Nantes Castle
The Nantes Castle , in France called Château des ducs de Bretagne (German: Castle of the Dukes of Bretagne ), is an extensive and strongly fortified castle complex in Nantes , on the right bank of the Loire , which supplied the moat with water. It was the residence of the Breton dukes from the 13th century and became the residence of the French kings in Brittany in the 16th century . 1840 the castle was a monument historique under monument protection provided.
history
Beginnings
From 1207, Guy de Thouars , widower of the Duchess Constance , had the first castle built at the foot of the Gallo-Roman city wall, which at the time only surrounded the historic center of Nantes, Le Bouffay . To emphasize the dukes' claim to power over the Counts of Nantes and the Bishops of Nantes , the Chastel de la Tour Neuve was named. Pierre Mauclerc and his son Jean I strengthened both the castle and the city fortifications. As a central element of the defenses, it protected an arm of the Loire as the site of most of the economic activity. In the second half of the 14th century, the Chastel de la Tour Neuve was enlarged by Jean IV . The polygonal Old Donjon (French: Vieux Donjon ), which is the only remnant of the old castle, also dates from this time .
Ducal and royal residence
In 1466, François II decided to build a new castle. The building should not only be the main residence of the ducal court, but also a fortress , with the help of which it could withstand the royal power. The courtyard side shows a residence made of white tuff stone (the Grand Gouvernement , the Tour de la Couronne d'Or , the Grand Logis ), the outside seven massive towers made of slate and granite , which are connected by curtains and a 500 meter long battlement .
After the Duke's death in 1488, his daughter Anne de Bretagne , who later became Queen of France, continued the work. She reinforced the fortifications, especially on the river side, and had the Tour du Fer à Cheval built, a bastion for the artillery . In 1514 her daughter Claude de France inherited the castle, who was to marry the French King Francis I the following year . In order to be able to accommodate the court, she had another building built, now in the Renaissance style, the Logis du Roy , which is now called the Petit Gouvernement . In 1532, when Brittany and France were united, the castle became royal property.
In the 16th and 17th centuries, the complex was the residence of the French kings in Brittany. Nevertheless, Philippe-Emmanuel de Lorraine, duc de Mercœur, as governor of Brittany, had the defenses expanded from 1582. In order to protect the fortress from Protestant attacks from Brittany or Poitou , he had two bastions built, which were equipped with cannons.
On April 30, 1598, King Henry IV stayed in the castle to sign the Edict of Nantes . However, the signature did not take place here, but in a house that no longer exists today.
In 1670 the Grand Gouvernement burned down and was rebuilt in the classicist baroque style on the orders of King Louis XIV . After renovations in the 18th century, the castle became an arsenal (Le Harnachement) and a prison. On May 25, 1800 the Tour des Espagnols exploded , destroying the castle chapel and the archives.
In 1840 the castle was declared a monument historique, and in 1915 the state sold it to the city of Nantes. In 1970 it was closed due to its structural condition. In the early 1990s, the city of Nantes began a restoration program that led to the reopening of the castle on February 9, 2007.
literature
- Marc Elder: Le chateau des ducs de Bretagne . Impr. Du Commerce, Nantes 1923.
- Jean de la Rouxière: Les châteaux de la Loire. Le château de Nantes . In: Revue de la renaissance . Volume 4. Paris 1903, pp. 21-29.
- Loire Atlantique . Petit Futé, ISBN 2-7469-1864-1 , p. 190.
Web links
- Official website of the castle (French, English, Spanish)
- Website about the restorations 2004 to 2006 (French)
- Nantes Castle in the Base Mérimée of the French Ministry of Culture (French)
- Photos of the lock from the Base Memoire
- 360 degree panorama ( Flash - plug-in required)
- Nantes Castle as a 3D model in SketchUp's 3D warehouse
Coordinates: 47 ° 12'56 " N , 1 ° 32'59" W.