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Origin and history

Châteaudun Castle, located on a rocky spur overlooking the city and the Loir, finds its origins in the 12th century with the construction of the dungeon by Thibaut V, Count of Blois. This 31-metre cylindrical dungeon, with thick walls of 4 meters, was initially used as a military fortress. The site was then transformed into a marina by Jean de Dunois, a companion of Jeanne d'Arc, who in the 15th century added a body of Gothic houses and a chapel, marking a transition to residential architecture.

In the 16th century, the Dukes of Longueville completed the whole with a north wing of Louis XII style, blending flamboyant Gothic and First Renaissance. The chapel, built between 1451 and 1493, houses 15th century statues and a fresco of the Last Judgment (1467). The Dunois wing, with its gothic staircase, and the Longueville wing, decorated with italian motifs, illustrate this stylistic evolution. The castle, classified as a Historical Monument in 1918, also preserves tapestries from the 17th and 16th centuries, such as the wall of Clorinde and Tancrède.

The history of the castle is marked by tumultuous episodes: refuge after the 1723 fire, barracks during the Revolution, restorations in the 19th century after the damage of the 1870 war. Acquired by the state in 1938, it was stabilized after the explosion of the bridge in 1944. Today managed by the National Monuments Centre, it bears witness to the adaptation of a medieval fortress into an aristocratic residence, with gardens and a mill of the sixteenth century still visible.

The site harmoniously superimposed the epochs: the medieval dungeon, symbol of feudal power, contrasts with the Renaissance houses open to panoramic views. The extended protections (classifications from 1918 to 1947) cover the castle, its surroundings, and even the cloister of Luynes. The interior collections, such as the tapestries after Simon Vouet or the lost lead decorations, recall its role as a prestigious place, frequented by figures such as Louis XIII or the Duchess of Dino in the 19th century.

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