Walking in Anne Boleyn's footsteps
- lindaglamour
- May 25, 2016
- 2 min read
The chateau I had been most looking forward to visiting was Amboise Chateau. It is perched high above the township of Amboise and holds a majestic position. As lovely as it is, it is not on the scale of a Chambord nor with the obvious romance of Chenonceau but its connection to the early life of Anne Boleyn was what drew me here.
Anne when she reached adulthood was sent to the French court to learn manners and charm much like some ladies years later were sent to a Swiss finishing school. It is at the french court that Anne became friends with Francis II and when in her final days, it was this friendship that led to Francis sending a swordsman to be her executioner so she would not suffer the axe.
Ambois chateau is of two halves - the ancient that Anne would still find familiar and the later 18th Century resplendent in red silk lined walls. The chateau also has links to Leonardo da Vinci who designed some of the buildings and who was buried on site for many years before the church was demolished. Archaeologists then found his remains centuries later and they are now interred in another chapel at the chateau.
But I was romantic and my english history peaked by standing at a window and thinking "Anne could have stood here and admired this view", these flagstones were perhaps where she tread.
400 metres from Ambois Chateau is Clos du Luce, the home of Leonardo da Vinci. An uphill walk through a narrow street lined with homes of all ages, sizes and styles - from medieval to regency and including a number carved into the wall of the hill as caves. Clos du Luce retains its charm of Leonardo's time and includes some representations of his many inventions.
But Ambois is about the chateau and Anne and having visited Hever Castle in Kent, I can now continue to follow her story from location to location. There is more yet to visit and see.
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