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Loches
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| Logis Royal - or -
Chateau |
The Logis Royal or Château (not the nearby Donjon)
houses the tomb and beautiful effigy of
Agnes Sorel, mistress of Charles Vll (Joan
of Arc's Dauphin); she died aged twenty-eight and
was originally buried on the nearby Collegiate
Church of St Ours. The effigy has only been in its
present place since 1970; note the contemporary
portrait of Agnes with one bare beast on the wall
behind the tomb and her feet resting on two lambs,
punning her Christian name. For details of Agnes's
recently examined skeleton click
here.
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Bueil - en - Touraine |
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Parish Church of St-Pierre-aux-Liens/
Collegiate Church of St-Michel-et-Sts-Innocents
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| Churches open normal hours: one
connects to the other. Park in village. |
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Martine Turpin,
2nd Wife of Jean V de Bueil. This effigy was
originally in the now destroyed chapel of the
nearby château of Plessis-Barte and moved here
in 1850.
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Jeanne de Montejean
(1459), 1st Wife of Jean V de Bueil.
(ref:: 303/XVIII;p.122;pl.56)
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Marguerite de la
Chausade (1443) & Pierre de
Bueil (1414) These effigies were
originally side by side on a tomb che
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The parish church is linked
via a door (seen in first photograph on the
right) to the collegiate church, which was built
to contain the tombs of the lords of Bueil.
Unfortunately this latter church was undergoing
restoration when I visited , which can be seen
from the scaffolding in the photograph on the
left. The four effigies lie in niches in the
wall, three of which can be seen in the second
photograph on the right. These niches were
blocked by thick plastic sheetings to protect
them from the prodigious amount of dust so I was
unable to photograph the effigies adequately;
however I was able to lift the sheeting to
photograph the heads only. I will revisit the
church in the future.
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King Louis XI
'The Universal Spider' (1483) Louis was
one of the very few kings of France who wished
to be buried elsewhere than St Denis.
A drawing from 1481 is
still extant of the projected effigy and which
shows the King kneeling but wearing armour and
with shoulder length hair; this was perhaps
based on an earlier design of 1472 by Jean
Fouchet. This drawing probably differs from
the final monuments constructed by Conrad of
Cologne, goldsmith of Tours and Laurent
Wrine, cannon maker, in gilt bronze and
enamelled brass. This was melted down by the
Hugenots in 1562.
The present effigy,
sculptured in 1622 is the work of Michel
Bourdin of Orleans, painter and architect
of Paris, who constructed the monuments
according to a design drawn by him in 1617.
This was destroyed in 1792
but the remains were collected by Alexandre
Lenoir (who has been referred to in the section
on St Denis) for display in his museum and
reconstructed by the sculptor Besuvallet
and the marbler Scellier. In 1818 the
Prefect of the Loiret transferred the monument
back to Cléry and a base was constructed by the
architect Pagot and the sculptor
Romagnesi. A drawing by an English visitor
of this base - more in keeping than the present
one - still exists.
During the restoration of
the church in 1868 the tomb was again dismantled
and in 1874 the effigy repositioned on a simple
slab at ground level. It was replaced in 1896 on
the present incongruous base which was
constructed by the sculptor Libersac
and the marbler Barberon.
The King and his Queen,
Charlotte of Savoy, are buried in a vault which
can be entered via a floor grill at the side of
the monument; there their skulls may be seen
displayed. Watch this space!
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Above: The
heart of Louis's son Charles VIII (1498)
was also buried at Cléry; above left is a stone
mounted on the wall, which reproduces the
inscription on the casket which contains the
heart and, right, the stone above the actual
burial vault. His monument at St Denis was
destroyed at the Revolution.
Below: Left stone
with simple cross and inscription, now mounted
on wall.
Right: Stone on
floor marking the burial of the Breton
Tanneguy du Chastel (1477 ) He was
killed by cannon fire while leaning on the
King's shoulder at the seige of Bouchain; he was
buried here on Louis's request.
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St-Paterne-Racan
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Abbaye de la Clarté Dieu
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A tourist information board in
Buile-en-Touraine promised that there was a very fine
military effigy here. A notice on one of the entrance
gate posts stated 'Private Property' and one on the
other was the telephone number to arrange visits but
this no longer functioned. However we received a very
warm welcome from the owners. There is very little
remaining above ground of the actual church but much of
some of the conventual buildings remain and some of
these are used for exhibitions. The promised military
effigy is now permanently on display in the Cloisters
Museum, New York. However we were shown the incised slab
(above) which is unfortunately fractured and defaced.
The feet of a military effigy can just be made out and
there are remains of an inscription
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Tours |
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Excellent train service from Paris |
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The Cathedral |
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Above:
Children of Charles VIII & Anne
of Brittany. Note the baby and
young child. Carrera marble by
Jérôme de Fiésole. Italian style
but the effigies are in the Medieval
tradition of Michel Colombe. The
monument was in the Basilica of St
Martin from 1506 and moved to the
Cathedral in 1834.
Right:
Michel-Jean Amelot (1724)
Diplomat; Conseillier d'Etat to
Louis IV. He was the nephew of
Archbishop Michel Amelot de Gournay
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A Series of Monuments to the
Atchbishops of Tours of the 19th and
20th Centuries |
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Felix Pierre Fruchard (1874)
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Charles-Théodore Colet (1883)
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René François Renou (1913)
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Far left:
Jean-Baptiste du Chilleau (1824)
Near left:
Augustin Louis de Montblanc (1841) |
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Albert Negre (1931)
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Ludovic Gaillard (1956)
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Louis Ferrand (1980)
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Michel Moutel (1998)
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Basilica of St Martin |
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There have been several
churches on this site over the grave of St
Martin. Only towers of the medieval church now
remain, other parts of the building having been
demolished in the Revolution and later. A new
Neo-Bazantine basilica was erected over the
grave of St Martin 1888-1924 by
Guillaune René Meigan, Archbishop of
Tours, whose monument in the crypt is showen
above. Above left is the structure built over St
Martin's grave, also in the crypt.
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This
is a magnificent place to visit; the largest
monastic complex in western Europe. There are
actually three chuches on this site but they are
no longer consecrated. The church shown here is
l'Abbatiale. There is no parking
at the Abbey apart for those staying at the
Prieure de St Lazaire.
The church houses the stone effigies of the
English Kings, Henry II, his son, Richard the
Lionheart, Henry's Queen, Eleanor of Aquitaine
and the wooden effigy of King John's Queen,
Isabella of Angoulême. Why were they buried
here? They were not only kings of England but
rulers of an extensive area of what is now
France: Dukes of Normandy, of Aquitaine, Counts
of Anjou, Touraine and Maine and overlords of
Brittany, often called the 'Angevin Empire',
although this was not a contemporary term nor
was it an empire and would not have been
recognised by those concerned. The kings died in
France and the queens died in retirement in the
Abbey.
The church has been
extensively excavated but no trace of coffins or
remains have been found. However the effigies,
which have moved around over the years, are now
thought to rest where the burials took place, at
the eastermost part of the nave. Henry and
Eleanor's daughter, Joan, died in childbirth in
the Abbey but no monument has been found. Her
son, Raymond VII of Toulouse, was also buried in
the Abbey and an effigy thought to be his was
excavated several years ago; however this is not
yet on display in the Abbey. A wall painting,
nearly complete, said to be that of Raymond, remains
on a pillar of the crossing. Several other
sculptures have also been excavated but whether
these represent funerary monuments is not known.
On display in the visitors' centre is the
effigial head only (the rest of the monument
having been lost) of the founder of the Abbey,
Robert d'Arbrissel, but this is not
contemporary.
The complex is no longer a
working abbey nor the prison into which it was
converted by Napoleon: it is run by the French
state as a cultural centre and may be visited.
You can stay in the Abbey complex at the former
Priory of St Lazarus, which has been converted
into an excellent hotel.
The photographs flanking
the title show 1. The west end and entrance to
the Abbey Church, 2. The east end of the Abbey
Church, 3. The interior of the church looking
east where the effigies can be just seen in the
centre, and 4. The main cloister.
The portraits of the
effigies show on the left, Henry and Eleanor and
on the right Richard and Isabella. Below on the
left are Henry and Eleanor and on the right
Richard and Isabella.
The hand coloured etchings
by Stothard of these effigies before their
restorationare are shown below the photographs.
Also visit the Parish Church and the Lantern
of the Dead |
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East of Le Mans, this was the
foundation and burial place of Berengaria, Queen of
Richard the Lionheart. Her effigy has now been returned
to the chapter house (on the right of the photograph)
and is placed over the vault where her body had
remained since its burial. Please note that they are
not, as still given in some guide books, in Le Mans
Cathedral where they were situated for safe keeping for
many years. Fragments of the original tomb chest are
displayed nearby; the illustration that appears in
Stothard is a later construction and the bones referred
to were not those of the Queen.
The Abbey has now been restored
and acts as a cultural centre - rather like Fontevraud
but much smaller.
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How To Find It from the Channel
Ports: Do not enter Le Mans but by pass the city north
on the A11-E50; leave this road east of Le Mans on the
A28, travelling south.. Leave the A28 on the N23 - the
first (and only?) exit and pass through the toll gate.
Ahead is a roundabout but L'Epau is not marked on the
entry sign post. Take the last exit - N23R - to Changé
(L'Epau is now marked telling you to "follow Le Mans");
leave Changé on the D152 to Le Mans; L'Epau is the on
the right. Good luck! Do not put Changé into SatNav as
there are more than one!
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Candes-St-Martin |
| Free car park in the village |
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St Martin - a Roman soldier
who converted to Christianity - founded a church
here and later became Bishop of Tours; he died
here in 397 and was buried in his cathedral. The
present church is 12th -15th century. There are
two modern effigies of St Martin - one rests on
a tomb chest, showing him in his pontifical
robes and the other as a monk, below the altar.
Both are in St Martin's chapel atthe NE end of
the church
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The coloured etching - by
Charles A Stothard - is of the enamel plaque
which formerly covered the tomb in Le Mans
Cathedral of Geoffery Plantagenet,
Count of Anjou, and father of Henry ll of
England. The plaque is now in the museum of that
city.
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| I will
expand this section in due course |
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| I will expand this section
in due course |
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Details from the
monument of Francois, Duke of Brittany
(1400)
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| I will expand this section
in due course |
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Beauvais Cathedral
World War 1 War Memorial
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