Thanks to its quaint medieval streets, charming château and lovely views of the River Indrois, it’s hardly surprising that Montrésor has been named one of les plus beaux villages de France (most beautiful villages in France).
It’s one of only three villages to have been given the distinction in the Loire Valley.
We started our visit to Montrésor at the privately owned château, which is perched high on a rock in the centre of the village overlooking the River Indrois.
The château was built in the Renaissance style by Imbert de Bastarnay (a counsellor to kings Louis XI, Charles VIII, Louis XII and Francois I) on the site of an 11th century fortress at the end of the 15th century.
In 1849, it was bought by Xavier Branicki, a Polish count, art collector and friend of Napoleon III, and the castle has belonged to the family ever since. Today they live in a large manor house opposite the château.
Two floors of the château are open to the public, so we headed inside to look around the different rooms, which included the billiard room, the library, various sitting rooms and a bedroom.
The château’s fairly small and is decorated as Count Branicki left it in the 19th century.
The house is filled with the many incredible and random treasures Count Branicki collected, including gifts from the city of Vienna to Prince Jan Sobieski to thank him for his help in seeing off the Turks, a bejewelled saddle and ancient coins found in the château grounds.
One of my favourite items was the spectacular chest that had once belonged to the Medici family. It featured lots of hidden compartments and had been bought from Château d’Amboise in the 1850s (above).
It was an extraordinary piece of furniture and I would have loved to have been able to play with it and uncover its secrets.
The château was shabby and ramshackle in parts – there was paint peeling off the walls and some of the fabrics were rather threadbare – but I liked that it felt lived in. It felt more like a home than a museum.
There were photos and paintings of the Branicki family throughout, along with plaques regaling the history of some of the more famous and interesting members of the family.
After touring the château, we spent some time looking around the pretty grounds, which were home to a fountain, some statues (above) and a ruined workhouse.
The grounds boasted excellent views of the château, the village and the River Indrois.
I really enjoyed our visit to the château as it was so different to the other, grand châteaux we visited in the Loire.
It was much more homely, eclectic and eccentric, and these qualities made it stand out and feel special.
From the château, we meandered through the village’s quaint, narrow streets, admiring the old, picturesque cottages (above).
We briefly stepped inside the Church of St John the Baptist (above), which was built in the 16th century by Imbert de Bastarnay to house his tomb.
The church has a distinctive look thanks to its tall, 35m-high steeple.
Inside, it’s an attractive affair thanks to its cream, stone walls, high vaulted ceilings and large stained glass windows. It’s an impressive church for such a small village.
We ambled through the village to the River Indrois, where we set off for a stroll along the riverbank.
We crossed a large, arched bridge over the river and followed the path along the other side, marvelling at the fantastic views of the château (above).
With the willow trees cascading over the water, colourful rowing boats moored on the riverbank and picture-perfect waterlilies, it made for an idyllic, serene walk.
At the end of the path, we crossed a few bridges to other side of the river and found ourselves at the far end of the village.
By now it was early afternoon, so we stopped at a restaurant, La Legende, that had a sign outside that said: “If you just want to eat a simple crêpe or have a glass, we will serve you with pleasure!”
And they were true to their word. I had an excellent, beautifully presented crêpe and the woman who served us couldn’t have been friendlier.
I enjoyed our trip to Montrésor, which certainly lives up to its billing as one of France’s most beautiful villages. It’s a lovely, peaceful village, and everyone we met was very friendly.
Its simplicity and natural beauty were in stark contrast to the opulent splendour we’d seen so far in the Loire, but it was just as charming and delightful.
