So written before on the castle in an introductory post. Now , I have come back this week to it and will post several new posts and pictures of the wonderful Château de Chenonceau, the gardens !! Yes love castles and lucky to be in prime region just less than 4 hrs from my house. Hope you enjoy the posts as will try to break them down as shown; this one will be on the castle’s gardens.
I am taking you down to the fairy tale castle of the ladies! The town and castle has a peculiarity of the name but that is just history (see post) . The place of course was visited again with new text and pictures, I am talking about the Château de Chenonceau gardens at the village of Chenonceaux! They built the castle in the 16C on the river Cher. The couple of Thomas Bohier and Katherine Briçonnet demolished the fortified castle and mill belonging to the Marques family and left standing just the keep, the tour Marques, which they restored in Renaissance style. It is a beautiful castle to see at least once in your lifetime , just awesome. The gardens as just as beautiful me think.
You have Diane’s garden a flowerbed that has remained unchange since the creation by Diane de Poitiers. The Chancellery once the house of Catherine de Medici’s estate steward, looks over this garden. It has two perpendicular and two diagonal paths border with eight large lawned triangles decorated with scrolls of santolina. The raised terrace protect the garden when water levels rise on the river Cher. In Summer, more than a hundred hibiscus syriacus flower here All around the garden, the walls that support the terraces are clad with iceberg climbing roses.
You, also have the Catherine’s garden , a more intimate Queen Catherine de Medici’s garden, a true picture of her refinement Looking over the water and the park, its paths offer magnificent views of the castle façade. Design centered around five lawns, grouped together around an elegant circular pond, and dotted with rounded box hedges. The garden is bordered by a low wall line with pleached clair matin roses that overhangs the moat. Indeed beautiful!
There is another far away call the Green Garden, done in 1825 by the then owners Countess of Villeneuve who wanted an English garden. There is a renaissance fountain. In the 16C , Catherine de Medici chose this place to house her animals and her aviary. We did not visit as was far than our walks could bear with my Dad in tow with a wheelchair!
We did passed by the Russell Page Garden, which opened in the Summer of 2018. It is an homage to this illustrious landscape gardener the master of many contemporary creators. The fauna of François Xavier Lalanne, sculptor and master bronzier, have come to enrich the flowerbeds of this English style garden. A garden that simply seeks to move us and return us to the spontaneity of our childhood. Nice indeed!
There, is also, a vegetable and flower garden where birds and animals are free to roam, right next to the donkeys of Chenonceau. There is the maze of 70 acres as desired by Catherine de Medici. We did not stop on these neither.
Ah need to have this anecdote on this post as love the history of it and see my other post. In 1891 Crédit Foncier (a bank) sold the entire estate to José Emilio Terry, (family of Cuban origin, born and died in Paris) son of Tomas Terry (Of Irish paternal descent, Terry was born in Caracas Venezuela died in Paris) and by Teresa Dorticos (born in Cienfuegos Cuba died in Rome Italy). The estate will remain in this family until 1913.
The official Château de Chenonceau: https://www.chenonceau.com/en
The Touraine Loire Valley tourist office on the castle : https://www.touraineloirevalley.co.uk/cultural-heritage/chateau-of-chenonceau-chenonceaux/
There you go folks, a dandy in the marvelous Loire Valley of my belle France. You need to come to the castle of the ladies, Château de Chenonceau! It is a must me think, Hope you have enjoy this post as I
And remember, happy travels, good health, and many cheers to all !!!
Paris1972-Versailles2003 
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