Unterwegs

Sights

Blois Castle

Built: 13th to 17th centuries.

Style: Gothic.

History: The Royal Château of Blois offers a magnificent overview of the art and history of the Loire Valley châteaux. Its four wings, surrounding the courtyard, provide a unique example of the evolution of French architecture from the 13th to the 17th centuries. The building thus evokes the destinies of seven kings and ten queens of France. In the 9th century, the promontory overlooking the town and the Loire was occupied by a fortress and a count’s palace. From the year 1000 onwards, the Counts of Blois erected a tower and new buildings, which were regularly extended. Of the medieval period, the château retains only 13th-century structures: the great hall, part of the rampart and three towers in the François I wing, as well as the Foix Tower. From 1498 onwards, Louis XII transformed the fortress into a Gothic urban palace, featuring, on the courtyard side, a gallery alternating between pillars and columns leading to two stair towers. On the square side, the long brick façade houses the king’s equestrian statue. Today, the Louis XII wing houses the Museum of Fine Arts.

In 1515, François I undertook his first building project by constructing a building inspired by the Italian Renaissance. On the courtyard side, the majestic façade features a central staircase whose massive buttresses contrast with the lightness of the windows. The exterior façade is modelled on the loggias built by Bramante at the Vatican. Gaston, Duke of Orléans, brother of King Louis XIII, decided in 1634 to build an entirely new château. He chose the architect François Mansart, who erected a main building at the far end of the courtyard, which was intended to be the first phase of an ambitious reconstruction project. Work on the project was halted in 1638 following the birth of the king’s son, which removed Gaston from the line of succession and deprived him of funding. This main building foreshadowed the style of Versailles: columns, pilasters, capitals and pediments pay homage to Greek architecture. Inside, the vault, adorned with trophies and masks and surmounted by a dome, is particularly spectacular.

Listing: listed as a Historic Monument in 1840.

Blois Museum of Fine Arts

Opened: 1869

History and features: the first floor of the Louis XII wing has housed the Blois Museum of Fine Arts since 1869. The current exhibition is designed to complement a tour of the apartments in the François I wing, which showcase the château’s royal past and court life. Among the thousands of works donated by collectors and artists or acquired by the museum over the years, more than 300 of the most remarkable paintings, sculptures and works of art are on display, grouped by theme. The gallery’s eight rooms display a selection of paintings and sculptures dating from the 16th to the 19th century. The gallery also houses a collection of French and Flemish tapestries from the 16th and 17th centuries. The portrait gallery contains 16th- and 17th-century paintings from the châteaux of Saint-Germain-Beaupré and Beauregard: Madame de Noailles, the Duke of Chevreuse, the Grande Mademoiselle, the Duchess of Beaufort, Anne of Austria and Marie de’ Medici (after Rubens) are on display there. In a room dedicated to the 17th and 18th centuries, a series of fifty terracotta medallions by Jean-Baptiste Nini is preserved.

Designation: Musée de France.

Blois Town Hall

Built: 18th century.

Architect: Jacques V Gabriel.

Style: Classical.

History: Blois Town Hall is situated behind Saint-Louis Cathedral. It occupies the buildings of the former episcopal palace, built by the king’s architect Jacques V Gabriel, who was also responsible for the central bridge in Blois. In 1700, with the plans finalised, work began. The bishop moved into his residence in 1704. Alexandre de Lauzières-Thémines (1776–1791) established an art collection and a library within the bishop’s palace, which would later form part of the municipal library’s collection. He was forced into exile in 1791, and his successor, Abbé Grégoire, transformed the garden into a public promenade. The palace remained vacant during the early 19th century and subsequently served as the residence for the department’s prefects. In 1830, the bishops returned to the palace for 70 years, until the 1905 Act. Destroyed in 1940 by bombing, the town hall was then relocated to the Bishop’s Palace.

Characteristics: its majestic four-storey south façade allows the palace to rival the château. The first storey, featuring continuous rustication, opens onto the lower terrace through semi-circular windows. The courtyard façade is characterised by a central projection, slightly set back by one bay, surmounted by a triangular pediment bearing the coat of arms of the first bishop. The columns in front of the entrance were added during the episcopate of Bishop Thémines.

Listing: listed as a Historic Monument in 1930.

Jacques Gabriel Bridge

Construction: 1716 to 1724

History: in February 1716, the town’s medieval bridge could not withstand the ice break-up on the Loire: thirteen of its twenty arches, along with the buildings erected upon them, collapsed. The extent of the damage prompted the Regent to authorise the construction of a new bridge. Jacques V Gabriel, architect to the King’s buildings, was responsible for its design. The scale and speed of this project were impressive. Nearly a thousand men were employed on it. It was the first of the great modern bridges over the Loire, but also the last to feature a pronounced humpback design. The structure comprises eleven arches, is 283 metres long and is crowned at its centre by an obelisk 14.60-metres high. Although renowned for its sturdiness, the bridge was not spared damage. During the conflicts that punctuated France’s history, one or more arches were destroyed, particularly during the world wars. Following reconstruction work and further repairs carried out in 1978, only three of the original arches remain today.

Listing: listed as a Historic Monument in 1927

Saint-Louis Cathedral

Construction: 12th, 16th and 17th centuries.

Style: Renaissance and Late Gothic.

History: during the Merovingian period, an early sanctuary was dedicated to Saint Peter. At the end of the 10th century, a new church dedicated to Saint Solenne and a crypt to house the saint’s relics were built. The church was completely rebuilt in the 12th and then the 16th centuries. In 1678, a hurricane destroyed the building, which was rebuilt between 1680 and 1700 and dedicated to Saint Louis. The church then became a cathedral. In 1847, the sculpted decoration of the choir was completed.

Distinguishing features: the major project undertaken at the cathedral in the 20th century was the creation of the stained-glass windows, as the cathedral had never had any since its reconstruction following the hurricane of 1678. The commission was entrusted by Jack Lang, Minister for Culture and Mayor of Blois, to the Dutch artist Jan Dibbets in 1992.

Listing: listed as a Historic Monument in 1906.

Church of Saint-Nicolas du Foix

Construction: 12th to 14th centuries.

History: a former abbey founded by monks who, fleeing the Norman invasions, settled in Blois in 873. Following a fire, the church was rebuilt between 1138 and 1230 on the ruins of the original building. In 1356, the church was fortified to withstand the English. In 1568, the building was partly destroyed during the Wars of Religion and subsequently restored during the 17th century (the rose window in 1661). During the Revolution, the abbey housed the Hôtel-Dieu.

Listing: listed as a Historic Monument in 1840.

House of Magic

Opened: 1998.

History: The Robert-Houdin House of Magic was inaugurated in 1998; the museum showcases the life and varied work of Jean-Eugène Robert-Houdin, the famous French illusionist, inventor, clockmaker and automaton builder, who was born in Blois during the First Empire in 1805. The city of Blois had purchased the Maison Ballet, a large bourgeois house built in 1856 and situated opposite the château, to house the illusionist’s private collection, which had been donated to the city in 1981 by Paul Robert-Houdin, his grandson, who had previously opened a private museum a short distance away. This collection has gradually been expanded. The collections of magic artefacts and posters offer an insight into the history of magic. It welcomes nearly 120,000 visitors each year.

Designation: Musée de France.

Former Poulain Chocolate Factory

Built: 19th century.

History: This chocolate factory was built for Auguste Poulain between 1862 and 1872. The production workshop built for the Poulain company in 1919–1920 features an early application of reinforced concrete construction techniques, particularly the flared columns. This building is now regarded as one of the symbols of the city of Blois.

Note: Poulain was the first sponsor of Tour de France KOM polka-dot jersey in 1975.

Listing: Listed as a Historic Monument in 1997.

Sights

Chambord Castle

Built: 16th century.

Style: Renaissance.

History: Chambord underwent considerable alterations during the 28 years of its construction (1519–1547), whilst the building work was overseen by Pierre Nepveu. As the château neared completion, Francis I showcased this immense symbol of his wealth and power by hosting his former rival, Emperor Charles V, at Chambord. It was in 1519 that Francis I decided to replace the former fortress of the Counts of Blois with a château intended for hunting. The current boundaries of the royal estate are those established by Gaston, Duke of Orléans, owner of the estate from 1626 to 1660 (the only royal estate to have retained its 17th-century boundaries). The park, covering 5,433 hectares and enclosed by a boundary wall, has six entrances. In 1682, Jules Hardouin-Mansart redesigned the estate, laying out the park in a geometric pattern and constructing the stables for Marshal de Saxe. Two bridges, built in 1708, span the River Cosson. In 1821, the estate was acquired by the future Count of Chambord. During the 19th century, afforestation campaigns took place, an English garden was created in the western part, the village was reorganised, and Saint-Louis Church was remodelled (1830–1865). The estate was acquired by the State in 1930.

Features: situated at the heart of Europe’s largest enclosed woodland park (approximately 50 km² surrounded by a 32 km-long wall), it is the largest of the Loire Valley châteaux. It boasts an ornamental garden and a hunting park, both listed as historic monuments. Described as a ‘hidden diamond in the woods’, Chambord is the only royal estate to have remained intact since its creation.

The history of its construction is divided into two phases: that of the keep and that of the outer walls. The first began in 1519 and the work was completed in 1538. The second phase ran from 1538 to around 1550. Designed in the medieval style of fortified castles, with its ramparts and massive corner towers, it is clearly inspired by the Gothic style (the ornamentation of the upper sections that soar skywards with their chimneys and stair turrets), but above all it possesses a highly distinctive silhouette that makes it one of the architectural masterpieces of the Renaissance: a façade approximately 156-metres long, 56-metres high, a keep 44-metres tall, 426 rooms, 77 staircases, 282 chimneys and 800 carved capitals.

Listing: listed as a Historic Monument in 1840. Listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1981 and listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site as part of the Loire Valley in 2000.

Chambord Park

Creation: 16th century.

History and features: Chambord Park was an integral part of the royal project of King Francis I. Work on it began less than five years after construction of the château commenced, with the aim of creating a wooded enclosure intended both for hunting and for the conservation of game, as was the case with most of the great châteaux of the 15th and 16th centuries. It is a completely original creation, both in terms of its unusual dimensions – being the largest walled park in France – and the position of the château at the centre of the estate. In its 1523 plans, the proposed park already covered more than 3,000 arpents (1,500 ha) and its layout encompassed numerous private estates. Construction of the 32-kilometre-long enclosure wall, featuring six gates, began as early as 1542. A captaincy was established by the king in 1547 to guard the park, until it was dissolved by Louis XVI in 1777.

Chambord Park now covers 5,440 ha, of which 1,000 ha are open to the public, making it the largest enclosed woodland park in Europe.

Designation: Natura 2000.

Chambord Gardens

Created: 17th century.

History: Chambord Castle originally had no gardens. The surrounding area was marshy, and Francis I focused his efforts on the castle’s architecture. Between 1639 and 1642, during Gaston, Duke of Orléans’s stay, work began on draining the land and channelling the River Cosson. The first plans for the creation of a French-style garden were drawn up under Louis XIV by architect Jules Hardouin-Mansart. Work appears to have begun in 1684. The first plantings (chestnut trees, boxwood, orange trees) of a formal garden, known as ‘French-style’, were carried out in 1734 by gardener Jean-Baptiste Pattard. Between the 1820s and the 1930s, the Chambord estate, which had been left to fall into disrepair during the Revolution, was owned by Henri de Bourbon, grandson of King Charles X, and subsequently by his nephews, the Princes of Bourbon-Parma. The layout of the garden was considerably simplified. The French gardens were restored in 2016–2017 thanks to a €3.5 million donation from American Stephen A. Schwarzman, founder of the Blackstone investment fund, and were inaugurated by President François Hollande.

Features: the English garden is situated to the west of the château and is freely accessible; the French formal garden is situated to the north and east of the château and is accessible only to visitors to the château. The French garden covers 0.6 km². It features 600 trees, 800 shrubs, 200 rose bushes, 15,250 plants forming the borders and 18,874 m² of lawns. The English Garden covers an area of approximately 15,000 m².

Trivia: ‘Catherine Deneuve’ rose beds were planted in tribute to the leading actress in Donkey Skin, a film by Jacques Demy shot in 1970, partly at Chambord.

Saint-Louis Church

Construction: 17th and 19th centuries.

History: although it predates the château, the present church was built in 1666 and dedicated to Saint Louis at the request of Louis XIV. It was subsequently enlarged in 1684. It was then the subject of a reconstruction project by Jules Hardouin-Mansart, but this came to nothing. In the 19th century, it was restored and remodelled for the Duchess of Berry and the ‘Count of Chambord’; the work lasted from 1830 to 1855. The bell tower and porch were completed in 1855. The church remained the property of the House of Bourbon-Parma until 1932, when the French State purchased it.

Listing: listed as a Historic Monument in 1986.