Château de Beaugency

The Loire Valley


Inside this seigniorial residence, parts of which are Gothic, furnished rooms – and suits of armour – illustrate life in the 15th century (as does an augmented-reality tablet computer). Has a lovely garden. Across the square stands the massive, 36m-high Tour César, the shell of a Romanesque donjon (11th century; interior closed).


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby The Loire Valley attractions

1. Abbatiale Notre-Dame

0.03 MILES

Built in the early 1100s and rebuilt in the mid-1600s after being burnt by Calvinists during the Wars of Religion, this church – visited by Joan of Arc in…

2. Domaine National de Chambord

11.77 MILES

The 54-sq-km hunting reserve around the Château de Chambord – the largest walled park in Europe – is reserved for the exclusive use of very high-ranking…

3. Château de Chambord

12.54 MILES

If you only have time to visit one château in the Loire, you might as well make it the grandest – and Chambord is the most lavish of them all, and the…

4. Maison de Jeanne d’Arc

15.13 MILES

An excellent 15-minute film (in French or English) tracing Joan of Arc's origins, accomplishments and historical impact is the main attraction at the…

5. Place du Martroi

15.24 MILES

In the centre of Orléans' main square, a bronze statue (1855) depicts Joan of Arc atop a prancing steed; nearby there's a carousel (merry-go-round). A…

6. Joan of Arc Statue

15.24 MILES

Depicting St Joan atop a prancing steed, this huge bronze statue (1855) by Denis Foyatier is in the centre of place du Martroi.

7. Musée d'Histoire et d'Archéologie

15.24 MILES

The centrepiece of this history museum, in the Renaissance-style Hôtel Cabu, is an extraordinary collection of Celtic and Gallo-Roman bronzes, recovered…

8. Hôtel Groslot

15.43 MILES

The Renaissance-style Hôtel Groslot was built between 1530 and 1550 as a private mansion for lawyer and bailiff Jacques Groslot; it became Orléans’ city…