Chateau de Villandry

Jean Le Breton, Francis I's Finance Minister, purchased the ancient Villandry Estate in 1532. He then demolished the previous structures and created Castle de Villandry, the last magnificent Loire Valley chateau completed during the Renaissance. The chateau saw various changes in design and ambiance throughout the ages until Doctor Joachim Carvallo and his wife Ann Coleman acquired it in 1906, and their family committed their whole wealth to restoring it to its original beauty.

The Chateau de Villandry is still a testimony to the French Renaissance lifestyle, albeit the interiors include a fountain in the dining room and the famed Hispano-Moorish ceiling over the Oriental Room. But the chateau's six formal gardens, each of which is meticulously planted into a different design, are even more famous.

Location: Villandry, France