cenabum was a Gallic stronghold, one of the principal towns of the Carnutes tribe where the Druids held their annual assembly. It was conquered and destroyed by Julius Caesar in 52 BC, then rebuilt under the Roman Empire...
.
Built in the middle of the town that it effectively controlled, the château
Château
A château is a manor house or residence of the lord of the manor or a country house of nobility or gentry, with or without fortifications, originally—and still most frequently—in French-speaking regions...
of Blois
Blois
Blois is the capital of Loir-et-Cher department in central France, situated on the banks of the lower river Loire between Orléans and Tours.-History:...
comprises several buildings constructed from the 13th to the 17th century around the main courtyard.
It has 564 rooms and 75 staircases although only 23 were used frequently. There is a fireplace in each room. There are 100 bedrooms.
Counts of Blois
The "Salle des États Généraux", built in the beginning of the 13th century, is one of the oldest seignoral rooms preserved in France, and is also the largest remaining civilian GothicGothic architecture
Gothic architecture is a style of architecture that flourished during the high and late medieval period. It evolved from Romanesque architecture and was succeeded by Renaissance architecture....
room remaining. The room was used as a court of justice by the Counts of Blois, and was used in 1576 and 1588 for the "États Généraux".
Louis XII
The medieval castle was purchased in 1391 by Louis, duc d'Orléans, brother of Charles VICharles VI of France
Charles VI , called the Beloved and the Mad , was the King of France from 1380 to 1422, as a member of the House of Valois. His bouts with madness, which seem to have begun in 1392, led to quarrels among the French royal family, which were exploited by the neighbouring powers of England and Burgundy...
; after Louis' assassination, his widow, Valentine de Milan, retired to this castle at Blois. It was later inherited by their son, Charles d'Orléans
Charles d'Orléans
Charles d'Orléans may refer to one of the following:*Charles d'Orléans, Duke of Orléans son of Louis I, Duke of Orléans and Valentina Visconti;...
the poet, who was taken prisoner at Agincourt
Battle of Agincourt
The Battle of Agincourt was a major English victory against a numerically superior French army in the Hundred Years' War. The battle occurred on Friday, 25 October 1415 , near modern-day Azincourt, in northern France...
and spent twenty-five years as a hostage in England, before returning to his beloved Blois, which he partly rebuilt as a more commodious dwelling. It became the favourite royal residence and the political capital of the kingdom under Charles' son, King Louis XII
Louis XII of France
Louis proved to be a popular king. At the end of his reign the crown deficit was no greater than it had been when he succeeded Charles VIII in 1498, despite several expensive military campaigns in Italy. His fiscal reforms of 1504 and 1508 tightened and improved procedures for the collection of taxes...
. At the beginning of the 16th century, the king initiated a reconstruction of the main block of the entry and the creation of an Italian garden in terraced parterre
Parterre
A parterre is a formal garden construction on a level surface consisting of planting beds, edged in stone or tightly clipped hedging, and gravel paths arranged to form a pleasing, usually symmetrical pattern. Parterres need not have any flowers at all...
s that occupied the present Place Victor Hugo and the site of the railway station. In 1890 the construction of the Avenue Victor Hugo destroyed the remainder of the gardens.
This wing, of red brick and grey stone, forms the main entrance to the château, and features a statue of the mounted king above the entrance. Although the style is principally Gothic
Gothic architecture
Gothic architecture is a style of architecture that flourished during the high and late medieval period. It evolved from Romanesque architecture and was succeeded by Renaissance architecture....
, as the profiles of mouldings, the lobed arches and the pinnacles attest, there are elements of Renaissance architecture
Renaissance architecture
Renaissance architecture is the architecture of the period between the early 15th and early 17th centuries in different regions of Europe, demonstrating a conscious revival and development of certain elements of ancient Greek and Roman thought and material culture. Stylistically, Renaissance...
present, such as a small chandelier.
François I
When Francis IFrancis I of France
Francis I was King of France from 1515 until his death. During his reign, huge cultural changes took place in France and he has been called France's original Renaissance monarch...
took power in 1515, his wife Queen Claude
Claude of France
Claude of France was a princess and queen consort of France and ruling Duchess of Brittany. She was the eldest daughter of Louis XII of France and Anne, Duchess of Brittany....
had him refurbish Blois with the intention of moving to it from the Château d'Amboise
Château d'Amboise
The royal Château at Amboise is a château located in Amboise, in the Indre-et-Loire département of the Loire Valley in France.-Origins and royal residence:...
. Francis initiated the construction of a new wing and created one of the period's most important libraries in the castle. But, after the death of his wife in 1524, he spent very little time at Blois and the massive library was moved to the royal Château de Fontainebleau
Château de Fontainebleau
The Palace of Fontainebleau, located 55 kilometres from the centre of Paris, is one of the largest French royal châteaux. The palace as it is today is the work of many French monarchs, building on an early 16th century structure of Francis I. The building is arranged around a series of courtyards...
where it was used to form the royal library that forms the core now of the Bibliothèque Nationale de France
Bibliothèque nationale de France
The is the National Library of France, located in Paris. It is intended to be the repository of all that is published in France. The current president of the library is Bruno Racine.-History:...
.
In this wing, the architecture and ornamentation are marked by Italian influence. At the centre is the monumental spiral staircase, covered with fine bas-relief sculptures and looking out onto the château's central court. Behind this wing is the façade of the Loges, characterised by a series of disconnected niches.
Henry III
King Henry IIIHenry III of France
Henry III was King of France from 1574 to 1589. As Henry of Valois, he was the first elected monarch of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth with the dual titles of King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1573 to 1575.-Childhood:Henry was born at the Royal Château de Fontainebleau,...
, driven from Paris during the French Wars of Religion
French Wars of Religion
The French Wars of Religion is the name given to a period of civil infighting and military operations, primarily fought between French Catholics and Protestants . The conflict involved the factional disputes between the aristocratic houses of France, such as the House of Bourbon and House of Guise...
, lived at Blois and held the Estates-General
French States-General
In France under the Old Regime, the States-General or Estates-General , was a legislative assembly of the different classes of French subjects. It had a separate assembly for each of the three estates, which were called and dismissed by the king...
convention there in 1576 and 1588. It was during this convention that the king had his arch-enemy, Henry I, Duke of Guise
Henry I, Duke of Guise
Henry I, Prince of Joinville, Duke of Guise, Count of Eu , sometimes called Le Balafré, "the scarred", was the eldest son of Francis, Duke of Guise, and Anna d'Este...
, assassinated by the king's bodyguard known as "the Forty-five
The forty-five guards
The Forty-five guards were forty-five guards recruited by the Duke of Épernon to provide Henri III of France with trusted protection in the midst of the War of the Three Henrys....
", when the duke came to the Chateau for a meeting with Henri in December 1588. They also killed the Duke's brother Louis II, Cardinal of Guise
Louis II, Cardinal of Guise
Louis II, Cardinal of Guise was the third son of Francis, Duke of Guise and Anna d'Este. His maternal grandparents were Ercole d'Este II, Duke of Ferrara and Renée of France....
the following day in the dungeons.
Henry IV
After this, the castle was occupied by Henri IVHenry IV of France
Henry IV , Henri-Quatre, was King of France from 1589 to 1610 and King of Navarre from 1572 to 1610. He was the first monarch of the Bourbon branch of the Capetian dynasty in France....
, the first Bourbon monarch. On Henri's death in 1610, it became the place of exile for his widow, Marie de Medici, when she was expelled from the court of her son, Louis XIII.
Gaston d'Orléans
In 1626, King Louis XIIILouis XIII of France
Louis XIII was a Bourbon monarch who ruled as King of France and of Navarre from 1610 to 1643.Louis was only eight years old when he succeeded his father. His mother, Marie de Medici, acted as regent during Louis' minority...
gave the Château of Blois to his brother Gaston duc d'Orléans
Gaston, Duke of Orléans
Gaston of France, , also known as Gaston d'Orléans, was the third son of King Henry IV of France and his wife Marie de Medici. As a son of the king, he was born a Fils de France. He later acquired the title Duke of Orléans, by which he was generally known during his adulthood...
as a wedding gift. In 1635 there was another attempt to develop the castle but on Gaston's death in 1660, it was abandoned. The task of developing this wing was given to François Mansart
François Mansart
François Mansart was a French architect credited with introducing classicism into Baroque architecture of France...
, a well-known architect of the time. This wing makes up the rear wall of the court, directly opposite the Louis XII wing. The central section is composed of three horizontal layers where the superposition of Doric, Ionic and Corinthian orders can be seen.
By the time of the French Revolution
French Revolution
The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...
the immense castle had been neglected for more than one hundred and thirty years, and the revolutionaries, determined to wipe out any symbol of the old nobility while enriching themselves, ransacked the castle and stole many of its statues, royal emblems and coats of arms. In a state of near total disrepair it was scheduled to be demolished but was given a reprieve as a military barracks.
Preservation as a monument
In 1841, under the direction of King Louis-PhilippeLouis-Philippe of France
Louis Philippe I was King of the French from 1830 to 1848 in what was known as the July Monarchy. His father was a duke who supported the French Revolution but was nevertheless guillotined. Louis Philippe fled France as a young man and spent 21 years in exile, including considerable time in the...
, the Château de Blois was classified as a historic monument. It was restored under the direction of the architect Felix Duban
Félix Duban
Jacques Félix Duban was a French architect, the contemporary of Jacques Ignace Hittorff and Henri Labrouste.Duban won the Prix de Rome in 1823, the most prestigious award of the École des Beaux-Arts...
, to whom is due the painted decoration on walls and beamed ceilings. The château was turned into a museum
Museum
A museum is an institution that cares for a collection of artifacts and other objects of scientific, artistic, cultural, or historical importance and makes them available for public viewing through exhibits that may be permanent or temporary. Most large museums are located in major cities...
. On view for visitors are the supposed poison cabinets of Catherine de' Medici
Catherine de' Medici
Catherine de' Medici was an Italian noblewoman who was Queen consort of France from 1547 until 1559, as the wife of King Henry II of France....
. Most likely this room, the "chamber of secrets", had a much more banal purpose: exhibiting precious objects for guests.
Today, the château is owned by the town of Blois
Blois
Blois is the capital of Loir-et-Cher department in central France, situated on the banks of the lower river Loire between Orléans and Tours.-History:...
and is a tourist attraction.
External links
- A gallery of over 100 high resolutions images of the Chateau de Blois taken in 2009 http://www.flickr.com/photos/stephenbove/sets/72157619615264508/