Latest edition : 16 June 2016
1515. at the head of his army, François I sets out to conquer Italy. It was there, aged just 21, that he met the man who embodied the refinement of Italian art, the genius but also the image of a father, Leonardo da Vinci. Seduced by the magnificence of the architecture, the gardens, the art of living, François Ier proposed to Leonardo da Vinci to settle in France.
But it will be necessary to wait for the death of the patron of the artist and the increasingly strong competition of painters like Raphaël to decide Leonardo to begin this great voyage.
1516. After three months of travel, the artist arrives in Amboise, with all his possessions.
In his luggage, the Mona Lisa acquired by François Ier. The king installs it in the small castle of Clos Lucé, a few steps from the royal castle. Here he was free to think, to live, to work. In just three years, he left a deep mark on those around him in the fields of painting, architecture and also philosophy. Also an excellent scenographer, he designed the great royal celebrations with sumptuous decorations, fireworks, and re-enactments of battles.
The grand manor of Clos Lucé is entirely dedicated to its most illustrious occupant who worked there for three years. His thoughts are displayed on the walls. When visiting the apartments, we learn that Leonardo da Vinci's favorite room was the… kitchen (he was a vegetarian). But the rooms that most interest visitors are in the basement.
The old pantry is dedicated to many of his inventions on paper, to models of war machines designed at the request of the king when he was a pacifist. Many of his inventions are represented by models made by IBM from Leonard's codex. There is also a model of a lifebuoy, a device for breathing underwater, a paddle boat, an Archimedean screw to raise the water... This is where we grasp the full extent of the genius of this artist and scientist.
In the park, several of his inventions work. Not the flying machine suspended in the air, but the Archimedes screw and even the famous bridge of the Golden Horn, at an infinitely more modest size than the original desired by Sultan Bajazet II. In 1502, the artist designed a large bridge with a span of 360 meters supposed to span the Golden Horn, thus connecting Europe to Asia.
514 years later, it took 3,500 hours of work for a team of 30 professionals to symbolically create this work in the gardens of Clos Lucé.
But the garden of Clos Lucé has yet another particularity: it brings together a large number of the plants appearing on sketches left by Leonard: the star of Bethlehem, the spread cyclamen, the goat's beard or even astilbes.
His exchanges with Francis I are frequent. A basement between the Château d'Amboise and the Clos Lucé would have allowed the two men to meet discreetly.
And it is at the castle that Leonardo da Vinci is buried. His burial is visible in the Saint-Hubert chapel.
Amboise was a royal castle for 150 years. It was Charles VIII who had the apartments, the chapel and two cavalier towers built which allowed carriages and riders to connect the town to the castle terraces above.
After the Court returned to Paris, the castle served as a state prison. In 1800, all parts in poor condition were demolished.
Only the north dwelling, the two cavalier towers and the chapel still bear witness to its grandeur.
Every Friday and Sunday, along the Loire, one of the largest markets in the region is held, designated last year as "the French's favorite market".
Also to do with the family: embark on a sightseeing boat, visit the Loire Valley aquarium, the animal park of the Beaumarchais reserve or that of the mini castles.
