Château of Chaumont

The Renaissance château of Chaumont built in the 15th and 16th centuries by the powerful Amboise family, offers one of the most beautiful views on the Loire River.

Here in the XVIth century, Catherine of Medicis, welcomes her astrologer, Ruggieri. One of the chateau towers was then used as an observatory to consult the stars. It is here that the Queen saw into the future, predicting the dark destiny of her 3 sons and the accession of the Bourbon dynasty with Henry IV, to the throne.

Upon the death of her husband, Henri II, Catherine of Medicis used the château of Chaumont as a bargaining counter against Chenonceau in order to expel Diana of Poitiers, her husband’s mistress, from that chateau.

A first fortress existed on this site as early as the  Xth century to protect the Earldom of Blois from the Count of Anjou's attacks. The domain was then given to the Amboise family through weddings over 5 centuries. The castle was destroyed by Louis XI in 1465 and rebuilt from 1468 to 1510. It is a Renaissance château but its architecture shows the gothic influence because the descendants of the Amboise family wanted to preserve the memory of their ancestors' military prowess while benefiting from the comforts of the renaissance.

In 1550, the dwelling became the home of Catherine of Medicis.
In the XVIIIth and XIXth centuries the château was the scene of intense intellectual activity when the family Le Ray of Chaumont welcomed in succession the sculptor Nini, the American Benjamin Franklin and the woman of letters Germaine de Staël.
The XIXth century marked the peak of the Chaumont Domain, thanks to the prince and the princess of Broglie.With the help of the house of Hermès, the royal couple created sumptuous modern