Photo : Chatmouettes / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0)
Château de Menars
The château de Ménars, in the Loir-et-Cher, is a classical residence with a symmetrical layout, overlooking the Loire a few kilometres from Blois, on the road to Chambord. It is surrounded by an estate facing the river.
In 1760, Madame de Pompadour acquired it for nearly a million livres, paid in several instalments. She wished to recreate there the life of the Court and called on the architect Ange-Jacques Gabriel to embellish it, while Jacques-Germain Soufflot also made important additions. She died four years after the purchase, leaving an unfinished estate, which then passed to the Count of Provence, future Louis XVIII. The interior decoration survives largely only on the ground floor.
Current visit conditions are not confirmed: you should check with the Blois-Chambord tourist office before going.
