Angers castle

At the entrance of the city in the Maine-et-Loire department, 75 miles away from the city of Tours, the Angers Castle, also known as the Castle of the Dukes of Anjou, is one of the best conserved medieval fortresses in France. Covering an area of 22,000 square feet, this Loire Valley castle has an outer wall perimeter of 2600 feet, which is enforced by 17 enormous towers made of schist and a limestone called “tufa”. The location was strategically selected on the highest ground in Angers, looming over theRiver Maine. There is also evidence of this site being occupied around 4000 – 4500 ago. Over the drawbridge and inside the walls, the interior courtyard of the fortress was built by Saint Louis near the year 1230, with elegant gardens and buildings constructed between the 14th and 15th Centuries; the royal chambers, the chapel, the châtelet, which were built alongside other structures that have since disappeared, to be replaced by the gallery of the Apocalypse. The dukes of Anjou held their princely court here in the 14th and 15th Centuries. Afterwards, from the 16th to the 20th, it was transformed into a prison, a garrison and then a munitions depot during the Second World War. The Apocalypse tapestry is 338 feet long, commissioned by Duke Louis I of Anjou at the end of the 14th Century, and is exhibited in a completely renovated gallery, preserved using the most advanced techniques to help conserve this masterpiece, highlighting the richness of colour and the weaving techniques. The castle also shelters a collection of tapestries from the 15th and 16th Centuries. A visit to this castle is scheduled in the Mont Saint Michel and the Chateaux Country, 2 days tour offered byPariscityvision.com