Hey everyone,
Today brought us to a second chateau, le Chateau de Brissac. This one is interesting architecturally and historically, though that's certainly not to say the others aren't (it's just a way to segue into the next topic. If that's a problem, I don't want to hear about it.)
The current site of the chateau originally held a castle which was built in the 11th century by the Counts of Anjou. Later on, in the 17th century, the original castle was torn down piece-by-piece and the new chateau was built. However, the owner and leader of the project died before it was finished, and his son stopped the construction and left the chateau as it was as a memorial. Because of this, two towers remain from the original castle, leading to an interesting façade.
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Because the Cossé-Brissac family still live in the chateau, so the interior contains a strange amalgam of time periods from the fifteenth to the twenty-first centuries. The walls are covered with painted portraits of the previous residents of the chateau while the desks are covered in black and white photos of the more recent ones. The bedroom that we toured had original tapestries and the original bed, along with a not-so-original DVD player and flat screen.
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Though I didn't use any of the pictures that showed them, the walls of the dining room were covered in trophies of deer, all of which were shot by one of the twentieth-century residents of the chateau. (Though I do not support trophy hunting, I must give her credit for shooting her last buck at the age of 87.)
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The crest of the family was carved and painted all over the interior, of course. I particularly liked this one.
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After the dining room, we visited what is currently an art gallery. From another room, we could hear a convention or presentation of some kind going on with a man shouting into a microphone and random outbursts of applause. I find it interesting how much the chateau is still used.
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I have no idea what this chain was for, but it looked pretty. It was in a part of one of the towers, connecting off of the previous room.
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Next up is a painting of a clock tower. With a clock in it. That's just really cool.
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It was in the lounge and entrance to the theater, which I loved but of which I couldn't get a good picture. Unfortunately, all of the pictures were too blurry to keep. I can tell you about the theater, though. It was almost entirely red and gold with a massive chandelier hanging in the middle. On stage was a grand piano and a spiral staircase presumably leading to dressing rooms upstairs. As with the rest of the chateau, the theater is still used for performances; mainly for annual concerts for young pianists or other musicians (the guide specifically mentioned pianists).
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The tour ended with this room, which you cannot see for artistic reasons. The room is one of the guest rooms in which people can actually stay if they want. I repeat, people can actually stay in this chateau for a night.
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After this, we all went down underneath the chateau, where there were the dungeons/jail cells and part of the underground river. Along with that, there was the gift shop and wine tasting area (presumably to encourage purchases at the gift shop). The chateau grounds originally did and still do house a vineyard, and three types of wine are currently produced.
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After leaving the gift shop, we went to explore the grounds a bit, where there was a tunnel leading to the underground river. That's right, it's an eighteenth-century underground river. Pretty neat.
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I love how creepy this next picture looks.
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Also on the grounds, Mom found an interesting tree and had me take pictures of it with her sitting under it.
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That's it for the visit to Chateau de Brissac and, sadly, that's it for Angers. Tomorrow, we will be travelling to Paris, where we will be staying for another four days.
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Thank you, Angers, for all the adventures and interesting pictures you have given me. Au revoir.
I'll be back tomorrow with more pictures from our drive to Paris.
A demain,
Alec.
Alec.