Château d'Angers

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Château d'Angers
Angers, France
The south façade
Coordinates	47°28′12″N 0°33′36″W / 47.470°N 0.560°W / 47.470; -0.560
Type	Medieval castle
Site information
Website	www.chateau-angers.fr/en
Site history
Built	9th and early 13th centuries
Built by	Blanche of Castile, Regent
Events	Minority of Louis IX of France

The Château d'Angers is a

.

History

Originally, the Château d'Angers was built as a fortress at a site inhabited by the Romans because of its strategic defensive location.^[2]

In the 9th century, the

In 1352, King

In the early 15th century, the hapless

, had to flee Paris and was given sanctuary at the Château d' Angers.

In 1562,

army. Unable to do anything else, the invaders simply gave up.

A military academy was established in the castle to train young officers in the strategies of war.

Modern

The castle continued to be used as an armory through the

when an ammunition storage dump inside the castle exploded.

On 10 January 2009, the castle suffered severe damage from an accidental fire due to short-circuiting. The Royal Logis, which contains old tomes and administrative offices, was the most heavily damaged part of the chateau, resulting in 400 square metres (4,300 sq ft) of the roof being completely burnt. The Tapestries of the Apocalypse were not damaged. Total damages have been estimated at 2 million Euros. According to

, the expected date of completion for the restoration was the second trimester of 2009.

Today, owned by the City of Angers, the massive, austere castle has been converted to a museum housing the oldest and largest collection of medieval

in the world, with the 14th-century "Apocalypse Tapestry" as one of its priceless treasures. As a tribute to its fortitude, the castle has never been taken by any invading force in history.

Tourists visiting Château d'Angers
Year	1997	1998	1999	2000	2001	2002
Visitor numbers[9]	173,702	168,806	171,404	170,991	160,583	171,378
Tourist receipts[10]	€597,939	€601,754	€599,258	€553,324	€582,120	€593,759

Layout

The outer wall is 3 metres (9.8 ft) thick, extends for about 660 m (2,170 ft) and is protected by seventeen massive towers. Each of the perimeter towers measures 18 m (59 ft) in diameter.^[3] The château covers an area of 20,000 square metres (220,000 sq ft).^[6] Two pairs of towers form the city and landward entrances of the château. Each of the towers was once 40 metres (130 ft) in height, but they were later cut down for the use of artillery pieces. The Tour du Moulin is the only tower which conserves the original elevation.

Gallery

• 
  A view of the keep
• 
  The current entrance of Angers Castle
• 
  The interior gardens at the Castle
• 
  The châtelet controls access to the inner wards

See also

• Loire Valley
• List of castles in France
• Apocalypse Tapestry on the French Wikipedia (in French)

Citations

General references

• Baynes, T. S., ed. (1878), "Angers" , Encyclopædia Britannica, vol. 2 (9th ed.), New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, p. 29.
• Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911), "Angers" , Encyclopædia Britannica, vol. 2 (11th ed.), Cambridge University Press, p. 8–9.
• Delbos, Claire (2010), La France fortifiée: Châteaux, citadelles et forteresses (in French), Petit Futé,
  ISBN 978-2-84768-198-7
  .
• Prestwich, Michael (1980), "Castle Construction", Castles: A History and Guide, Blandford Press, pp. 28–43,
  ISBN 0-7137-1100-0
  .

Further reading

• Mallet, Jacques (1991), Angers, le château: Maine-et-Loire (in French), Association pour le développement de l'inventaire des Pays de la Loire,
  ISBN 978-2-906344-29-7
  .
• Mesqui, Jean (2001), Le château d'Angers (in French), Paris: Centre des monuments nationaux/ Monum. Éditions du patrimonie.

External links

• Château d'Angers - City of Angers
• Official tourism site
• Base Mérimée: Château fort, puis château des ducs d'Anjou, Ministère français de la Culture. (in French)
• Base Mérimée: Château d'Angers, Ministère français de la Culture. (in French)
• Castle of Angers in Google Cultural Institute
• The forgotten French tapestry with lessons for our apocalyptic times, The Guardian, April 17, 2020