Château Country
Château de Cheverny
As you travel south, you are now entering château country and one of the best examples is Château de Cheverny. This is reputed to be the most beautifully decorated and furnished castle in the Loire Valley. We couldn’t argue with that! Its interior furnishings are an extravagant display of paintings, tapestries and armour set against a gilded backdrop of sculpted walls and ceilings. The painted wall panels in the dining room tell tales of Don Quixote.
The castle itself is surprisingly slim, only one room and a corridor thick. Built between 1604 and 1634, the Château is a picture of symmetry, harmony and the French aristocratic way of life. Descendants of the first owners still live here and go hunting, their massive deerhounds baying for blood - or some dog food at least - in their massive compound at the rear of the park. Apparently it’s quite a spectacle when the hunters set off on horseback in their redcoats and tails, which I was told, happened twice each week.
If you were a fan of 1970’s children’s television, you might recognize the outline of this château. Cheverny was the inspiration behind Captain Haddock’s Château at Moulinsart in the cartoon series, Herge’s Adventures of TinTin. There is a permanent exhibition called “The Secrets of Moulinsart” near the hound enclosure. You can also take a tour of the grounds via electric cars that ferry you ‘quietly’ around the estate with its hundred-year-old Cedar trees, Corsican and Scots pines, Douglas firs and Sequoias groves. Then jump on the electrically propelled boats on the canal that crosses the park. All in all, Cheverny is a very good outing. Plan at least three hours here. The interior alone is worth experiencing.
Château de Cheverny
As you travel south, you are now entering château country and one of the best examples is Château de Cheverny. This is reputed to be the most beautifully decorated and furnished castle in the Loire Valley. We couldn’t argue with that! Its interior furnishings are an extravagant display of paintings, tapestries and armour set against a gilded backdrop of sculpted walls and ceilings. The painted wall panels in the dining room tell tales of Don Quixote.
The castle itself is surprisingly slim, only one room and a corridor thick. Built between 1604 and 1634, the Château is a picture of symmetry, harmony and the French aristocratic way of life. Descendants of the first owners still live here and go hunting, their massive deerhounds baying for blood - or some dog food at least - in their massive compound at the rear of the park. Apparently it’s quite a spectacle when the hunters set off on horseback in their redcoats and tails, which I was told, happened twice each week.
If you were a fan of 1970’s children’s television, you might recognize the outline of this château. Cheverny was the inspiration behind Captain Haddock’s Château at Moulinsart in the cartoon series, Herge’s Adventures of TinTin. There is a permanent exhibition called “The Secrets of Moulinsart” near the hound enclosure. You can also take a tour of the grounds via electric cars that ferry you ‘quietly’ around the estate with its hundred-year-old Cedar trees, Corsican and Scots pines, Douglas firs and Sequoias groves. Then jump on the electrically propelled boats on the canal that crosses the park. All in all, Cheverny is a very good outing. Plan at least three hours here. The interior alone is worth experiencing.
