I am on my road warrior mode again, and again in the beautiful Centre Val de Loire region with many visits. These are all firsts amazing abundance of marvelous places to see in my belle France. I finally found me a castle that was open, and wow!! first time here and what a find! This is in the town of Lémeré to see the Château du Rivau. I will use this post to tell you about the castle interiors and another post on the gardens and exteriors ,therefore some or most of the text will be the same. Hope you enjoy the posts as I.
In the 13C, Le Rivau was a stronghold , and was fortified in the 15C and then humanized during the Renaissance. It is both an impregnable fortress and a pleasant place to live. The Gothic windows of the facade of the castle were enlarged and decorated with carvings. The forecourt was endowed with prestigious stables. In the 17C, the buildings south of the forecourt were rebuilt and covered with hollow tiles because the low slope of the roofs did not allow the laying of slate, which requires a steep slope. In the 18C, there was no modernization of the castle, but the garden terraces of Le Rivau were surrounded by walls. The castle became a wheat storage place and forgot its splendor of yesteryear. Le Rivau is renowned for its stables from the 15C, when these were still only made of wood. One of the illustrious characters in it is Joan of Arc. After having recognized the Dauphin in Chinon in 1427, she will criss-cross France to join various seats. Knowing her reputation for her steeds, Joan of Arc will stop at Rivau and come to get fighting horses in 1429 before joining the siege of Orléans.
From 1438, the Rivau was given as a dowry to Pierre de Beauvau, first chamberlain of the Dauphin Charles VII. He obtained the authorization of King Charles VII to have the castle fortified, thanks to his feats of arms. The Rivau fortified house thus became a fortified castle in the 15C. Reconstruction work began in 1443 In 1510, François de Beauvau, lord of Rivau and captain of François I, undertook to build monumental stables which would provide his stallions to the king. He died at the battle of Romagna alongside Bayard in 1524. His successor, Gabriel de Beauvau decided, around 1550, to erect a very innovative building, influenced by the buildings that the great lords had discovered while accompanying the King to the Italian campaigns. From 1631, Le Rivau was spared by Cardinal Richelieu who wanted to dismantle all the castles near the present town of Richelieu in order to recover the stones that would be used to build his town ,just 10 km from the Rivau. His sister Françoise Duplessis being married to Jean de Beauvau, lord of the place, the Rivau escaped the dismantling suffered by the neighboring castles. His descendant Jacques de Beauvau, marshal of the camps and armies of King Louis XIV left the Château du Rivau to go to the court of the Sun King. In 1664, he obtained the erection of the land of Beauvau as a marquisate. His cousin, René, was adviser to the King. After the sale of the castle, the Beauvau left Touraine, entered the service of the King of Poland, Duke of Lorraine and became Princes of Lorraine., For two centuries, different owners followed one another: artists, marquises, etc. From the 19C, Le Rivau remained uninhabited and fell into oblivion. The painter and poster designer Pierre-Laurent Brenot became the owner of the château in February 1961 and lived there until it was sold to the current owners, Éric and Patricia Laigneau, in December 1992. They immediately began the restoration work necessary to restore the castle, its outbuildings and the gardens. In 2000, the site was opened to the public.
The Chambre of lord Beaveau and its chapel is not mention much even in the official webpage but they are small rooms into the salle des Dames that are worth seeing me think.
Fortress on the outside with its dungeon, its moat, its drawbridge, and its walkway, the castle is also a pleasure castle. From the entrance surmounted by the coat of arms of the Beauvau family and their motto “Beauvau without departing” ,the visitor climbs the spiral staircase where many graffiti from the 15C are to be deciphered. In the vast rooms of the Rivau emerges a warm atmosphere. Below pic the public entrance.
The salle du grand logis or hall of the grand dwelling ,This large hall of arms and banquet was also used by the lord of Beauvau to arbitrate on the one hand the conflicts between peasants and on the other hand between them and the lord.
The cabinet de travail du Seigneur de Beauvau or office of the Lord of Beauvau , This room with a sexpartite vault called Plantagenêt, typical of Angevin Gothic architecture, recreates the atmosphere of the Lord’s office The office presents a collection of furniture and chests from the 15-16C and 18C which constituted the essential of the furniture of the seigniorial dwellings.
The salle du festin or banquet hall ,This hall is marked by the Renaissance, as it retains the traces of the frescoes from that period.
The salon des dames or ladies’ room This room is a tribute to the ladies, to the heroines of Rivau and elsewhere. We find the cushions that allowed women to sit near the windows to embroider, weave, sing, play the harp, etc.
The salle Jeanne d’Arc or Joan of Arc Room, This is the only room remodeled in the 19C. It pays homage to the various representations of Joan of Arc in the 19C. With the rise of different political currents, Joan of Arc was sometimes monopolized by them. It is therefore the vision of Joan of Arc in the 19th century when she aroused national enthusiasm. Even today, she is both a national trophy and a symbol of perseverance and stubbornness.
The official Château du Rivau :https://www.chateaudurivau.com/en/
The Touraine Loire Valley tourist office on Rivau castle:https://www.touraineloirevalley.co.uk/cultural-heritage/chateau-and-gardens-of-le-rivau-lemere/
The town of Lémeré on its heritage: https://lemere.fr/tourisme-loisirs-decouvertes-et-patrimoine/
There you go folks, another dandy in my belle France and on the Centre Val de Loire region of the valley of the kings of France! The Château du Rivau is another must and glad we found it, we will be back, eventually. Again, hope you have enjoy the post as I.
And remember, happy travels, good health, and many cheers to all !!!
Paris1972-Versailles2003 