Chenonceau: A Mistress, a Queen, a Transvestite Ball
Written: Mar 03 '00
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Beautiful chateau spanning the river Cher
Cons: Magnet for tour bus groups in summer
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| YentaKvetch's Full Review: Loire Valley |
"I have 2 days in the Loire. Which chateaux should I see?" That is a question heard frequently from travelers with limited time. YentaKvetch cannot answer that question. No one can. The answer is always the same: You need to do a little research and decide what you want to see. Of course, that doesn't prevent YentaKvetch from offering her pearls of wisdom, distilled after many trips to the area, the most recent of which was a month long home exchange in Tours in 1997.
This series of opinions will discuss some of the major chateaux. Of course, YentaKvetch is limited to discussing the ones she has personally visited. Cheverny and Saumur are omitted because they are in reserve for the next visit. Chambord has already been reviewed by YentaKvetch in its own section on epinions (see http://www.epinions.com/trvl-review-3875-205B48C-38966ACE-prod2).
The reader is reminded that the term "chateau" can mean either a castle or a palace depending up the residence to which it refers. A castle was designed to be a fortification. A palace was often designed merely to be lived in and enjoyed.
CHEONONCEAU--A Mistress, a Queen and a Transvestite Ball
If there is one chateau that almost everyone sees in the Loire Valley, it is Chenonceau. There are reasons for its popularity: (1) its spectacular setting; and (2) the interesting history of Henry II and his women.
The castle is built on the banks of the Cher, south of Amboise (see YentaKvetch’s review of Amboise at http://www.epinions.com/trvl-review-7EB2-5370B5E-38B8A4CD-prod1). It was acquired by the crown when Francis I forcibly purchased it from the Bohier family. Francis I intended to go to Chenonceau occasionally to hunt.
Henry II wanted to give the chateau to his mistress, Diane de Poitiers, upon his accession, but there was a problem. The chateau was crown property and Henry could not simply give away crown property. Henry, being a king, of course, thought of a way around this dilemma that would not have been available to ordinary mortals. What did he do? He canceled the transaction between the Bohier family and Francis I. It was, of course a fiction. Diane de Poitiers simply bought the chateau from Bohier. In short, the fix was in.
The famous bridge over the Cher, which had in fact been planned by the Bohiers, was begun by Diane. Well, after the death of Henri II, Diane de Poitiers power was quickly extinguished. In a power grab, Henry II’s wife, Catherine de Medicis, got even. Catherine appropriated Chenonceau and forced Diane to retire to Chaumont. It was Catherine who completed the bridge over the Cher and the two stories of galleries on the bridge. You walk across this bridge as you enter the castle.
After the massacres at Amboise, the court of Francis II and Mary Stuart (yes, that’s Mary Queen of Scots; she was Queen of France at the time) repaired to Chenonceau to celebrate. In March 1563 a famous sexual orgy was organized for the pleasure of the court. Finally in 1577, after Francis II died and Mary returned to Scotland and her intrigues Catherine de Medicis organized a transvestite orgy for the pleasure of her son, Henry III.
The chateau eventually passed out of royal hands and is now privately owned.
In addition to the chateau, YentaKvetch recommends a visit to the wax museum--with its figures illustrating some of the royal history and a walk along the Cher to view the castle from one side or the other to capture the full building in a photograph. Please note that sunrise occurs on one side of the chateau and sunset on the other--a rather nice feature for the inhabitants.
Do not forget to view the gardens, which are symmetrically landscaped.
If you have the stamina--and can understand French--YentaKvetch recommends you stay for the sound and light show in the evening during the summer. The history of the chateau is told while parts of the castle are illuminated. A review of this spectacle, together with others found in the Loire Valley during the summer can be found at http://www.epinions.com/trvl-review-485F-8809AA-38BF4189-bd3
Further information on the chateau on the web can be seen at http://www.chenonceau.com/default_uk.htm and http://perso.wanadoo.fr/guillonniere/chenonceau/
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
YentaKvetch
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Member: Lauren Kahn
Location: McLean, Virginia
Reviews written: 71
Trusted by: 97 members
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