Château de Villandry
A Renaissance Splendour
Villandry is located about 16km/10mi west of Tours on the left bank of the River Cher just before it joins the Loire at Cinq-Mars-la-Pile. The Renaissance Château we see today was built on the ruins of an old fortress where the French King Philip II met Richard Couer de Lion and his father Henry II in 1189 to discuss peace terms.
Château and Garden
In those days the place was called Colombiers and the lands were acquired by Jean le Breton, King François I’s Controller General for War during the early 16th century. By 1639 the territory was known as Villandry and the new Château had been enhanced by beautiful formal gardens overlooking the River Cher.