Today, bus tours in Europe, including France, have become very popular. There is something to see here. For example, one cannot but admire the striking symmetry and extraordinary whiteness of Cheverny Castle.
The narrow and tall building is connected by two wings with square pavilions covered with slightly rounded roofs. At this point, the layout of the Renaissance style is slightly diluted by the influence of the classics, which is expressed in a number of niches, decorated with busts, which gives an elegant lightness to the facade.
Description
Reading the description of Cheverny Castle, one can find out that in contrast to the Chambord or Blois castles, whose interiors are almost empty, he keeps intact the magnificent magnificent furniture of the period of Louis XIII. This is explained simply - the castle had a very happy share, and it was owned by one family, except for a short period in 1564 (it was a gift from Henry II Diane de Poitiers, but the favorite later transferred the castle to the former owner’s son, Philippe Yuro, chancellor of France, count To Cheverny). This helped to maintain the unity of the ensemble and the style as a whole.
The snow-white strict facade of the castle and the elegant beautiful park inspired Erzhe, a Belgian artist, creator of the comic books “The Adventures of Tenten”. His Mulinzar is completely copied from Cheverny.
Cheverny Castle: History
The Blois Huro family, as well as their descendants, were owners of the land of Saint-Denis-sur-Loire for almost eight centuries with little interruptions. On the site of Cheverny in 1315 there was a mill, which Jean Yuro, the quartermaster of Louis XII, rebuilt in 1490 into a castle with a drawbridge, moat, loopholes, towers and other fortifications.
Then the Yuro family was already famous. She could be proud of her own kind - there were ministers, state secretaries, chancellors under various sovereigns. Philip, son of Jean Huro, was Chancellor of Henry III.
Philippe Yuro - French politician. As chancellor, he took an active part in the battle of Catholics with the Huguenots. After the duke of Anjou was elevated to the kings of Poland, he commissioned Count Cheverny to guard his interests in France. And Philip immediately let know about the death of Charles IX, and also helped him urgently return to Paris.
Henry III, becoming king, Philippe Yuro appointed Chancellor of France and keeper of the seal. After the uprising in Paris in 1588, Henry III decided to finally get rid of the Giza. Due to this, Yuro, being their supporter, fell out of favor and was forced to return to the tribal lands. The famous historian de Tu (Philippe was married to his sister), allowed him to stay informed of French political life.
Henry IV, having ascended the throne, offered Yuro again the title of chancellor and keeper of the seal, but only if he went to his side. He happily agreed, becoming a loyal supporter of the new king. Philippe Huro wrote memoirs, which until 1601 were continued by his second son, as well as the work “Advice to your children”. These his works have been published a large number of times.
Probably the 1st castle, from which there was absolutely nothing left, was located on the site of the current utility rooms. One archival document says that the current castle was built "on the site of the former" in 1634. But the meaning of this phrase is a bit vague and does not prove that it was in place of the mill.
Henry, a descendant of J. Yuro, in 1625 began the construction of a new building. The sculptor and architect Jacques Bouguier, inspired by the Luxembourg Palace, managed to create one of the purest examples that corresponded to the style of Louis XIII. He chose the local white sandstone as a material - it does not darken from time to time and becomes stronger every year.
The canceled warrior Henri Yuro, lieutenant general, became the owner of Cheverny in 1599. The historian Durfort de Cheverny, the Marquis, who lived in the castle during the Revolution, described in his memoirs a tragic famous episode. Having married the young Francoise Chabot (at the time of the wedding she was 11 years old), the count immediately went to war.
Finding himself at home only on short visits, the count noticed with enthusiasm how the girl turned into a true beauty. Yuro loved his wife without memory. At one point, when he was in Paris at the court of Henry IV, the king jokingly put 2 horns-shaped fingers to his head. Those present laughed, and a young count in the mirror discovered what caused such a stormy reaction of the environment.
After spending the night in the saddle, he rushed to the castle at dawn. The young page, with whom the countess often retreated when her husband was absent, managed to jump out the window, but unsuccessfully - broke his leg, and the count stabbed him with a sword. Returning to his wife in the room with the priest, the deceived husband gave his wife an hour to think about choosing between poison and a blade. Her choice fell on poison.
Henri Gurault returned to Paris that very evening - at this time the king fell asleep. When he was told about the sad event, to which he was involved to some extent, the king was very angry and sent the count for three years to Cheverny.
During the period of exile, Henry married again, now on Margarita de la Morigner, the daughter of his bali. His wife is described as an intelligent, frugal, and excellent-tasting woman who managed all the renovation and expansion of the castle, with the help of the artist Jean Monier and the architect Boyer. Interior decoration was completed in 1650 by their daughter.
Throughout history, Cheverny Castle was in the possession of only one family, therefore, interiors, furniture and various furnishings are well preserved. But the Yuro family lost it in 1802, and only in 1824 during the Restoration period was returned to the property.
Marquis Vibre, a descendant of the Earls of Huro, who died relatively recently, bequeathed the castle to his nephews - the Viscountess and Viscount de Sigal, who became the owners of Cheverny after his death. Part of the castle ensemble in 1922 opened to the general public.
Architecture
In Cheverny Castle (France), a separate block is located among a large park with a floral open parterre. Considering the different heights of the roofs of the building, as if dividing the overall composition into 5 parts, one can guess the construction of several eras. The most ancient part is the central one, which was started back in 1510, when the land of this estate was bought by Philippe Huro, who was the keeper of the seal.
The side pavilions make up a clean square in plan, whose side also determines their height, so a cubic calm shape is created. It naturally and easily closes the whole composition. The decoration of the facades is well thought out: small pediments are placed above all the windows, between the windows on the 2nd floor there are niches with busts of 12 Roman emperors, created in a classic style reminiscent of antique.
In front of the building was the fence of the courtyard, which was later destroyed. The opposite facade facing the garden is much simpler.
Interiors
Cheverny Castle, the interiors of which amaze everyone, like no other palace estate of the Loire, could survive to our time. Its decor is especially interesting - this is one of the best examples of art from the period of Louis XIII.
First floor of the right wing
On the first floor of the Cheverny castle, in the right wing, the walls of the Dining Room were upholstered in 1634 with leather from Cordoba embossed with the coat of arms of Yuro - a blue cross on a gold-colored field and 4 solar signs in the corners. 34 paintings on scenes from the work of "Don Quixote" belong to the brush of Jean Monnier, a native of Blois, who adorned the castle during the construction period. Parquet and fireplace date back to Louis XIV.
The stone straight staircase is in the spirit of Louis XIII. It is decorated with allegories of art and weapons with fruit. Knights of Savoy armor of the 16th century are installed in the piers of the flight of stairs, in which the deer antlers, which were brought from Siberia, are strengthened above the helmet.
Ground floor left wing
Here the lobby is decorated with tapestries of the 17th century. In the Grand Salon hang portraits of Philippe Yuro, Marie-Jeanne, Gaston of Orleans and other famous people. The portrait of Titian Cosimo Medici deserves attention . On the floor is a Dargin carpet (mid-19th century, Caucasus). The interior is furnished with exquisite furniture.
In the salon, decorated with 17th century Flemish tapestries with scenes based on Teniers' works, there is an old pendulum chronometer, which was used by watchmakers as a reference to the most accurate time. He shows the date, time, phase of the moon, and he beats every 15 minutes.
Second floor of the right wing
Cheverny Castle, of course, could not do without an armory. It was designed by Jean Monnier in 1634. The tapestries of the 17th century depict the scene of the abduction of Helen by Paris. This place houses the chest of Henry IV with the emblems of Navarre and France and a collection of weapons.
The adjacent hall was called the Royal Chambers. This room was supposed to be allocated in any castle, but the kings in Cheverny never stopped. Monier on the coffered ceiling depicted the myth of Andromeda and Perseus. A series of tapestries is dedicated to the travels of the Odyssey. The canopy, as well as the bedspread, are decorated with oriental embroidery.
Around
Cheverny Castle has a wonderful view of the surrounding park. The French-style garden with a strict layout was replaced in the 19th century by a romantic English park (but now the old garden is being restored). Here are the statues of Gilles Guerin, as well as several rear.
The greenhouse is north of here. It was erected in the XVIII century. Here, during the Second World War, various valuable paintings were hidden, including the Gioconda.
In this one-story building there was a souvenir shop and a small museum. Nearby was the pavilion, where the young Nikola Poussin, according to legend, wrote his work. At the edge of the park is a 12th-century church.
The owners of the castle loved to hunt. A hunting dog breed appeared here, on the side of which there is a letter V, according to the initials of the person who bred this breed. The cost of dogs reaches 10 thousand euros. The kennel, which is located south of the castle, now contains about 70 hounds. Twice a week, the whole pack is taken for deer and wild boar hunting. Every day there is a ceremony of the so-called dog soup - indicative feeding.
Cheverny Castle (France) also has a Trophy Hall, which exhibits about 2,000 deer horns that have been killed since 1850.
Wines
Loire and Cher (France) - the province in which the castle is located. There are 2 types of wines that are produced here and are connected by name with the castle: “Kur-Cheverny” and “Cheverny”. Moreover, the latter is white and red and is prepared from berries growing in local vineyards, which occupy 450 hectares. In 1992, they received the AOC mark. The French say that this wine is "for immediate pleasure." It is served with meat with blood and fried poultry.
“Kur-Cheverny” is more original: it is a white wine that is produced on an area of 50 hectares, only from the vine is “romorantent”. Incidentally, a curious story is connected with this: the technology for the production of this drink magnifies this variety by prohibiting all kinds of mixtures, and outdated rules require this wine to be assembled, in other words, combined with other varieties.
Cheverny Castle: reviews
Of course, reviews about the castle can be found mainly enthusiastic. And this is not surprising - everything here is simply saturated with history. It’s a pity that not the whole castle is open for visiting ...