Sleeping Beauty's Castle - Chateau d'Usse
We were sitting at dinner in Chinon, next to a group of tourists from New Zealand when one of them asked: Have you been to Sleeping Beauty’s Castle? Since neither Jim nor I had even heard of this castle and didn’t have it on our list of chateaux we planned to see, we didn’t think much more about it. In fact we secretly thought to ourselves that it wouldn’t be anything we would be interested in.
But we were very wrong about that!
Chateau d’Usse is a fairy-tale looking castles sporting towers and turrets aplenty. It is said to have inspired the 17th century French writer Charles Perrault to pen the tale The Sleeping Beauty. Building of the chateau was begun by Jean de Bueil in 1462 on the foundations of a medieval castle. In 1485 renaissance features were added by the Espinay family after they purchased the chateau. In the 17th century, further changes were made to the chateau and the lovely formal garden was planted on the terraces, changing the fortress castle into a manor-house which is still inhabited to this day by an aristocratic family.
But all this architecture and history isn’t really what makes this chateau special. It is the wonderful wax vignettes that populate the towers and rooms! After you enter the tall tower called the “Sleeping Beauty Tower”, and climb all the narrow winding stairs, you peek into rooms, each of which portrays another chapter in the story of Sleeping Beauty.
In true fairy-tale fashion, the models are wearing medieval tunics and hose or long silk gowns and pointed hats with veils, and of course, the old crone sits next to her spinning wheel waiting for the unsuspecting princess. You can even climb all the way to the top of the tower and visit the evil queen’s room, where she is conjuring up a new spell.
You can walk along the round tower turret ramparts and peer through vertical slots in the outer wall which were created to defend the castle by shooting arrows to the Loire Valley below. The stone corridor is very narrow and you can imagine the archers squeezing by each other as they moved into position.
In the castle proper, you can see the changes each family made over time as they lived in the chateau. The original 15th century rooms retain some of their gothic and renaissance aspects, while others have been changed into luxurious 17th and 18th century drawings rooms and dining rooms. Again, the rooms are populated with very real-looking wax models dressed in 19th century costume as part of a museum display of historic costume.
You will find the wax models congregating in the drawing room, ascending the grand central staircase, relaxing as a family in the king’s bedroom and wax butlers stand by in the dining room all as if caught frozen in time waiting for our visit.
The rooms seem to go on forever in maze of corridors and staircases taking you up to the top floors of the chateau and then all the way to the cellars and prison down where the moat used to be located.
All the kids we saw were having a great time exploring the twisting corridors and hidden rooms. We were enjoying it too!
After visiting the chateau, you can walk across the empty moat to the small late-gothic Chapel Usse. For those interested in Renaissance art, an original terra cotta sculpture by Luca della Robbia hangs inside.
Beyond the chapel are the stables, where another wax model waits among the saddles and bridles. It also houses historic carriages.
As if all this isn’t enough, you finally reach the old wine caves which are filled with more vignettes of estate workers bottling and stacking wine. The deep cold caves are lined with large oak casks and there is even a small alter to the Virgin Mary located in a small rough stone alcove.
This chateau is a lot fun for both kids and adults!
But we were very wrong about that!
Chateau d’Usse is a fairy-tale looking castles sporting towers and turrets aplenty. It is said to have inspired the 17th century French writer Charles Perrault to pen the tale The Sleeping Beauty. Building of the chateau was begun by Jean de Bueil in 1462 on the foundations of a medieval castle. In 1485 renaissance features were added by the Espinay family after they purchased the chateau. In the 17th century, further changes were made to the chateau and the lovely formal garden was planted on the terraces, changing the fortress castle into a manor-house which is still inhabited to this day by an aristocratic family.
But all this architecture and history isn’t really what makes this chateau special. It is the wonderful wax vignettes that populate the towers and rooms! After you enter the tall tower called the “Sleeping Beauty Tower”, and climb all the narrow winding stairs, you peek into rooms, each of which portrays another chapter in the story of Sleeping Beauty.
In true fairy-tale fashion, the models are wearing medieval tunics and hose or long silk gowns and pointed hats with veils, and of course, the old crone sits next to her spinning wheel waiting for the unsuspecting princess. You can even climb all the way to the top of the tower and visit the evil queen’s room, where she is conjuring up a new spell.
You can walk along the round tower turret ramparts and peer through vertical slots in the outer wall which were created to defend the castle by shooting arrows to the Loire Valley below. The stone corridor is very narrow and you can imagine the archers squeezing by each other as they moved into position.
In the castle proper, you can see the changes each family made over time as they lived in the chateau. The original 15th century rooms retain some of their gothic and renaissance aspects, while others have been changed into luxurious 17th and 18th century drawings rooms and dining rooms. Again, the rooms are populated with very real-looking wax models dressed in 19th century costume as part of a museum display of historic costume.
You will find the wax models congregating in the drawing room, ascending the grand central staircase, relaxing as a family in the king’s bedroom and wax butlers stand by in the dining room all as if caught frozen in time waiting for our visit.
The rooms seem to go on forever in maze of corridors and staircases taking you up to the top floors of the chateau and then all the way to the cellars and prison down where the moat used to be located.
All the kids we saw were having a great time exploring the twisting corridors and hidden rooms. We were enjoying it too!
After visiting the chateau, you can walk across the empty moat to the small late-gothic Chapel Usse. For those interested in Renaissance art, an original terra cotta sculpture by Luca della Robbia hangs inside.
Beyond the chapel are the stables, where another wax model waits among the saddles and bridles. It also houses historic carriages.
As if all this isn’t enough, you finally reach the old wine caves which are filled with more vignettes of estate workers bottling and stacking wine. The deep cold caves are lined with large oak casks and there is even a small alter to the Virgin Mary located in a small rough stone alcove.
This chateau is a lot fun for both kids and adults!