Château of Langeais – a truly medieval residence

The château of Langeais is quite different from everything I have seen by now (maybe just a bit similar to Vincennes) and relies on a very long history. Its first stone was laid around the year 1000 by the count of Anjou, Foulque Nerra. Visitors can still admire a fragment of the outer wall of his fortress and the ruins of an old chapel in the gardens behind the present-day castle. Being a reputable warrior and a remarkable landlord, he understood the strategic importance of Langeais as a promontory from which attacking armies could be easily seen. Later on, the domain came into the possession of various noblemen serving the king of France, who made it a prestigious residence to welcome the king whenever he would have wished to visit it.
The fortress successfully survived the hundred years war remaining almost untouched by the major military campaigns.
Charles VII was the first king to settle in Touraine by acquiring Langeais and other châteaux on the banks of the Loire. Louis XI continued this tradition, choosing to reside in Plessis-lès-Tours, Langeais, Chinon and Loches. By that time, Langeais lost its military role and slightly turned into a comfortable home for the royal court and family.
Louis XI built it according to his own vision and necessities. The castle preserves its massive appearance, marked by a drawbridge, narrow tall towers, machicolations and sharply sloping roofs, which are typically medieval, but some details of the façade and the fine windows already contain refinements that herald the Renaissance architecture.
Dunois, the cousin of Louis XI was given Langeais as a gift and proved to be a very concerned master. He not only cherished the chef-d’oeuvre erected by his predecessors but also added a new west wing.

The most important historical event hosted by the Langeais castle was the wedding between Charles VIII king of France and Anne, the Duchess of Brittany, arranged by Dunois and other French diplomats. The secret terms of the marriage contract were carefully thought over to unite Brittany to France forever. In the early morning of December 6th 1491 Anne of Brittany became queen of France, wearing a magnificent gown in gold cloth, beautifully imitated in the Wedding Hall of the castle, where lifelike waxwork figures re-enact the event (though I wouldn’t say “lifelike”, were people less tall in middle ages than they are today? Haha) (and by the way, according to historic data and available portraits, Anne was looking better than the yellow face wax figure without eyelashes!) Anyway, we all know the rest of the story, her (tiny tiny) husband very soon died and she had to marry his cousin who became Louis XII, in order to comply with the terms of the above mentioned contract and maintain Brittany as a French province.
Unfortunately Anne didn’t stay too much at Langeais, but the entire place seems to be breathing the air of her memory. Inside, you can still smell the coldness of that early misty December morning that changed her fate forever.
The castle had many owners after that, until it was finally bought by Jacques Siegfried, an Alsatian businessman interested in French Middle Ages. He succeeded to restore the château as it used to be in the 15th – 16th centuries and handed it down to the Institut de France at his death.
 

Impressions about the castle of Langeais? Well, there is a lot to say. It is a perfect reflection of a medieval princely abode with purely decorative floor tiles, fine pieces of furniture (beds, seats, fauteuils, chests), embroidered drapery, woven tapestry that all help us fancy the lifestyle at the end of the Middle Ages. In fact, Langeais hosts an exceptional collection of tapestries. They were very popular at the end of the 15th century to decorate walls, add warmth to homes and by representing figures of personages, religious /historic episodes or hunting scenes, feed the imagination of people during long tedious evenings.
 

Langeais is more than a museum and a priceless architectural inheritance. It is an open gate to plunging into the past by visiting an almost real medieval living environment, carefully recreated to challenge our minds and wish to know more…

Revue de livre de Gonzague Saint Bris "François Ier et la Renaissance"

Même si parfois on n’est pas entièrement d’accord avec l’auteur ou on a l’impression qu’il traite superficiellement certains chapitres de la vie de son héros, c’est un bon livre, plutôt romanesque.

Aborder la vie du grand François Ier dans le contexte de la Renaissance (qui a entièrement marqué son règne) est une approche intéressante et courageuse.

Gonzague Saint-Bris nous fait découvrir les qualités du roi et de l’homme François Ier – bon cavalier, expert aux armes, chasseur passionné, fin observateur des arts, protecteurs des architectes et des artistes qui sont invités à embellir les résidences royales. Côté politique, François a le goût pour écouter, apprendre et s’inspirer mais ne cesse pas de guerroyer comme un chevalier accompli et itinérant de son temps. Son histoire est à la fois captivante (l’ascension au trône de la France n’était pas tout à fait prédictible à sa naissance, la captivité en Espagne, le changement d’attitude envers les protestants), tragique (la mort précoce de la reine Claude, de sa mère Louise de Savoie et du dauphin) mais toujours fascinante (il préfère s’allier avec Soliman le Magnifique qu’avec Henri VIII d’Angleterre ou l’empereur Charles Quint).

Sa personnalité forte et magnétique attire pas seulement les femmes, quoique se sont elles qui l’entourent et dominent sa vie depuis son enfance (sa sœur Marguerite de Valois/Navarre, sa mère Louise de Savoie, la duchesse de Châteaubriant ou la duchesse d’Etampes – figures marquantes du début du XVIe siècle par leur intelligence), mais aussi le peuple qui apprécie ses efforts de visiter toutes les régions de son royaume, prendre contact directement avec ses sujets et accroitre de cette façon sa légitimité. Le roi est reconnu et aimé partout, incarnant ainsi le monarque idéal qui respecte ses sujets et affermi le pouvoir royal. Même dans ses échecs, il n’est jamais abandonné par les Français (sa captivité a renforcé sa popularité).

"L’autorité de François Ier est plus grande que n’a été celle d’un roi de France depuis longtemps", affirme Gonzague Saint-Bris qui nous révèle la formule du roi idéal dans la Renaissance: roi chevalier + roi lettré + roi amoureux + roi politique (100% appliquée à François Ier).

L’auteur a une vision innovatrice sur la modalité de rédiger une biographie historique; il ne suit pas seulement son modèle mais se penche sur une analyse rigoureuse de l’époque afin de nous présenter un personnage plus complet et vraisemblable. Il nous rappelle que la Renaissance c’est aussi la période de Rabelais, de Nostradamus, Copernic, Da Vinci, etc.

A savoir:

- François Ier a introduit la langue française comme langue administrative unique en France

- Il est le premier à envoyer des ambassadeurs permanents en autres pays et des navires au nouveau monde (Amérique et Canada)

- Même si tolérant envers les protestants au début de son règne il déclenche une vague de persécutions après l’affaire des placards

- Le roi a passé seulement 45 jours de son règne à Chambord, pourtant c’était sa plus grande fierté

- Il a eu l’initiative de fonder la Bibliothèque Royale (qui est devenue plus tard la Bibliothèque Nationale de France) ainsi que le Collège de France

- Ses résidences préférées étaient Fontainebleau, Amboise, Blois et Romorantin

- La relation avec Anne de Pisseleu a duré 21 ans, jusqu’à sa mort

- François Ier a réduit le pouvoir du pape sur l’église de France en instituant la soumission totale du clergé au roi

Conclusion: "François Ier et la Renaissance" est un ouvrage savoureux et agréable pour ceux qui sont passionnés par la Renaissance ou les Valois.

Movie review "Henri IV" 2010 or, where have all the good history movies gone?

"Henri IV" is a 2010 German/French TV production inspired by Heinrich Mann’s book and perceived by many viewers as a historical movie.

Interested in 16th century France and having read a great deal on the subject, I can tell you this movie is nothing but fiction, or most of it. It is true that the characters existed and the events took place but their interpretation is far from reality.

Who’s to blame? Perhaps Heinrich Mann’s book, which is somehow misleading to many readers interested in following the destiny of Prince Henry up to his becoming king of France. The author has never been a historian, as far as I know, and didn’t even bother to consult trustworthy sources after he suddenly decided to write his fictionalized and syrupy novel. I have read it about 15 years ago.

"Henri IV" movie is a mere adaptation of the above mentioned book, plus some fictional digressions, which vexed me greatly. It’s hard to stand such a painful distortion of real facts especially since most people, who do not take the trouble of reading history, tend to appreciate movies as a means of educating their knowledge. A disastrous perspective for our generation.

Let’s reveal only a few science fiction details:

- Nostradamus himself predicts Henri’s future ascension to the throne of France. In fact, when Henri was only a child nobody knew that he would eventually become king of France, since Charles IX had 2 brothers and was too young to assume he would not have sons of his own. It is wrong to suppose that Henry of Navarre the child was already seen as a future king of France, that idea came later on, after 1585.

- I see no reason why Charles IX is played by such an old actor. He died at the age of 24 and by the moment his sister Margot got married to Henry, he was only 22. They make him behave like a madman, though he was not. Yes, he didn’t really show interest in political affairs (he would rather go hunting than rule the country) and was of a sickly constitution but it’s hard to imagine a king with his shirt torn off insanely screaming, wrangling and climbing tables in front of the entire court. Charles and his brothers were raised and educated in a royal and respectable family.

- As to his brother, Henry of Anjou (whose punk hairstyle amused me greatly), is totally portrayed as being short-minded, indifferent and irresponsible. His fat, stupid appearance, and gay manners, made me realize that the black legend compromising Henry III’s image for many centuries is still perpetuated nowadays, despite numerous scientific attempts to destroy it.

- Margot looks like a cloying whore (same as in "Queen Margot" played by Isabelle Adjani). Frankly speaking, she has never been a saint, but to suppose that she was publicly spanked by her brother is unacceptable, especially in such a distinguished family.

- As expected, Catherine of Medicis is described as mean, selfish, greedy for power, and a pain in the ass to her children. Heinrich Mann and Alexandre Dumas have both contributed to feeding this horrible myth about Queen Catherine, as well as many others for the past 5 centuries or so. I wonder when people would become aware of her brilliant mind and endless efforts to maintain peace in a country devastated by civil war.

- Too much meaningless sex

- Endless time lapses and wrong chronology

The first hour of the movie reminds me a lot of "Queen Margot" (1994), which I previously criticized on my blog as a big failure to reproduce even Dumas’ vision on St. Barthelemy events.

Conclusion:

Any attempt to delve deeper into such a dispute is futile, mind-bogglingly silly and ridiculous. My idea is to point out that nothing in this movie is historically true, not even costumes, background, settings, situations, speeches, etc. It is pure cinematographic fiction.

So, do not let yourself guided astray by this interpretation of facts to assume that they happened this way in reality. Be wise enough to sift real facts from fiction.

The movie producers clearly deride most respectable historical figures of those times consciously/unconsciously sending a wrong message and feeding us with incorrect ideas.

Such cheesy productions must be counterbalanced by genuine historical adaptations, which are unfortunately waning these days. Most film makers seem to think producing good history movies is not worth the while: the audience is scarce and sales are less profitable. As a result, our generation is wading in ignorance of the past.

I am quite aware that my article might be strongly frowned upon by some movie-goers (who adore, by the way, "Queen Margot", "Alexander the Great" and probably "Troy" haha) but I am so bold as to reveal my true feelings, as I always do!

Chenonceau castle - between myth and reality

When searching on internet information about the Chenonceau castle, one of the jewels of the French Loire valley, you normally get amazing pictures of a beautiful and shining castle spreading its wing, which dates from the 16th century, over the old river  shaped as a bridge. Well, believe it or not, they are 70% photoshoped. The shape is real but the difference between pictures and reality is huge!

It’s not that I didn’t enjoy visiting the château; I surely did, having the chance to rediscover already forgotten paths that remind me of Catherine or Louise. But in terms of aspect, it is the first castle in France that somehow disappointed me. I know, you would say that such an old construction can hardly be shiny and accurate, but why does it look so on postcards and google? Why create a fairy tale image which is not quite realistic? I would have accepted it  anyway.
This time I will spare you from any long stories, unlike previously, just let me mention why Chenonceau is significant à mon avis: I don’t care that it belonged to Diane de Poitiers, I never really liked mistresses, I would rather much care for Catherine of Medicis taking it back and making it her favorite residence for several years (although I doubt she spent too much time here). It has been the setting for some major happy reunions of the Valois family of which two are worth mentioning - 1560 (François II’s ascension to the throne) and 1577 (famous ball offered by Henri III to his subjects).
The castle was later on inherited by Queen Louise de Lorraine-Vaudémont, who used it as a place of mourning and praying after the tragic news of her husband’s violent death in 1589.
Chenonceau became a private residence in the 17th century and so it is nowadays, with the exception of the WWI period when the location served as a hospital.
The Marques tower, so called “donjon”, is the only trace of what used to be Chenonceau before Renaissance, dating from the 13th century, quite impressive and outstanding for its age!
I particularly enjoyed the 16th century farm nearby, with real vegetables, pastures and animals! 
More photos of Chenonceau here

Plessis-lès-Tours, le château oublié

Situé dans la commune Riche, près de Tours (dép. Indre-et-Loire), le château de Plessis-lès-Tours (also known as Montils-lès-Tours) abrite à présent un théâtre et plusieurs expositions. Il n’est presque jamais visité pas les touristes et peu de Tourangeaux savent où il se trouve et quelle est son histoire.

Pour moi, c’est un endroit important dans deux sens:
1. C’était la demeure favorite de Louis XI, il l’a achetée en 1468 et y est décédé en 1483, en plus, c’est ici que Charles VIII a emmené sa femme Anne de Bretagne après leur mariage et c’est ici que leur premier enfant est né en 1492 (malheureusement il n’a pas survécu).
2. Plessis-lès-Tours a été le lieu de rencontre entre Henri III et Henri de Navarre (futur Henri IV) après l’assassinat du duc de Guise pour s’allier à reconquérir Paris et affronter la ligue catholique en 1589, quelques mois avant la mort du roi.
Sa construction date donc du XVe siècle, achevée au XIXe siècle. De dimensions assez réduites, si comparé aux autres châteaux de la Renaissance, Plessis-lès-Tours a quand même son charme particulier provenant d’une atmosphère imprégnée d’histoire et d’un paysage idyllique. Le petit parc aux arbres séculaires qui entourent le château est dominé par un silence monumental, portant respect au symbolisme de l’endroit.