19th September

After an easy drive from Tours, we arrived at La Moulin Fort and booked in for 3 nights. It’s a really nice site right on the river Cher. It was looking a bit “end of season” tired and the toilet block and laundry facilities could do with an upgrade. However, the bar was open as was the swimming pool, though by now the weather wasn’t quite warm enough for a dip.

We got settled in and then set off for a long walk along the river until we came to the Chateau ready to take lots of photos. There were boats and canoes that you could hire, but we settled for walking back, crossing the bridge and then walking in the opposite direction.

The next morning it was raining, so we did some laundry catch up, reading and relaxing before going for another walk by the river in the afternoon. We found a large information sign which explained that the river was the boundary between the occupied zone in the north and “free France” in the south. It’s hard for us to imagine what that must have been like in the war.

Next day dawned bright and sunny and we made an early start to walk to the Chateau. We passed a garden in Chisseaux called the “Jardin de Muses” which was full of statuary of dancing figures. Unfortunately there was no sign of it being open to visit so we continued to the Chateau. The village is so quiet we began to wonder if we were in the right place till we came to the tourist office where we were able to book our tickets and time slot for going inside the Chateau. If you want an audio guide you have to book it separately which we didn’t know, so we had to rely on the guide book.

The current chateau was built in 1514 and in 1535 it was seized by king Francis in lieu of unpaid debts. In 1547 Henri II gave the chateau to his mistress, Diane de Poitiers. Diane commissioned the building of the bridge over the river and laid out beautiful ornamental grounds. She remained in residence until the king died in 1559 when his widow, Catherine de Medici forced Diane de Poitiers to leave. Catherine ruled as regent from Chenonceau adding to the gardens and the famous gallery across the river.

The ownership of the chateau passed through the line of French kings until 1733 and then through a series of private owners until 1913 when it became the property of the Menier family, famous for their chocolates. The Menier family still own the chateau today.

In the first world war the Meniers used the chateau as a field hospital, turning the long gallery into a hospital ward. In the second world war, the long gallery was used to secretly aid people fleeing from the occupied northern territories into the free south.

With such a long history it was fascinating to explore the interior of the chateau and then wander round the grounds. We had a lovely day and enjoyed a late afternoon walk back to the campsite.