Heading to our first official Chateau in the Loire we passed through the lovely little town of Dhuizon and of course had to stop for photos and eclairs.
And here's where we spent the next 6 hours - Château de Chambord!
Chambord, the largest château in the Loire Valley, was built between in the 1500's to serve as a hunting lodge for King François I. In reality, however, Chambord is no mere hunting lodge but a massively extravagant chateau over 156 metres long and 56 metres tall with 77 staircases, 282 fireplaces and 426 rooms!
Francois I reigned for 32 years, during which time he spent only 72 days at Chambord; he never saw his grand project completed for on his death in 1547 only the keep and the royal wing had been finished. It was his son, Henry II, and Louis XlV, also both very fond of hunting, who were responsible for making Chambord look the way it stands today.
As the château had been constructed with the purpose of short hunting stays in mind, it was actually not practical to live there on a longer-term basis. The massive rooms, open windows, exposed staircases and high ceilings were not suited to winter temperatures and made effective heating impossible.
This was perhaps the most fascinating aspect of this magnificent chateau, it was never really utilised. Despite the grandeur and the effort, for nearly all of its existence it has stood empty and it is only since it was acquired by the state in 1932 and subsequently developed as a tourist attraction has it seen visitors on the scale it deserves.
And after the splendour of Chambord it was on to the splendour of the "Spectacle équestre a Chambord" (or horse show). It told the story of Francois I with a bit of jousting, trick riding and fighting thrown in the mix. It was a feast for the eyes and we loved it!
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