The Château de Châteaudun is a

castle A castle is a type of fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by military orders. Scholars debate the scope of the word ''castle'', but usually consider it to be the private fortified r ...

located in the town of

Châteaudun Châteaudun () is a commune in the Eure-et-Loir department in northern France. It is a sub-prefecture of the department. It was the site of the Battle of Châteaudun during the Franco-Prussian War. Geography Châteaudun is located about 45&n ...

in the French department of

Eure-et-Loir Eure-et-Loir (, locally: ) is a French department, named after the Eure and Loir rivers. It is located in the region of Centre-Val de Loire. In 2019, Eure-et-Loir had a population of 431,575.Count of Blois Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...

Thibaut V had the

keep A keep (from the Middle English ''kype'') is a type of fortified tower built within castles during the Middle Ages by European nobility. Scholars have debated the scope of the word ''keep'', but usually consider it to refer to large towers in ...

built around 1170. The Sainte-Chapelle was built between 1451 and 1493. The choir and the high chapel were built between 1451 and 1454, with the nave and the oratory between 1460 and 1464. Together with the

Château de Montsoreau The Château de Montsoreau is a Flamboyant Gothic castle in the Loire Valley, directly built in the Loire riverbed. It is located in the small market town of Montsoreau, in the Maine-et-Loire ''département'' of France, close to Saumur, Chin ...

(1453) and the Palais Jacques-Cœur (1451), Châteaudun's 15th-century additions are among the earliest examples of residences built essentially for leisure in

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan ar ...

. Jehan de Dunois, the ''bâtard d'Orléans'' (Bastard of Orléans), built the west wing (the ''"aile Dunois"'') between 1459 and 1468. The bell tower was erected in 1493. François I of Orléans-LonguevilleFrançois d'Orléans-Longueville (1447–1491), Count of Dunois, Tancarville, Longueville, and Montgomery, Baron of Varenguebec, Viscount of Melun, Chamberlain of France, Governor of Normandy and the Dauphiné, Constable and Chamberlain of Normandy, married July 2, 1466 to Agnès de Savoie (1445–1508). began construction of the north wing (the "''aile Longueville''") between 1469 and 1491. The upper floors were added by François II d'Orléans-Longueville and his descendants during the first quarter of the 16th century.

Today

The castle includes: * a

from the 12th century, high (wall), high (entire height), in diameter * a chapel from the 15th century (one of the seven remaining

Sainte Chapelle The Sainte-Chapelle (; en, Holy Chapel) is a royal chapel in the Gothic style, within the medieval Palais de la Cité, the residence of the Kings of France until the 14th century, on the Île de la Cité in the River Seine in Paris, France. ...

kind of chapels in France) * the Dunois wing from the 15th century * the Longueville wing from the end of the 15th century The château overlooks the

Loir The Loir () is a long river in western France. It is a left tributary of the Sarthe. Its source is in the Eure-et-Loir department, north of Illiers-Combray. It joins the river Sarthe in Briollay, north of the city of Angers. It is indirectly ...

River. Perched on a

limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms wh ...

outcrop, it shows its origins as a 12th-century fortress. Converted by

Jean de Dunois Jean d'Orléans, Count of Dunois (23 November 1402 – 24 November 1468), known as the "Bastard of Orléans" (french: bâtard d'Orléans) or simply Jean de Dunois, was a French military leader during the Hundred Years' War who participated in m ...

during the

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass id ...

into a comfortable residence, the main body of the building is roofed in the

gothic Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths **Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...

style. It still has, notably, a finely carved staircase from this period. Renovated since the 1930s, the castle has been designated as a '' monument historique'' (historic monument) since 1918.

References

External links

*
Official site of the town

Full history and pictures of Château de Châteaudun

Château de Châteaudun on Google Cultural Institute
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chateaudun, Chateau de Castles in Centre-Val de Loire Historic house museums in Centre-Val de Loire Chateaudun Museums in Eure-et-Loir Chateau, Chateaudun Monuments of the Centre des monuments nationaux

Today

See also

References

External links