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The Château de Chenonceau is often known as the Château of the Six Women |
The Château de Chenonceau spans the river Cher. 1. Catherine Briçonnet The first owner of Chenonceau was Thomas Bohier, who was married to Catherine. He had bought a run down fortress in 1512, but because it was not built to the latest Renaissance style fashion, he decided to build a new one. The only part of his original fortress left today is the tower, in front of the château which serves as a souvenir shop (pictured right). Even this was partly rebuilt in a more modern style.
This is how Thomas and Catherine Bohiers's new Château, built in the latest Renaissance fashio,n would have looked. It comprised just the front part of the château as it is today. Because her husband was a King's officer in far-away Normandy, Catherine had to oversee and organise all the building works. She organised the construction of the internal staircase, one of the first in France. OVer time, the château became a fine building, the envy of many of her neighbours, including the King, François 1er. The building works must have cost of lot of money which seems to explain the motto that Catherine had carved on the doors: "S'il vient à point, me souviendra", which means, "If the castle is finished, people will remember me." The door panels still survive today - you can see the inscription and remember Catherine's hard work.
Thomas died in Italy in the King's service in 1524, and two years later, Catherine died. The château was inherited by their son Antoine. By this time it was a splendid building, and its park was teeming with game. It would seem that King François 1er had a great desire to possess the beautiful château. Through a devious legal process, he confiscated it from Antoine saying that his father had cheated him of money.
King François 1er often went to Chenonceau accompanied by his family and friends: his Queen, his son Henri and his wife Catherine de Medici, his mistress and his son's mistress who was Diane de Poitiers. Diane had at one time been François' mistress too, and was a good 20 years older than Henri!
François set about refurbishing the château to make it his own. HIs symbol was the salamander and just as in Chambord, François ensured that this symbol could be found everywhere. The Latin inscription either side of the salamander refers to King François 1er, the king of France and his first wife, Queen Claude, the Queen of Brittany.
Queen Claude's symbol was the ermine and you can see the ermine and salamander carvings throughout the château. This example comes from above the fireplace in one of the main bedrooms
When François died in 1547 his son, Henri, became King Henri II. Diane de Poitiers had a lot of influence over him and it was not long before he gave her not only Chenonceau but also the crown jewels and a good income. Henri's wife, Queen Catherine, felt humiliated. Diane was said to be very beautiful and kept her beauty into old age . The painting below of Diane de Poitiers as a huntress with the stags portrays her when she was well over 60 years of age!
Diane embarked on an expensive beautification program for the château. She planned the lay out of the garden with flowers, fruits and vegetables which at that time were considered exotic - such as melons and artichokes. Diane also built a bridge which linked the château to the opposite bank of the River Cher.
Unfortunately for Diane, King Henri II died unexpectedly in a tournament in 1559. His Queen, Catherine de Medici, planned to get her own back! Catherine never forgave the King. She determined that she would hold the power in France, never again would she be humiliated. She dominated her sons, and although they were Kings, it was she who really ruled.
Catherine immediately sought her revenge on Diane. She demanded that Diane returned the crown jewels and the château. Diane tried to resist but she was forced to return them. She was sent away, banished to die a lonely old lady in the Château of Anet. The picture of Catherine below is in the Queen's bedroom. It hangs above the fire place and is an integral part of the mantelpiece. If you look closely, you can see the initials of Henri and Catherine in gold decorating the mantelpiece, with cherubs supporting a globe with the embems of France, the Fleurs de Lys.
Queen Catherine had been further humiliated by Diane's work in the château. She was furious at the way in which her initials had been inter-twined with those of her husband. Not only did they read H and C for Henri and Catherine, but the back to back design of the C meant that they also read H and D for Henri and Diane.
Catherine started on a total make-over of the château, to reclaim it as her own. She worked on a new layout for the gardens, to change Diane's work. More importantly, she constructed the huge, three story wing which was built across the bridge that Diane had designed.
The new wing had a beautiful ballroom on the lower floor, with Italian tiles for the dancers. This huge room was used for the most sumptuous festivals organised by Catherine de Medici. It became unique as a ballroom constructed above a flowing river. Catherine also used the château for the entertainment and marriages of her children. The Queen died in 1589, bequeathing the château in her will to the wife of her son, King Henri III, Queen Louise. |
The Château de Chenonceau is often known as the Château of the Six Women, since women have played such an important part in its history. To find out more, explore the château's story through their lives. 1. Catherine Briçonnet (early 16th century) was the wife of the first owner, who built the turreted pavillion and one of the very first staircases in France.
The beautiful driveway to the château
The gardens are laid out as they would have Queen Louise liked the château and set up her court there. Unfortunately, Louise's happiness and pleasure in her inheritance was shortlived.
A few months later, her husband, Henri III, was assassinated. As he lay dying, he dictated a letter addressed to his wife telling her: "My beloved, I hope to be well. Pray to God for me. Do not move from there." People think this is why Queen Louise never moved from the château again. She mourned her husband deeply and remained locked away in her room in the château until she died. She did away with all the bright furnishings and replaced them all with black. She had the bedroom walls painted black, with black curtains; the room was decorated with symbols of death and mourning. This is her bed, with its black drapery.Queen Louise lived a life of prayer and invited nuns to live and pray with her in the château.
Queen Louise dressed all in white, the traditional colour of royal mourning. For this reason, she was known as "The White Queen."
The designs from her bedroom show how the walls and hangings were decorated. The white feathers are symbols of death and mourning, they are surrounded by tears. The château, which once had echoed with music and fun, became a sad and lonely place.
When Queen Louise died, the château was inherited by the Ducs de Vendôme. The Kings of France rarely visited it, and it became very run down. For a while it even became a monastery for Capucine monks who built a drawbridge to isolate themselves from the rest of the world. In 1733, the château was sold to a wealthy financier, Claude Dupin. His wife was a well educated woman, who mixed with the greatest writers, thinkers and artists of the time. She invited them to the château. Once again, the château came to life and became the scene for meetings, festivals, operas, scientific discussions, opera and music. Madame Dupin tried to restore the château and its gardens to their former glory.
Jean Jacques Rousseau, the famous philosopher, became her secretary. He wrote: "We passed the time well there, and we ate well...I became very fat!"
Madame Dupin was so liked and respected by the local people that Chenonceau survived the Revolution unharmed. This was very unusual. She died in the château in 1799 aged 93. Once again, fortune failed to smile on the château, and it was abandoned and fell into ruin. It was sold to Madame Pelouze in 1864. She immediately started the work to restore the château to its original state. It is due to her, that the château is in such a good condition today.
She restored the kichen which is located below the ballroom. She also worked on the restoration of the gardens to the layout designed by Queen Catherine de Medici. The drive leading to the château was planted out with trees. Today, Chenonceau is the next most visited château in France to Chambord. Its silhouette, like that of Chambord is instantly recognisable. It is a much smaller château, and has rooms that are reasonably well furnished in the style of the period. Its gardens are attractive and colourful.  The château's role in war time During World War 1, the wing across the river was transformed into a military hospital. More than 2000 wounded soldiers were treated there. The plaque in the ballroom commemorates these men and their nurses. There were many Australians among those treated, so there is a link between Australia and this château. The flowers you can see are always there, and are changed weekly. The colours are always those of the Tricolore and France: red, white and blue.
During World War II, the boundary between Nazi occupied Vichy France and Free France was marked by the river Cher. The Château of Chenonceau was in Free France, and its forest land across the river was in Nazi held France. The bridge wing across the river was used by the Resistance to cross from Free France to Nazi occupied France. The Nazis deforested their side of the river to enable them to more accurately track and capture those who succeeded in crossing. After World War II, the trees were replanted, so that today, the far bank is once more wooded, though of course the trees are no more than 60 years old. If you look at the photo carefully, you can see that the river is often much higher. It has left its "tide marks" on the arches of the bridge.
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