Hi, I'm James. And I'm Laurent. And today, we are in the beautiful Loire Valley,
in France. There are more than 2,000 chateaus in the valley. But we've
selected our top 10 that we're going to show you in this video. So, let's go!
So 1st on our list, is the Chateau of Chambord. It is the largest and the most visited chateau in the
Loire Valley. The palace was constructed exactly 500 years ago, in 1519, just at the beginning of
the Renaissance. Francois the 1st wanted to build a magnificent palace, that would showcase his
power and his glory. Everything about this castle is over-the-top. So, the most spectacular part of
the visit, has to be going on the roofs of the castle. From there, you can see all the details
and the chimneys. There are over 280 of them. Every time you turn around, it's incredible.
And the other thing that I really liked, was the view on the park. It's a huge park, 13,000 acres.
And inside the castle, the most interesting feature is the double spiral staircase. It's
actually two staircases, intertwined with each other. And it was designed by Leonardo da Vinci.
And then, inside the chateau, there are more than 400 rooms. Not all of them are open to the public.
But you can see the King's bedroom, and the Queen's bedroom, and a couple of other salons.
Chambord started as a hunting lodge. And there's lots of hunting trophies
and other things around. It's such an enormous property!
2nd on our list, is the Chateau of Chenonceau. Chenonceau is one of the most distinctive castles
in the world, because it was built over a bridge, over the River Cher. And the chateau is nested in
a beautiful park, with many different gardens. One of the big gardens, is the garden of Diane
de Poitiers, on the left side of the chateau. The garden of Catherine de Medici is on the right
side. And it's much more intimate, more romantic. And then there was the maze, which is made of
2,000 yews. It's the size of a football field. One of the most impressive things, is the long gallery
over the bridge. It's almost 60-meters long. It's decorated with medallions of famous people. And
there's actually three different galleries, one on each floor of the castle. Lots of the rooms
are beautifully decorated. Some of our favorites were Diane de Poitiers' bedroom, with a beautiful
fireplace. And then Cesar of Vendôme's bedroom, with a fireplace coated in gold. Louis the 14th
has a drawing-room, with the salamander, which was the sculpted coat-of-arms for Francois
the 1st. And then, there's amazing furniture throughout the castle, with sculpted panels.
We also like the main hall, and the staircases, with very intricate sculptures. So beautiful!
So Number 3 on our list is the Chateau of Villandry. Villandry is a typical Renaissance
Chateau. It was built in 1536, on the site of a very old medieval fortress. But the
main reason to go to Villandry is not to visit chateau. It's because of the amazing garden.
The garden is absolutely enormous. And if you add up all of the boxwood in the garden,
it's 52 kilometres. And it's a combination of plants, as well as vegetables. They have
115,000 plants and veggies planted every year. It was actually strange,
when we first got there. We walk into the typical French garden. And we look inside,
and it's actually cabbages and lettuce, not flowers. It was just a huge surprise!
We've talked a lot about the garden, but there's really an incredible chateau to visit
at Villandry. In 1906, Joaquin Carvalho bought the chateau with his American wife, Ann Coleman. And
they decided to restore the original Renaissance garden. So, they actually initially bought the
chateau, as a place to house their art collection. And restoring the gardens is something that came
up only later. It's still privately owned, and their great-grandson manages the chateau today.
And 4th on our list, is the Chateau of Cheverny. It's one of the later chateaus built in the Loire
Valley, in 1634. And it is the chateau that inspired cartoonist Hergé to design Tintin's
Marlin Spike Hall. It's probably the most perfectly preserved of any of the chateaus
we visited. It didn't suffer hardly any damage, during the French Revolution. All the ceilings
were painted by painter Jean Monier. And the walls are covered in leather. It's absolutely
incredible! Yeah. The armors were really spectacular. And some of them weighed like
100 lbs. So, Cheverny has a partnership with Lego. And there are lots of Lego sculptures,
throughout the castle. But the most spectacular room has to be the King's
room. The bed is covered in an incredible Persian embroidery, from the 16th century,
that uses gold, silver, and silk thread in its design. It's spectacular! If you like furniture,
you will love this chateau. It has some of the best preserved works by Boulle,
and other very famous Parisian artisans. So, Cheverny is a big hunting venue. And
they have more than a 100 hounds. And every day, at 11:30am, they feed the dogs. And
it is an absolutely incredible spectacle. And the dogs know exactly what time it is.
And 5th on our list is the Chateau of Azay-Le-Rideau. It's a beautiful chateau,
that was built in 1518. It's one of the best examples of French Renaissance architecture.
What's interesting about it, is that it was built on the site of an old medieval fortress,
that had been burned by Charles the 7th. And the owner that rebuilt it, wanted the new chateau to
be reminiscent of the medieval fortress. Yeah, it still has the towers and fortifications, and
a moat. But it's purely aesthetic. But the main attractiveness of Azay-Le-Rideau is the beautiful
interior. Because it's state-owned, the chateau was able to obtain some state-owned furniture,
to refurnish the chateau. So, it looks like it did in the 19th century. Yeah, the furniture
is absolutely exceptional. And it's really very tastefully displayed as well. My favorite things,
were some of the exhibits on display. One included this incredible music box, that was mechanized,
and played music, and was very macabre. You have the mechanism, like an old clock,
that opens and closes the drawers, and the doors of the cabinet. It was absolutely fantastic
And outside of the Chateau, the town is quite quaint,
with a little medieval town square worth a stop.
6th on our list, is the Chateau of Blois. It's fun to say. The Chateau of Blois is a fairly complex
castle, from an architectural standpoint. Many of the wings of the castle, have been torn down, and
rebuilt, in the style that was in vogue at that time. And as a result, it's kind of a hodgepodge
of different styles, intertwined with each other. So, the castle has four main architectural styles.
The 1st one is the Gothic style of the medieval castle. The 2nd style is the flamboyant style
of Louis the 12th. Then, the 3rd style is the Renaissance style of the François the 1st wing.
And it is, of course, the most famous part of the castle, because of the beautiful staircase.
The 4th and final style, is the classical style, of the Gaston de Orléans wing. Gaston de Orléans,
who was the brother of King Louis the 13th, decided to build a totally new castle.
The seigniorial room, is the largest non-religious Gothic structure in France. It was mainly used
by the Counts of Blois, as a courthouse. But it also had many other uses, such as a banquet room,
or a ballroom. And you can pretend to be a king, for just a minute. So, we were lucky to have
access to the roofs, above the seignorial room. That roof is 800-years old. And the beams are
still original. And the Royal Apartments, that we can visit today, were restored by a Felix Duban.
And 7th on our list, is the Chateau of Amboise. Amboise is a great chateau to visit, if you're a
history buff like us. It's a royal castle where several kings were actually born and raised.
Yeah, unlike some of the other royal chateaus, where the royal family actually rarely went.
The castle is on top of a hill, overlooking the Loire Valley. And some of the first fortifications
built there, date back from the Roman era, in the 4th century. But the main body of the
chateau was built by Charles the 8th, in 1492. And it's in an early Renaissance style. But most
of the furniture is more recent, and dates back to the early 1800's. François the 1st,
who became the King in 1515, was a great patron of the arts. He brought Leonardo da Vinci to France,
and offered him the Chateau of Clos Lucé, which is only 1/2 mile from the Chateau of Amboise.
Leonardo da Vinci is actually buried in the chapel of the chateau, which is really
amazing. The gardens at Amboise are actually very different from other chateaus. Most of the other
chateaus are French gardens, with very geometric figures, and straight lines. In Amboise, it has
its boxwood bushes cut in round balls. It's very unusual, and kind of disorienting.
8th on our list, is the Chateau Ussé. Ussé is actually an interesting one,
from an architectural point of view. It has a mix of Medieval and Renaissance aspects. And both
of them are intertwined within each other. It's believed it inspired Walt Disney, in his creation
of the Disney castles. The Sleeping Beauty theme is being used throughout the castle, with all the
scenes of the fairy tale, with Sleeping Beauty and the Prince Charming. There's really some beautiful
furniture in the chateau. There's an Italian ebony cabinet from the 16th century. One of my favorite
parts, was to go to the roofs of the building. The rampart walk really makes you feel like you
are a soldier, guarding the old fortress, and watching the countryside underneath the castle.
And if you like horses, you have to go visit the stables. They have a saddle room,
that has beautiful saddles and harnesses.
Ussé also has a really great chapel, on the side of the castle. And the pews are very intricate,
with beautiful wooden sculptures. Definitely a chateau you should put on your list.
And 9th on our list, is the Chateau of Valençay. Valençay is one of the lesser-known chateaus in
the Loire Valley. But there's something very peaceful and serene about the chateau. The old
medieval castle was razed in 1520, to make room for the Renaissance chateau that exists today.
It has a unique romantic garden. And that's very different from the other French gardens at other
chateaus. There are also peacocks, roaming freely in the park. The original Renaissance wing is
on the north side. And it has a very impressive center keep. And the West wing was built in 1767,
in a much more classical style. And the Grande Gallerie, along the courtyard,
is 200-feet long. Valençay has had many owners over its life. But it's most famous
owner was Charles Maurice de Talleyrand, who was Napoleon's chief diplomat. There is
also a room of the castle, that was devoted to Talleyrand's treasures. It featured his swords,
his uniforms from the French Academy, and all the medals, from all the different orders he belong
to. And there is a beautiful dining room, with 19th century silverware. One of the best parts
of the castle are the kitchens. Talleyrand's cook was the famous chef Antonin Carême,
one of the most famous names in French cuisine. The wine cellars were also spectacular.
And 10 on our list, is Chateau de Sully. Sully is one of the lesser known castles in the Loire
Valley. But the reason why we really liked it, is that it is the most medieval of all the castles
we visited. A lot of the castles in the Loire Valley, were built during the Renaissance. And
Sully is the real medieval fortress. It still has the moat, all the towers, and the thick walls.
And that's really the medieval castle, kind of the way you imagine it. One of the beautiful
aspects of Sully is the large Main Hall. It has beautiful French-painted beams. And it has very
thick walls. So, you'll see lots of decoration and painting around the windows. The Château of Sully
was in a strategic location, right on the Loire River. The medieval experience of the castle,
is to walk the rampart walk. You still have all the machicolations, with a view underneath,
on the moat and on the river. Sully has a King's bedroom, that was always ready,
just in case the King showed up. Louis the 14th actually slept two nights in that bed.
But that was before he became the King. The main body of the chateau was profoundly modified,
much more recently, in the 19th century. That wing of the chateau is a lot more
ornate than the medieval part. It has beautiful furniture, tapestries, and painted ceilings.
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