1. Amboise, town2. Château Gaillard, Amboise3. Tours, town45. Royal Château of Blois6. Château de Chenonceau7. Château de Nitray, Athée-sur-Cher8. Château d’Azay-le-Rideau9. Château de Chambord10. St. Anne's Collegiate Church, château, Ussé11. St. John the Baptist Collegiate Church, Montrésor12. Jehan de Seigné Chapel, Bléré13. Town hall, Beaugency14. Château de Villesavin, Tour-en-Sologne15. Château de l’Islette, Cheillé – Azay-le-Rideau16. Loches, town17. Château de Villandry18. Château de La Côte, Reugny19. Sainte-Chapelle, Champigny-sur-Veude20. Royal Abbey of Fontevraud, the Grand Moûtier and the Chapter House21. Le Rivau, stables of the château, Lémeré
Royal Château of Amboise
The imposing château overlooking the town of Amboise is situated at the western end of a promontory on the left bank of the Loire. It has been inhabited since Neolithic times and was fortified during the Middle Ages. Charles VII, the first king to reside in the Loire Valley, recovered it in retribution for a plot against him, and moved there with his court. The château then became a royal residence.
During the 1490s Charles VIII stayed there regularly. He had apartments built with openwork façades, as well as some halls and two towers called "Minimes" and "Hurtault". Each tower contained a vaulted spiral ramp to provide easier access on horseback. St. Hubert's Chapel, built directly into the ramparts, is a masterpiece in the late Gothic style. The terraced gardens of Italian inspiration overlook the Loire. Charles VIII was the first of the kings fighting wars in Italy to conquer Naples, which became his legacy. In 1499 he returned to France with artists and architects, such as Domenico da Cortona and Pacello da Mercogliano. Mercogliano, the "architect of gardens", was one of the first in the king's court to produce works in the spirit of the Renaissance.
Louis XII moved to the Château of Blois, but continued to expand and enhance his château in Amboise. He sent Louise de Savoie to live there with her children, Margaret and Francis of Angoulême, the future King Francis I. Francis was quite attached to the château of his childhood and continued the construction work started by his predecessor. The architectural style of the building perpendicular to the Loire is Gothic, but the harmony of the bays and the order of the pilasters herald the arrival of the Renaissance. Leonardo da Vinci, an artist much favoured by the king, died in Amboise in 1519 and was buried in St. Hubert's Chapel.
In the 1530s the court began to spend more time in Paris, and the château was no longer really used as a royal residence. In the 19th century most of the structures were dismantled. The quarter that remains today gives us an idea of its former magnitude.
The Château d'Amboise strongly marked the history of France in the 16th century. The royal presence confirmed that the region was part of the kingdom, which had been devastated during the Hundred Years' War between the French and the English. Through this presence, the Loire Valley became the epicentre of the kingdom. The château also witnessed the grand welcome given to Charles V in 1539, the details of which have been revealed in the writings of various historians of the time.
The Château d'Amboise then experienced spectacular growth, becoming one of the first homes to integrate Italy's artistic influences. A haven for the new style, the château received many artists as guests, the most famous of whom was Leonardo da Vinci. He organised parties there and presented his mechanical inventions. Similarly, Amboise also became a meeting place for alternative ideas. In the religious history of France, the Affair of the Placards in 1534 led to a change in policy from being tolerant towards the Reformation to being more repressive. This affair is considered to foreshadow the wars of religion in France.
