Happy TravellerWelcome to Blois, a charming city located in the Loir-et-Cher department of Centre-Val de Loire, France. With a rich history dating back to prehistoric times, Blois is a city that has seen it all. From being the capital of the county of Blois to the official residence of the King of France during the Renaissance, Blois has played a significant role in shaping the history of France. Today, it is a bustling city with a population of over 45,000 people, making it the most populated city in the department and the fourth in the region. Join us as we explore the many treasures of Blois and discover why this enchanting destination should be on every traveler’s bucket list.
History:
Blois has a rich history dating back to prehistoric times. Excavations conducted by the French National Institute of Preventive Archaeological Research (INRAP) in Vienne have uncovered evidence of one or several camps of late Prehistory hunter-gatherers, who were also fishermen since fishing traps were found there. They were ancestors of the famous Neolithic farmer-herders, who were present in current France around 6,000 BCE. A major urban development begun in 1959 uncovered the remains of a late Gallic settlement and an urban center from the Gallo-Roman period. At that time, the town was located on the road linking Chartres to Bourges. In the network of cities of the Carnutes people, Blois was a secondary settlement. Excavations carried out on the right bank between 2001 and 2016 and on the left bank in 2013-2014 revealed the presence of a largely developed town on the right bank and an occupation on the left bank during the Gallic and Gallo-Roman periods. During the Middle Ages, Blois was the seat of the County of Champagne when the latter passed to the French crown in 1314, forming the province of Champagne within the Kingdom of France. By 1397, Count Guy II of Blois-Châtillon offered the county to his cousin, Duke Louis I of Orléans, son of King Charles VI. In 1429, Joan of Arc made Blois her base of operations for the relief of Orléans. She rode the 35 miles on 29 April from Blois to relieve Orléans. In 1440, after his captivity in England, Duke Charles of Orléans (son of Duke Louis I) took up residence in the Château of Blois, where in 1462 his son was born, Duke Louis II of Orléans who would afterwards be known as Louis XII. By 1498, King Charles VIII died with no heirs in the Château of Amboise. As a result, Duke Louis II ran 22 miles between the Château and Blois, and was crowned as King Louis XII of France. He then married Charles VIII’s widow, Queen Anne of Brittany, in 1499. The birth of their daughter, Claude of France, started the union of Brittany with France. Louis XII, as the last hereditary Count of Blois, naturally established his royal Court in the city. The Treaty of Blois, which temporarily halted the Italian Wars, was signed there in 1504–1505. During his reign, the city experienced a massive redevelopment, with some architectural elements inspired from the Italian Renaissance, as seen in the medieval castle immediately turned into a château, and the construction of many hôtels particuliers for the nobility throughout the entire kingdom. One of which, Hôtel dAlluye, was built as a copy of an Italian palace for Florimond Robertet, who was an important French minister under King Charles VIII, King Louis XII and King Francis I. On 1 January 1515, Louis XII died. His throne would be passed to Francis I, the husband to his daughter, Claude of France. In 1519, King Francis I ordered the construction of the Château of Chambord (10 miles away from Blois), but its construction lasted for one year before he died in 1547. In the meantime, he gradually expressed his will to move to Fontainebleau, near Paris, and started to abandon Blois. Much of the royal furniture was moved from Blois to Fontainebleau by 1539. The French
