Just six miles west of Valençay, which I posted about a few times just a few days ago, there's a smaller town called Villentrois (pop. 500 or so). It grew up around the base of an 11th century fortress that was built by the count of the province of Anjou to defend the eastern end of his territories along the Loire and Cher rivers. I think it's basically a ruin, but I've never tried to go inside. Villentrois doesn't get a mention in either of the guidebooks for the Loire Valley that I often consult (Cadogan and Michelin).
Below you'll see a different photo of the Château de Villentrois. It was taken on a different day from the two above and with a different camera. The colors are different. One day — it was years and years ago now — I got a blog comment or an e-mail from a man in Ontario (Canada) telling me he had memories of staying for a few days at a BnB in the Château de Villentrois years earlier and visiting Saint-Aignan and other local attractions.
He was coming back to France and wondered if we could meet up somewhere and have a cup of coffee or a glass of wine. I invited him to our house. He brought his wife and their two young sons along and we all spent a couple of hours getting acquainted. He spoke English but his wife and sons also spoke Canadian French. We spoke French with them a little. It was an interesting afternoon.
He was coming back to France and wondered if we could meet up somewhere and have a cup of coffee or a glass of wine. I invited him to our house. He brought his wife and their two young sons along and we all spent a couple of hours getting acquainted. He spoke English but his wife and sons also spoke Canadian French. We spoke French with them a little. It was an interesting afternoon.
Oh, boy! I poked around and found that the count was none other than Foulques Nerra III. It's cool to see another of his strongholds. He was a bad, bad man, but the history is interesting.
ReplyDeleteYes, the famous Foulques Nerra III. He also had the tower in Saint-Aignan built.
DeleteYou and Walt are wonderful hosts. I bet that family has fond memories of time spent with you all. People memories are even better than site memories when traveling.
ReplyDeleteAgreed.
DeleteA dramatic looking place! Out of curiosity I searched the internet for info on the interior. It seems like its partly habitable, but with the upper floors being unrestored.
ReplyDeleteWhere did you find that information? Are there photos?
DeleteI found news about a project at the Château de Villentrois on a site called Archiliste.
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