Château de Montrésor

The village of Montrésor is perched on a cliff in the Loire Valley with the Château de Montrésor at the highest point. This is a beautiful little château in an idyllic setting and I had lots of fun trying to capture that “perfect photo” of “my treasure” (mon-trésor).

Perched high on a cliff over the river facing a forest, we could never find the specific road that would take us down to the opposite river bank for a front view of this château. I’m sure that would have been a spectacular view!

Although I refer to the cliff-side as the front of the Château, this side with the main entrance must surely be the “front” of the Château.

The park-like atmosphere of this château is definitely inviting! Cozy would be the word I would use to describe the grounds as well as the inside of the Château de Montrésor. Walking through the ivy enshrouded gates with Count Rey was certainly  a welcoming feel.

Entrance – Count Rey is the figure on the left

A Bit of History

The Château de Montrésor is a Renaissance style château that dates from 1493. It is built on the foundation of a medieval fortress which was constructed by Imbert of Bastarnay. Imbert is also credited with building the beautiful collegiate church  in Montrésor. We visited the church after we toured the Château.

This young soldier, sculpted in bronze by Jules Franceschi. died beside Count Branicki during the Battle of Magenta (1859).

After Imbert, the Château de Montrésor was acquired by a Polish Count, Xavier Branicki,  who restored it and designed the garden. There were two very beautiful statues in the garden and from Count Rey (the current Count) we learned that the Château we enjoy today is as it appeared when the Count Branicki was living here.

This fallen angel statue (l’ange déchu) by Constantino Corti was originally in the Count’s Paris apartment.

Inside the Château de Montrésor

One of the passions of the Count was hunting. Practically every room (or so it seemed to me) has some ornamentation to remind you of that hunting passion: stuffed trophy heads, guns, swords, rhino horns, hippo teeth, tortoise shells and other assorted oddities!

Count Branicki was also a collector of paintings so where there is no hunting trophy, you are sure to find beautiful paintings from his collection. It is like being in a museum. Dutch landscapes, family portraits and a painting of the Holy Family done by an Italian artist just few that grace the walls. However, in the billiard room, all the paintings tell a story of Polish history.

Count Konstanty Rey

Today, Konstanty Rey, also a Polish Count, is responsible for the Château. He lives in the large house opposite the Château. Count Rey who met us at the gate and gave us our first introduction to the château and its gardens. (Count Rey is the figure to the left in the gate picture above.)

Until we read the information brochure in the château and later searched for Count Rey’s image on Google, we did not realize that the Count was our initial host! He was a fascinating individual and clearly very proud of what he had accomplished in restoring and maintaining the Château.

Although very talkative and filled with fascinating little details about the restoration of the Château, he never once let on that he lived on the premises. We have visited one other château, Château du Moulin, in which a descendant of the original owner was living on the property and showed us around the château. This sort of experience makes for a pretty memorable visit!

Breathtaking Staircase

We delighted in the beautiful spiral staircase found in the small living room. This work of art is made of Cuban Mahogany and gilded bronze. According to the literature, the Count saw it at the Paris Exhibition of 1855 and had it set into the thickness of the wall. I found this detail fascinating: the staircase is balanced on the first and last step with only 3 steel support bars at the side! The stairwell leads to the billiard room. Unlike many historic houses, visitors are allowed to climb this beautiful staircase.

Staircase to billiard room

In fact, the only access to the Billiard room is via this staircase. I love the birds-eye-view it gave me of the sitting room. 

View of the small living room from the top of the staircase

Having taken piano lessons for 11 years, I found the history behind the piano in the large living room fascinating! This piano is from Paris. Apparently, Frederick Chopin, a Polish piano virtuoso fell in love with Count Xavier’s sister-in-law. He even composed a famous waltz for her! If you are a Chopin fan, you can see his grave in Paris at the Père Lachaise Cemetery.

A piano with a connection to Chopin!

The Library

The library would have normally overwhelmed me with its books, after all it holds rare Dutch atlases from the 16th century that are the first great geographical maps in the world. But instead, it was the magnificent carvings of the table legs that held my attention.  Each of the four “dragons” is in its own way slightly different from each of the other carvings. When I later looked at my photos I realized I had totally overlooked the amazingly ornate fireplace seen in the background.

Château de Montrésor Library

Detail of table

The Dining Room

In the dining room below you can see a few of the Count’s hunting trophies. Even today, the trophy collection continues to grow. As recently as 2000, the stag joined other trophies.

Take a close look at the table in the dining room that clearly seats 12. The table doesn’t look very big but it expands to seat 40 guests!

Château dining room

Back outside the Château we wandered around both inside the walls of the grounds and outside one more time. On the outside edge we could peer over the wall at the main café of Montrésor.

Outside the Château walls

Behind the Château, looking down on the village cafe.

Inside the walls (only on three sides) looked across the river below the Château to the forest beyond. The views were breath-taking!

View of the village of Montresor.

Garden path- definitely my favorite view with the autumn colors.

The Château de Montrésor is only a short distance from Loches. Loches is a beautiful market town and the old town is memorable. Climb the Donjon while you are there for spectacular views of Loches and the surrounding countryside..