In the heart of Touraine, you will discover a private and personalized castle overlooking an agreeable green valley. An open-ended and sonorous visit will immerse you in the family intimacy of the proprietors as you discover one tastefully furnished area after another : the dining room, the royal chamber, an exceptionally rich kitchen equipped with over 150 copper utensils. In the commons, you will discover the family’s passion for horses and hunting as you visit stables, saddleries, horse-drawn carriages, artists’ paintings and “Hermès” spaces. Get ready for an eye-opening, unforgettable tour of a human-sized château, one of the not-to-be-missed attractions of the Loire valley.
A Middle Ages stronghold, during the 15th century Montpoupon was converted by seigneurs de Prie and de Buzançais into a Renaissance residence. They appreciated the proximity of the king’s court. Up until the middle of the 18th century Montpoupon remained the property of the Prie family; during that epoch, its inheritors ensured its transmission from mother to daughter. Unfortunately, the ladies preferred the royal court to Touraine, where they seldom sojourned, and the buildings deteriorated.
In 1763 the Marquis of Tristan, who was serving as mayor of Orléans, acquired the property. He restored the Château de Montpoupon and undertook substantial renovation aimed at bringing back a reminder of its previous splendor.
While his efforts were severely impeded by the French Revolution and the Reign of Terror, only the chapel was destroyed.
Proprietors since 1857, members of the Motte Saint-Pierre family initiated major renovation projects so as to give back to the castle a Renaissance allure. During the 1920s it was substantially modernized; once equipped with electricity, running water and central heating, it became a comfortable residence. In 1995 Amaury de Louvencourt, guarantor of the family’s abiding passions for horses, hunting and the arts, created a Musée du Veneur (hunter’s museum) and opened to the public not only the first, but also the second floor, thereby rendering viewable the family’s private apartments.
At once intimate and surprising, the Château de Montpoupon will immerse you in château life as you enjoy an unforgettable moment in a familial, human-sized castle of the Loire. Following your visit, take a forest stroll in the château park, where with the help of pedagogical landmarks, you will learn all about the ambient local fauna and flora. During your perambulation, you will admire the castle from a different angle, and appreciate the water mirror created in the 18th century and the reflection of the monument in the pool. Last but not least, in summertime the nearby meadows are populated with large and small horses, mascots of Montpoupon!
