Whether to visit Chambord or Chenonceau, that was the question. Both were top picks on Rick Steves’ recommended list. Château de Chenonceau was described as the “toast of the Loire.” On the other hand, Château Chambord had the benefit of the Da Vinci-factor. And since it was in our neighborhood, more or less . . .
After Francis I victory in Milan in 1516, where he supposedly came in contact with the architectural work of Leonardo da Vinci, he invited Leonardo to France as his premier painter, architect and engineer. While the actual architect of Chambord isn’t known and no records exist, sketches from Leonardo’s notebook and the design of Chambord bear a striking resemblance. The center plan design of the keep and the double-helix central staircase are evidence of the master’s role in bringing Francis’s plans to life. And that’s good enough for me!
The square keep—the center of the complex today—was Francis’s original palace. It had three equal-size rooms on each side with a round tower on each corner. The two lateral buildings that were later added to make up the courtyard incorporated the design of the original building, including spiral staircases. Best of all, says Connie, the entire château remains symmetrical when viewed from the outside.
At the center of the keep, where four of the rooms converged, is a “double-helix” staircase that could be designed only by Leonardo da Vinci. Or Rosalind Franklin! It’s twinned helical ramps twist around a hollow core with window openings through which you can see someone using the other staircase. The staircase goes up three floors, all the way to the terrace and the 100-foot tall Lantern Tower, the tallest in the castle.
Château Chambord is the largest in the area—six times the size of the average Loire castle. Only 80 of its 400 rooms are open to the public and the nearly 300 giant fireplaces show signs of heavy use. Even kings feel the cold.
Troo lies at the other end of the spectrum from Chambord—both architecturally and socially. Like the villagers of Turquant, many of those in Troo—Troo-dolytes?—still live in dwellings carved into the rock. We enjoyed comparing the old photos with Troo today, especially the defunct bakery which closed in the 1970s.
