Châteaux of the Loire

There are over 300 châteaux of the Loire Valley, ranging from fortified castles from the 10th century to royal residences built some 500 years later. When the kings of France began building their vast châteaux in the Loire Valley, the wealthy nobility followed attracting the best architects and landscape designers. The châteaux and their surrounding gardens are now cultural monuments which represent the wealth created in post renaissance Europe and the extremes of wealth that ultimately caused the revolution. Many were destroyed after falling into disrepair after the wealthy owners would literally lose their head to the guillotine. Most, however, have survived and are once again private residences for the wealthy and others have become hotels or tourist attractions. While many of these estates own significant amounts of land, wine production in the Loire is more agricultural and, unlike Bordeaux wines are not usually associated with the Châteaux.