The Porte Royale of Loches !!!

Posted in Europe, France

We were back on my road warrior trails in the Loire valley, and this was a must stop again from home on the N165 , A11 , A85 on exit 11 to the D31 to D764 to D760 and our parking at place de Verdun,and we continue our tour to the fortress and gates, Loches is located in the Indre-et-Loire department 37, in the Centre-Val de Loire region of my belle France, Therefore, let me tell you more on the Porte Royale of Loches !!! Hope you enjoy it as I.

The Porte Royale or Royal Gate is the main entrance to the fortress, dates from the end of the 12C or the beginning of the 13C. It replaced a more basic gate, built in the 11C. In the 15C, a remodeling was necessary with the appearance of gunpowder artillery. It was then equipped with all the necessary defenses: drawbridge, moat, machicolations, loopholes and cannon terrace. In the 16C, it was transformed into a prison and the moat that ran along the mail was filled in a century later. From this gate, you can enter the fortress to visit the keep, the royal residence, the Saint-Ours Church and the Lansyer Museum (see posts). The Porte Royale, aka portal du chastel. It is located in the middle of the west front. The location of the access to the castle has not changed since the construction of the first enclosure which crowns the natural escarpments. The current gate is flanked by two towers and equipped with machicolations. Traces of a double drawbridge and a portcullis can be seen as well as the hinges of the gate.

This Porte Royale has undergone three construction campaigns: the Romanesque gate from the second half of the 11C did not have a tower. It was a gate made of two wooden leaves in a section of wall thicker than the northern part of the western curtain wall and making an angle with this part; the second gate from the beginning of the 13C required the destruction of the Romanesque gate, leaving only a tear in the wall visible. This gate has two circular flanking towers pierced with arrow slits on several levels designed as a gatehouse. The tower to the left of the gate is connected to the curtain wall by a section of the Romanesque gate wall. This gate must have been equipped, like all 12C gates, with a murder hole, a portcullis and leaves. The two cylindrical towers with an external diameter of 7 meters have three levels of defense chambers with arrow slits. It is likely that the towers of this gate date back to the beginning of the 13C before stopping halfway up at the time of the siege in 1204, then completed by Philip II Augustus before 1224; the third state of the gate dates from the 15C or royal bastille and it was modernized after the demolition of the central part of the gatehouse while retaining the towers, the drawbridge was modified with a drawbridge with arrows for the carriage gate and a wicket for pedestrians and the addition of machicolations and a platform. The keystones of the entrance passage stamped with the arms of France and Dauphiné allow us to date this recovery of the gatehouse to the reign of Charles VII, after the reconciliation of the king with his son, the Dauphin, future Louis XI, i.e. between 1450 and 1455. The platform located at the top of the gate layout was then the main defense level because it was designed to receive veuglaire-type artillery. The gun ports on the ground floor made it possible to use culverins. To ensure the defense of the entrance, the gate was preceded by a barbican which was demolished in 1699.

The City of Loches on its heritage : https://www.ville-loches.fr/sites-et-monuments-article-3-25-36.html

The local Loches Val de Loire tourist office on the cité royale de Loches : https://loches-valdeloire.com/incontournable-ville-royale-de-loches/cite-royale-de-loches-voyage-au-coeur-du-moyen-age/

The Val de Loire Centre Val de Loire region tourist office on the cité royale de Loches : https://www.valdeloire-france.com/decouvrir/les-chateaux-de-la-loire/cite-royale-loches/

There you go folks, I came back to the magnificent Loire valley. Loches is nice worth the retour and will be back, eventually. Again, hope you enjoy the post on the Porte Royale of Loches !!! as I.

And remember, happy travels, good health, and many cheers to all !!!

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Published by pedmar10

I am a lover of travels to Europe , Americas , Africa and Asia as well ,who like to share my experiences of the last 53 years with the world, visiting so far 81 countries; living in 6, working in 5, and Citizen of 4, speaking fluently 4 languages. I can deal with sports especially football/soccer and love music, arts, wine collector/drinker, and go out to restaurants, and just visit the world. My background comes all the way from Candelaria and Pajara in Tenerife, Spain where my grandparents came from ;not knowing each other then, to Punta Brava, west of Havana, Cuba. There , my parents born in Cuba met and later on I was born there too. 100% guanche (annexed Tenerife to Spain on April 10 ,1496). I left Cuba as many have to Madrid, Spain where I lived for 4 years. Then, move to Perth Amboy ,New Jersey USA (living there 13 yrs) ; where I completed high school, became a US Citizen, learned to drive a car, and learned English. Afterward, went to the university in Florida, ERAU, and upon graduation decided to moved there to Ormond by the Sea, near Daytona Beach, finally moving North Miami, then Hialeah, then another moved to Silver Lakes division in Miramar, Broward county, Florida; in Florida I lived a total of 18 years. Finally , moved to France in 2003 ,Versailles call me for its royalty, and working in Paris was great. It was time to seek frontiers again and moved to Brech near Auray, Morbihan in Brittany , and later move to not too far Pluvigner. Total so far in France has been 20 years, and counting. Moving average a home every 5.5 years hopefully this will be my last. Cheers All rights reserved. No part of this blog may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means or stored in a retrieval system of any nature, without the written permission of the copyright holder, me. No part of this work may be modified, without the written permission of the holder, me.No part of this work may be exposed to public view in any form or by any means, without identifying the holder as the author, and with the before mentioned permission.

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