Azay-le-Rideau
Azay-le-Rideau [photos] is a smaller castle of exceptional architectural beauty, robust turrets and luxurious furnished rooms.  It is also considered to be one of the more beautiful chateaux in the Valley. Named after one of it’s lords, Rideau d’Azay, it sits on the Indre river, in the region of Centre, departement of Indre-et-Loire. 

Azay has its horrific past as well.  In 1418, while passing through Azay, Charles the VII was insulted by the Burgundy guard.  The King retaliated immediately and the town was taken over and burned; all the guards were executed. 

The chateau was rebuilt by financier Filles Berthelot, and his wife Phillippa, in the early 16th Century.  Phillippa oversaw the reconstruction of this lovely chateau.  When the monarchy’s financier fell into disfavor with the King, he fled the country and died in exile. 

Francois I confiscated Azay-le-Rideau and gave it to one of his companions in arms, Antoine Raffin.
 

Chambord 
Chambord [photos] is located in the region of Centre, departement of Loir-et-Cher.  It is, of course, the most glorious of the chateaux de la Loire.  King Francois I already owned Amboise, Blois and Chenonceaux Castles, but felt the need for a more elegant hunting lodge than the one that originally occupied the setting.  Thus the King acquired over 10,000 more acres to build this architectural jewel.

Chambord was constructed with 440 rooms and just about as many fireplaces (that you could walk into).  It was constructed with its magnificent, Italian style double staircase that is believed to have been designed by Leonardo de Vinci.  A person going up or down one staircase would not meet another going the opposite direction on the other staircase.  The staircase was designed to allow the simultaneous up and down passage, of both soldiers and horses, in times of siege.

Chambord was quite an undertaking; the treasury was broke, and there was no money to pay the ransom demanded for the release of Francois’ two sons being held hostage in Spain.  But, the construction continued.  Only Francois’ imprisonment, after losing the battle of Pavia, halted the activity for about a year.

The King was so enthusiastic about his project that he wanted to change the course of the Loire river to run by Chambord.  But, even the King agreed that the cost was prohibitive.  Instead, he had the Cosson river redirected to flow past the castle.

The park, which is enclosed by a wall, has been a national hunting reserve since 1948.  The barrier is reportedly the longest in France. Chambord is an absolute must to visit.  
 

Chenonceaux
Chenonceaux [photos], in the region of Centre, departement of Indre-et-Loire, is a smaller and privately owned chateau.  It is generally considered to be the most beautiful in the Loire Valley.  Chenonceaux spans the Cher River in magnificent grandeur.  This is the Chateau that was designed, and added to, by several women.  It has come to be known as ‘The Castle Designed, Built, and Added To by the Women of Chenonceaux’.  The several women, during the course of some 400 years, were:  Catherine Briconnet, Diane de Potiers, and Catherine de Medici, among others.

Chenonceaux however had quite a racy history!  The chateau was originally built in 1521 by Thomas Bohier.  He was a tax collector under Charles VII, Louis XII and Francois I.  Bohier had originally bought the Chenenceau estate that consisted of a manor and mill.  Out of a property dispute, with a heiress to Chenonceaux, Bohier finally acquired all the adjoining fiefs.  Bohier then raised the old buildings with the exception of the manor.  Since he could not personally supervise the construction of his new chateau, due to his duties with the army near Milan, his wife Catherine Briconnet, took charge and creatively designed and oversaw the chateau’s construction.

The Bohiers only enjoyed the chateau a few years before their deaths.  Their son, Antoine, ceded the chateau to Francois I in payment of his father’s large debt to the Treasury.  Francois I used it as a hunting lodge.

Francois I bequeathed Chenonceaux to his successor, Henri II, who in turn gave it to his mistress Diane de Poitiers (his senior by some 20 years).  Diane turned Chenonceaux into a profitable estate through development of its agriculture, the sale of its wine and its tax income.  Diane also had the bridge constructed that spans the Cher, and enlarged the chateau.  However, when Henri II was killed in a tournament, in 1599, his wife Catherine de Medici forced Diane to exhange Chenonceaux for Chaumont.  She then added the two-story bridge gallery, where magnificent galas were held, and a park that she created because of her love for the arts.

The saga of the women of Chenonceaux continued on; check your history books for more details!