Le chateau Bolois Le Chateau de Chambord: Beauty and the Beast Castle
Friday, June 10.

This is where Jeanne d'Arch came and organized her army to drive the English from Orleans. She was blessed by the Archbishop of Reims before departing.

Built in the middle of the town that it effectively controlled, the château of Blois comprises several buildings constructed from the 13th to the 17th century around the main courtyard.
It has 564 rooms and 75 staircases although only 23 were used frequently. There is a fireplace in each room. There are 100 bedrooms. Insane right? It was a favorite of Louis XII and Francois I. Their symbols can be found throughout. Louis XII's symbol is a porcupine and Francois I's is a salamander. Both represent invincibility. The castle passed through Henry III, Henry IV, Louis XIII and then to his brother, le Duc d'Orleans before being abandoned. It was restored by Louis-Phillipe in the nineteenth century. It was at this castle that Henry III assassinated his enemy, Henry I, the Duke de Guise by tricking him into thinking he was coming to a peaceful meeting to negotiate. Cheating, right? Dishonor on you, your cow... :)

The oldest portion of the castle.

This staircase was designed by Leonardo de Vinci. It's pretty cool.

Look at these sweet gargoyles. I might be obsessed.  

                                                                                                         It's a harpsichord!!

This man has a gene that makes him have hair that grows all over his body. It's from this man that we get the inspiration for the story of Beauty and the Beast. Pedro Gonzalez was born is Spain in 1537. He suffered from a condition known as hypertrichosis, a disease that makes sufferers grow hair over their entire body, and was given to the french court at the age of ten because he looked like a wolf man and good for freak shows which were popular at the time. Eventually, he grew in the king's favor and became a noble man. After Henry's death, Catherine de Medici found a wife for him, but kept his identity a secret from the bride until too late. His bride, also named Catherine eventually grew to love him and they had seven children, a few also suffering from the same problem and being confiscated by the court for their amusement. The couple eventually moved to a town in Italy where they hid from the public eye. It's a sad real life story, but one that shows true love.

I always knew that I was royalty. After all, Mary Stewart, fifth daughter of James I of Scotland, is my 13th great Aunt according to relative finder. On the right we have our king and queen Le Bras, the director of the program and his wife.

                                                                        Horses!

                                                        Le Chateau de Chambord.  

               AKA the inspiration for the Beauty and the Beast castle for the facade and grounds design.

This chateau was used as a hunting lodge and built by Francois I. It's the largest one in the Loire Valley. It's quite amazing. The castle was often left empty and unused because of it's far location from any villages. Louis XIV used it for hunting as well. Like most historic monuments in France, it went through a hard time during the revolution and during both world wars, but was eventually recovered by the state and restored. It's now the most popular castle in the France.

Don't we look just dashing? I think we make fine gentlemen.

They have a horse and birds of prey show. We didn't get to see it, but we got to look around the fighting arena and the tents. The set up is what I imagine they used for tournaments such as jousting and fighting skills. The owls and falcons surprised me at first. They were so still, but they still made noise. Then I saw one move its head. I turned to Maddie and said, " They're real!!!!" They were about five or so of them.

Left: This castle's grounds were used for hunting and is quite large, similar to Versailles, but not a cultivated garden and perhaps larger. It's now a protected habitat to many animals such as boars and deer. Right: I got to pet the horse! He was used in the show and I guess that after each show they let the guests come and admire the horses. We saw the horses were out and sped over there. The performer was really nice. Love his costume.

This double staircase was designed by Leonardo de Vinci. Legand has it that the king wanted a double staircase so that his mistress could sneak up the stairs without ever having to cross paths with his wife. The stairs are pretty cool, like a double helix.

The west wing. :)

Carson thinks he's so funny. Look at Natalie's face. She doesn't agree. :) Right: the throne room.

The royal family. I can't remember which one it is though, sorry.

One of the royal crowns, and scepters used in the coronations and important ceremonies.

                                                  This clock is huge, like as tall as Carson!

A quick snap shot before literally running back to the bus because I was late. This castle was pretty cool, you guys. The only thing that would make it better is if the inside was like the Beauty and the Beast castle in the movie, having a large library and ballroom. Alas, it wan't meant to be.