The favourite residence of the Kings of France during the Renaissance, the Royal Château of Blois is a true architectural and historical synthesis of the Châteaux of the Loire. Its four wings, each in a different style, and its monumental staircase around the same courtyard, offer an astonishing panorama of French architecture from the Middle Ages to the Classical period. In the royal flats, the magnificent restored polychrome decorations, furniture and paintings evoke the daily life of the Court and power during the Renaissance. The private chambers of François I and the royal chambers of Catherine de Medici and Henri III, where the Duke of Guise was murdered in 1588, are steeped in the major events of French history.
A private chateau still inhabited by the same family, it is open to the public every day of the year. Cheverny is considered to be the most magnificently furnished château in the Loire Valley. Tapestries from the Gobelins, Flanders, Louis XIV and Louis XV chests of drawers, Louis XV Regulator, the King's room... and a thousand other wonders will enchant you. The castle of Cheverny was used as a model by Hergé to draw the castle of Moulinsart. The permanent exhibition "The Secrets of Moulinsart" allows visitors to relive the events that took place in this mythical place.
Century after century, Touraine has welcomed illustrious men. The Priory of Saint Cosme and Pierre de Ronsard. The Château de Saché and Honoré de Balzac. La Devinière and François Rabelais. Three emblematic sites with a historical, spiritual and poetic dimension.
In 1516, Leonardo da Vinci accepted the invitation of Francis I and moved to the Château du Clos Lucé in Amboise, where he worked on numerous projects for the King. From Rome he brought his notebooks and three of his major works: the Mona Lisa, the Saint Anne and the Saint John the Baptist, now in the Louvre. Prolific and inspired, he worked as an engineer, architect and stage director, organising sumptuous festivities for the court. On 2 May 1519, he died in his bedroom. The house, its park - a veritable open-air museum - and the Leonardo da Vinci Painter and Architect Galleries invite you to discover the many facets of this genius through his restored workshops, models of his inventions and an immersive show presenting his 17 masterpieces...