Corina Clemence asked:


The Loire Valley in France is a spectacular destination for a family holiday. There are many historical castles to see, so many that it can be difficult to decide on which ones to see before it becomes too much for the children to bare. Each of the Loire Valley castles listed below have their own special attraction.

We would highly recommend Chateau Close Luc and its gorgeous park and working models of over 40 of Leonardo Da Vinci’s amazing creations. Chateau Chaumont is worth a visit in the summer months for the garden festival alone. Many of the gardens are highly interactive and highly sensory designed to capture the imaginations of adults and children.

Chateau Chenonceau is architecturally breathtaking and a must see. There is a maize for children to get lost in for a little while. Chateau Cheverney has spectacular furniture and a working pack of dogs. Chateau Chambord is the largest of the Loire Valley castles and you can hire bicycles or pedal boats to make it more child attractive. Chateau Blois is interesting architecturally because it is like 4 castles rolled into one. It has the added benefit of being located opposite the Maison de la Magie which is a magic museum in honour of Robert Houdin who was Houdini’s inspiration. Children delight at the exhibits and simulations and the magic show is very entertaining.

Chateau Blois (minimum visit 2-3 hours) Hours- 9:00-6:00 Cost- $6.00 includes an English pamphlet . You can book a free guided tour even available in English. This castle dominates the town of Blois and was the home of royalty for over 400 years, including Charles the VIII and Francois I. Parts of the building, composed of 4 wings each of a different architectural style joined by a large central courtyard, date back to the 10th century.

Interiors include luxurious period design and floors stamped with fleur-de-lis motifs. One of the highlights is a Renaissance exterior spiral staircase designed by Leonardo da Vinci. In summer they have a son et lumiere show at night and on Wednesdays it is in English.

Chateau Chenonceau (minimum visit 2.5 hours) Hours- 9:00-7:00 Cost- $8.00 includes an English pamphlet. This castle is one of the most striking of the Loire Valley castles. It was built for Diane de Poitiers, the mistress of King Henri II. In 1559 when the King died his wife, Catherine de Medici, forced Diane into exile (to the smaller chateau of Chaumont).

After Catherine moved in she had the beautiful gallery added, which is 180 feet long, 18 feet wide, with 18 windows and set on arches over the Cher River. It was originally used as a ballroom, and in WWI it became a hospital and the wounded soldiers used to fish out the windows. During WWII it was a means of escape as the castle sat in occupied territory but the door at the end of the gallery opened to the Free Zone.

The kitchen is very popular with children. Today the gallery holds art exhibits. Also worth a note are the Marques Tower, the two formal gardens (each named for the two ladies who ruled the house), the sixteenth century working farm and the flower shop.

Chateau Amboise (minimum visit 1.5 hours) Hours- 9:00-6:30 Cost- $7.00 includes an English pamphlet. The chateau towers over the town and offers a mix of architectural styles including 17th century classical and 16th century gothic. Six Kings of France lived here including Francois the 1st, who had an underground tunnel built to the home of Leonardo da Vinci, located nearby. Using this passage they could visit each other without mingling with commoners. In the 15th century this castle was 4 times its current size, but it has been reduced by war and neglect.

It is worth combining a trip to Chateau Clos Luce with a visit to Chateau Amboise as they are nearby.

Chateau Chambord (minimum visit 2.5 hours) Hours- 9:00-5:45 Cost- $7.00 for entrance and $4.00 for an audio guide. Chambord was commissioned by the young (then 25) King Francois in 1519 to help establish his power and feed his ego. The building we see today was not completed until 1685, and by far it is the largest chateau in the Loire. The style is a combination of traditional French and Renaissance Italian with a variety of towers and turrets.

The facade alone is 470 feet wide and over 168 feet high (18 stories), with 440 rooms and 365 chimneys. The highlight inside the chateau is the double helix staircase which serves as the axis for the entire building, and is thought to have been designed by Leonardo da Vinci.

Originally built as a meeting place for hunting and later used for royal celebrations, today it is surrounded by a 19 mile wall that encloses the largest forest park in Europe. During its 500 year history, it was only used as a residence for 20 of those years. If you have time to spare, you can rent boats or bikes to explore the park. There is a 2 hour evening light and sound show at dusk on weekends from mid-April to June and September, and nightly in July and August.

Chateau Usse (minimum 1.5 hours) Hours- 9:00-6:30 Cost- $8.00 includes English pamphlet. This fairytale chateau with lots of turrets was the inspiration for the chateau in Sleeping Beauty. Construction began in 1455 on the foundation of an 11th century chateau, and subsequent remodels took place in the 16th and 17th centuries. The chateau has been owned by the Blacas family since the 18th century and the family still occupies one of the wings. The grounds include several centuries old trees and a cedar that was given to the family in 1808.

There is a chapel from 1528 with a sparkling white interior made from local stones, and a garage with antique vehicles and a wicker carriage. The castle interior is filled with 18th century antiques. Finally you can climb the round tower to see wax figures depicting characters in Sleeping Beauty. If you are travelling with young children they will probably love the fairy tale scenes in the round tower depicted by wax models.

Chateau Cheverny (minimum visit 1.5 hours) Hours- 9:15-6:45 Cost- $6.00, includes English pamphlet. This chateau was built in 1634 and has been owned and occupied by the same family ever since. Today family members occupy the third floor. This castle has the best furniture of the Loire Valley Chateaux open to the public because the family that owned Cheverny was very popular with the local villagers and as a result the castle was not stripped of it’s treasures during the French Revolution.

The current interior is the most lavish and complete in the Loire Valley. This castle was built as a hunting palace and today hunts still take place on the grounds. You can visit the seventy dogs in their kennel, or watch the daily feed at 5:00 PM. The trophy room proudly displays the antlers from more than 2000 animals.

Chateau Chaumont (minimum visit 1 hour and another 2 hours for the garden festival) Hours- 9:30-5:30, plan on 1 hour for your visit Cost- $6.00 includes an English pamphlet. Located between Amboise and Blois, this chateau is set high above the Loire River and commands spectacular views. Its placement was for strategic reasons, since it was built as a fortress stronghold in 1465. Later it became a home for royalty and then the merely rich.

The most famous resident was Diane de Poitiers, the former mistress of King Henri II who lived in exile here, after Catherine de Medici demanded Chateau Chenonceau when King Henri II died.

Today the interiors represent the lavishness of the rich people living here until the 1930’s when the stock market crash caused the last owner to sell the property to the government. Of particular interest are the elaborate horse stables.

Chateau Azay-le-Rideau (minimum visit 1.5 hours) Hours- 9:30-6:00 Cost- $6.00 for entrance and $4.00 for an audio guide. This chateau is less grand in size than many of the others listed here, but is all the more beautiful for it. Built in 1515, this is a wonderful example of early Renaissance.

In the high season there are often evening sound and light shows at the castle. It is best to visit this chateau late in the afternoon in summer so you can enjoy the son et lumiere show in the evening.

Beware because most chateaux have shorter hours in low and shoulder seasons and may even be closed for lunch during that time. Conversely in late July and August there are usually extended hours.



NORMAND

Sad asked:


I know there are 3 castles, for the 3 castles of Dublin, but why are they on fire?

TROY

active open programming asked:


Or, was the belief(or similar beliefs) understandable
considering the resources available at the time;
proximal development?
Allow me to elaborate on why I
conceived this question. Consider that
among the social classes there is an
even distribution of knowledge
seekers(possibly arguable, but for
the question’s context give all classes
the benefit of the doubt). Why is it that
such obvious knowledge wasn’t
brought to distinction sooner. I can
only assume that it is because it
wasn’t deemed important knowledge.
The question then becomes, why
wasn’t it deemed to be important
knowledge. I choose to analyze the
question with a separation between
the ruling class nd the labor class(as a
matter of opinion, other possible
reductions might be chosen) because
in the past democracy wasn’t as
prevalent. Therefore, the ruling class
being the directing class did not direct
the labor class to investigate the
shape of the world.
Continued…
The labor class, although equally
distributed with knowledge seekers,
didn’t have the opportunity for the
observation of the shape of the world,
and if they did then they might have
arrived at the conclusions of the
shape, but didn’t share that knowledge
because it wasn’t deemed important
by the ruling class. Therefore, even if
the knowledge was found, it was not
proliferated because it wasn’t deemed
important. Again, the distribution
of knowledge seekers in each class
is assumed to be balanced, so some
of the ruling authority must have been
interested in such knowledge. Why
wasn’t that portion of knowledge
seekers influence enough to stabilize
the knowledge. At the time, they didn’t
have the convenience of the press
or other distribution mediums, so the
proliferation would have required
significant cooperation.
Continued…

I think that the decision for
cooperation must have been
inconclusive, and the motion of the
knowledge blocked by a wall of non-
mutuality. The next question is why
non-mutuality, why wasn’t the benefit
of knowledge distribution determined
to be more significant than other
current efforts. I think the answer must
be regarding motivation for the need.
The knowledge must not have been
unanimously evaluated to be mutually
beneficial to the quality of life. More
specifically, why didn’t ruling
authorities who did hold the opinion
of the benefit of knowledge seeking
become self-sufficient communities
who shared knowledge among
themselves rather than stifle
themselves to appease the
disagreeing factions. I think they
might have feared war arising from
the choice, but I think that those
factions must have already been
at war by the agitation of the requisite
of stifling themselves.
Continued…
With this in mind, did the ruling
authorities conclude that their
individual labor class couldn’t
peacefully handle the state of
agitation which the ruling class
had to balance. Was the oversight
that the labor class had an equal
distribution of knowledge seekers
as the ruling class(making them as
capable of coping with the balance
as the ruling class)?

MICKEY

Andrew asked:


With Summer coming to a glorious climax, the gardens of Hidden England are in full bloom. For garden enthusiasts the opportunities are endless.

Explore more than 10 acres of wonderful gardens in the process of restoration at Easton Walled Gardens - with a cottage garden, turf maze and auricular theatre all new for 2006.

Relax in the enchanting mix of formal gardens and semi-wild woodland at Grimsthorpe Castle or in the magical Duchess’s Spring Garden at Belvoir Castle where woodland gardens nestle in a natural amphitheatre.

If rare and unusual plants are your interest you can buy them at Barnsdale Gardens, and at the same time explore the fascinating gardens created for television by the late Geoff Hamilton. Or if a more relaxed lakeside walk is your style than visit Belton House or Burghley - and at Burghley you can also explore the 15 acre Sculpture Park created in the previously lost lower garden created by Capability Brown.

For a fascinating insight in how a formal garden is being transformed see the Gardens of Rockingham Castle.

At Rockingham series of new radial yew hedges will provide opportunities for vistas and walkways connecting with the 19th Century Rose Garden.

Work in progress at Rockingham on a series of garden ‘rooms’ designed to contain deep borders of stunning herbaceous andshrub planting, with each room being given a different character.

All the houses and gardens of Hidden England are now open for the Summer Season.



LELAND

Patricia asked:


Did you ever dream about living in a castle? Waking up in the morning and feeling like royalty? Well, consider making that dream a reality! Finding Irish castles for sale is possible. By following the suggestions I collected on my most recent trip to Ireland, you can purchase your very own Irish castle.

First, you will need a representative in Ireland if you don’t live in the country. Real estate agents in Ireland are called “Auctioneers” or “Estate Agents”, and work independently or belong to a group. The agents represent both buyers and sellers.

In the Republic of Ireland, most Estate Agents belong to the Irish Auctioneers and Valuers Institute or the Institute of Professional Auctioneers and Valuers and are state licensed. Northern Ireland is part of the United Kingdom and has a separate system of licensing.

Local and international property listing companies specialize in the rental and sale of Irish castles. Your agent will let you know when a castle in your desired location is listed for sale. It takes time, but castles do become available.

If you decide to buy a castle, your agent will handle the closing; you should also hire a solicitor (lawyer) to handle your legal work.

A factor you must consider when buying an Irish castle is that most castles need extensive repairs. Castles are ancient and some have even been vacant for centuries. Before buying a castle, it is important to get price estimates for necessary renovations from contractors. Total project prices can range from several hundred thousand euros to more than a million.

A less costly option is to buy a castle ruin and leave it that way! There are hundreds of historic partial castle ruins throughout Ireland. You may find a piece of land with a castle ruin on it and build your own cottage or home on the same property.

After purchasing your castle, renovating it can be exhausting. It is possible to do it yourself if you can be in Ireland often or manage the project from a distance. If not, help is available for the whole process.

A “Property Locator” will work on your behalf during the entire process of buying and renovating a castle. He or she will look for a castle for you based on all your needs and consult with agents, architects, solicitors and engineers to find your perfect purchase and price. The Property Locator will also manage the renovation of the castle. It is an expensive service, but will give you the security of having your project in expert hands.

If you decide that buying a castle in Ireland is your dream, the effort is worth the reward of owning one of the most unique properties in the world!



GLENN

Will Kalif asked:




Medieval castles were mysterious places and often times they had a maze or a labyrinth. This article looks at the uses of these structures and takes a look at some of the more famous ones.

Labyrinths and mazes have a long and interesting history and everybody is familiar with the story of the Minotaur in the Labyrinth at Knossos. This is the famous myth of the labyrinth that people would be sacrificed into. The hero Theseus killed the Minotaur and found his way back out by following a line of string that he unwound on his way into it. 

Regardless of how true this myth is or whether the labyrinth of Knossos actually existed mazes and labyrinths hold a place of mystery and have often been integrated into the building of castles and cathedrals both indoor and outdoor. And there is a lot of speculation as to their purpose. There are actually several different theories and it is probable their purpose changed over the centuries.

One of the most important aspects of a medieval castle was security. They were built with the utmost in security and safety in mind and this is where a labyrinth or maze can further this need.  It is theorized, and it makes sense, that mazes were often a way to confuse attacking forces.  Soldiers entering a labyrinth could easily get disoriented and lost.

 Another use of the labyrinth is shown by the labyrinth under Buda Castle in Budapest Hungary. It consists of a network of caves and tunnels that total over six miles in length. An extensive network like this served as a good hiding place in times of attack and a good place to meet in secrecy.

In the twelfth century the purpose and building of mazes changed and many churches and castles were designed with mazes that were built right into the floor or wall. These mazes were used as a way to meditate, undertake spiritual contemplation, or to simulate a pilgrimage. This type of maze or labyrinth was very popular in twelfth century Italy and France. The earliest surviving maze of this type is the labyrinth at Chatres Cathedral in France which was built into the stone floor of the cathedral around the twelfth century.

In Great Britain the style of religious maze never was very popular but they did develop their own form and style of outdoor maze that used hedges, trees, or grass. These served a variety of functions including recreation and the testing of horseback riding skills. This tradition of hedge mazes continues today and there are many castles that still have them that are open to the public. Some of the more famous ones include the Hampton Court Palace Maze and the Leeds Castle Maze.  

Turf mazes are another style of outdoor maze that was very popular in Great Britain. These were mazes or labyrinths that were created by using grass or turf and being only a few inches tall it wasn’t possible to get lost in them. They are much like a cross between hedge mazes and painted mazes.  One of the more famous turf mazes that still exists today is the Saffron Walden maze located on the grounds of the ruins of Walden castle in England.

Medieval castles have a long history of being places of safety, security, and mystery and it is only natural that this mystery is furthered by the use of mazes and labyrinths. And these interesting structures had a wide variety of purposes from military to spiritual; and while not a whole lot is really known about the why of these structures it is rather fitting because mystery and secret is, after all, at the heart of every labyrinth.

 

 

 



ANTONIO

Marty Davis asked:


actually quite a few castles and chateaux situated around Paris and of course the most well known of these is the Chateau de Versailles, but we thought we would take a look at one of the lesser known palaces called the Chateau de Chantilly, which is also on a grand scale with phenomenal history and remarkable museums.

Not sure if you realised, but this was one of the settings for the James Bond film called A View to a Kill starring Roger Moore, along with other places in Paris that were in the film such as the Jules Verne restaurant at the Eiffel Tower and being only an hour away from Paris it has made this place popular with tourists.

But getting back to the chateau itself, it is a beautiful castle that is situated in one of the largest forests, with the estate covering an area of approximately 7,800 hectare, plus it has a park of around 155 hectares.

From the Middle ages when construction started on this chateau, it passed via inheritance from person to person through different branches of the same family and each heir had improvements and new structures built. That is, until it came to the Conde family who eventually bequeathed the estate to the Duc d’Aumale, but this is where the legacy came to an end, as both his Son’s had died in battle.

Because of this, the Duc d’Aumale bequeathed the entire estate of Chantilly to the Institut de France on the condition that it was opened to the public as a museum, which happened a year after his death and it is home to one of the finest museums of historical paintings in France called the Conde Museum. In fact, not including the famous Paris museum called The Louvre, it is the only museum in France to have three Raphael paintings.

Within the Chateau de Chantilly there are numerous rooms housing a wonderful collection of antiques, not just paintings, such as the Salon d’Orléans, which holds a rare collection of Chantilly porcelain, plus there are the private rooms from the Duc and Duchesse d’Aumale, known as the Petits Appartements, that you can view just as they were. You can also visit the Cabinet des Livres or book room, which is a magnificent library that contains around 30,000 volumes and also includes about 1,500 manuscripts including around 200 medieval manuscripts and the oldest one, which is the prized possession, actually dates from the 11th century.

Within the grounds of Chateau Chantilly that were designed by Andre le Notre there are the Grand Stables, which is where you will find the Musee Vivant du Cheval also known as The Living Horse Museum. The 31 rooms of the Musee Vivant du Cheval, spanning over a surface of 4,000 square metres and having an 800 metre track, this museum is one of the most visited equestrian places in the world, plus, they hold equestrian shows and demonstrations every day of the week except for Tuesday, which is when the whole of the Chantilly estate is closed.

You can admire the beautiful fountains and the canal, and the grounds are a great place for a stroll to watch the swans, birds nesting and lots of other wildlife. But also in the grounds there are other buildings such as a chapel and you can see the Jeu de Paume, which was a real tennis court and one of the last to be built in France when construction began in 1756, but this is now a museum room holding some very large paintings that would not fit anywhere else!

As previously mentioned Chateau de Chantilly is open every day except for a Tuesday, yet opens later in the evening during the summer months and to fully appreciate this incredible castle, you really need to make a point of spending a whole day out with all the family.

JEFF

Arthur asked:


First to send gets best. Telling me where it hides it’s code in the registry would work to, Or a ***** that works. And don’t bother telling me it’s illegal, I know.

JULES

Bronnie Vaughn asked:


The first thing that might be tempted to when you buy a Lego castle set, is that you want to make really big so that your work to be seen as grandeur – something similar to the size of the Taj Mahal in India! We’re kidding, of course. But to many of us, we believe that making an extra large-scale model is the only way to make our castles really stand out. That’s simply not true. Even if you use big Lego blocks, and create a Lego castle that rivals the Windsor Castle in the UK, your piece may not get the notice that the small ones do. Here are some tips on how the more experienced builders are able to make some really outstanding Lego castles.

1. Concentrate on detail as opposed to size. The challenge here is to build it with accuracy and to size it down without giving up the definitive touches that make it recognizable. Always try to include any possible flaws or faults in the architecture itself. Many Lego castle builders use irregular lines as a method to show where parts of the castle may be crumbling or collapsing in present times. Or you can give it a dramatic flair, maybe even showing the different building stages as an interpretation of the fortress during its actual construction. A good idea here would be to add scaffolding complete with workers. Simply using different colored Lego bricks in the castle facade can be seen as the weathering of the actual bricks of the building itself. This would also help breakup the lines of the castle, making it more realistic looking.

2. Landscaping is also important, both within the castle walls and outside the building. Depending on the detail of your project, landscaping can be a crucial part of the entire presentation. This is even more evident with the construction of castles on mountain ranges or those surrounded by forests. Even small touches such as a small pathway lined with trees, or a small patch of garden within the castle walls can be considered as landscaping. Assuredly, presenting flora with Lego bricks is challenging enough. Making it fit the scale of a miniature castle can be even harder. This is where the fun is and when the creative juices get to flowing.

3. Look to your castle borders. Castle owners during the medieval age were obliged to look to their borders, and oversee everything and everyone in their dominion. That includes their land holdings as well as the people and their living accommodations.  So, if you really want to present a realistic and dramatic piece, it might be a great idea to include a castle city complete with it’s own small buildings. Merchants would be hawking their wares, and travelers with horse pulled carts would be in evidence. Of course, having a drawbridge and moat is a must! There could be a body of water nearby such as streams and ponds or even a lake as would be the case of water castle. These little touches make your Lego castle set worth a long, appreciative look



MYRON

hick_chick asked:


I am doing a research project, and i am wondering if any knows of any effects castles had on the early english culture.
From the formation of towns, to their effects on the landscape, natural resources, people, and society as a whole.

Thanks!

CLINTON