Evening Republican, Volume 20, Number 194, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 14 August 1916 — Chateau De Chambord [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Chateau De Chambord

SOME time ago It was announced that the Chateau de Chambord had been sequestered by the French government, which was a polite way of saying that it had been taken over by the ruling powers, and would be devoted to whatever use it was seen fit to make of it. This announcement was of Interest to thousands of American tourists whQ may have been privileged to visit the celebrated castle In their rambWngs to the south of Paris, in the department of Loir-et-Cher —for the chateau is situated about twelve miles to the east of Blois, the principal City of that department, in the midst of a park 21 miles in £ircumfer|gice. The sequestering of the Chateau de Chambord marked the transition of one of the most Interesting structures that date back to the renaissance in France. “Francis’ Folly” someone has dubbed the great rambling pile of masonry whose spires reach heavenward, and to whose lines architects and artists have in vain tried to attribute some semblance of grace. But whatever architectural defects the chateau may present, there is no doubt that it is one of thb most notable edifices of its kind in Europe, marking as it does the transition between the fortified castle and the Italian palace, somebody has all the defects of both generously incorporated. The Chateau de Chambord was built at a time when money was of little account to the ruling classes if there was a whim to be gratified. It dates back to the fourteenth century. Under the counts of Blois It was a feudal manor house. The Orleans princes converted it Into a sort of hunting lodge, and-lt was such when Francis I decided to make of it the largest and most magnificent chateau in France. Francis I did not believe in doing things by halves. It was a habit of his to wander about from chateau to chateau, of which he had a considerable string, with 1,800 people forming his retinue, with furniture and baggage in proportion. It must have been a bit annoying to the restless and high-spirited king to have members of his personal staff getting close enough so that they could recognize each other. As near as can be figured out, this was the excuse for Chambord, for in its vast halls 1,800 people would rattle around like shot in a gourd, and all the paraphernalia that accompanied these frequent hikes could be deposited in one room and leave plenty of space for a goodly portion ot the attendants to devote themselves to terpsichorean pastimes.

Beginning of Chambord. The foundations of Chambord were laid in 1526, but it was not until some time later that it began to "stand forth in its true proportions. When Francis I died at Rambouillet in 1547 Chambord was still incomplete, although 800 men had labored on it for 12 ‘years. But enough of the more than 400 rooms had been finished, so that the royal entourage could be housed here in comfort, while the presence of such a number of persons, and the attendant gayety, alone made the place endurable as a human habitation. Henry II continued the work on the chateau in an indifferent manner. Charles IX and Louis XIV in turn took a hand at it, the latter appearing in the role of chief tlnkerer to the inartistic, and erecting the low screen at the back which completes the in.closure of the court and adds to the incongruity of the whole place. The death of its planner did not mark the passing of high life from

Chambord. When the court of Francis II was driven from Amboise by the terrible massacre, they repaired to Chambord, where It was sought by the wildest of revelry to cheer up the young king. Marie Stuart shone with particular brilliance at these orgies, but her reign in this capacity was as brief as it was sensational. Others who followed in her footsteps won disfavor with Catherine, who didn’t propose letting any outsider weaken the hold she exercised over her sons. Charles IX, maddened by the meddlings of his mother, went to Chambord in 1567, and the boar hunt he Indulged in as an outlet for his anger held the record for many years. Gradually, however, courts came less frequently to Chambord. At various times it was in the possession of Louis XIII, Louis XIV and Gaston, Due d’ Orleans, who puttered around attempting to Improve the place, ohly to make it worse. It was the asylum of the deposed king of Poland, Stanislaus Leckzinska, who also sought to better it, but did not stay long enough.

Given to Marshal Saxe. As a partial reward for his famous victory at Fontendy, Marshal Saxe w’as presented with Chambord, and for some years the brilliant old soldier kept open house there. The revolution dismantled and disfigured the chateau, and when France once more settled down to peaceful ways Chambord was little more than a shell. Marshal Berthier had it wished on him by Napoleon, but the pension accompanying the bestowal was discontinued by Louis XVIII, and it was sold, a national subscription bestowing it upon the Infant son of the Due de Berri, the Due de Bordeaux, who thereupon took the title of Comte de Chambord. As the last of the elder or Bourbon branch of the house of Valois, he was known to royalists as Henry V. Today there are shown to visitors the king’s apartments, decked out with tapestries and other gew-gaws the legitimist ladles, of France who hoped one day to see him king in more than name presented to Chambord. One point in his favor seems to have been that he packed all this stuff off to the inaccessible chateau, and spent most of his 41fe in exile, where he was spared the doubtful pleasure of being lionized by royalists. ' ~ At his death without direct heirs, in 1883, he bequeathed the chateau to the Comte de Parma and his brother, the Due de Bardl, who belonged to the Spanish branch of the house of Bourbon.

As an architectural marvel Chambord has always commanded consideration. The fact that it is more or less of a monstrosity is not entirely the fault of the earlier architects. Much of the trouble can be attributed to the reconstructionists who-came later, and whose efforts only resulted in making it look more squatty and grotesque. It is topped by a vast number of minarets, cones and turrets. The roofs to the latter are larger than the parts they cover, and at a distance give the Impression of a man's hah on a boy’s head. Its lines are painfully severe, and there appears to have been a studied attempt to avoid anything tn thef way of true beauty. There are no less* than 440 rooms in the chateau. There are 13 staircases, the most famous of which is the grand, a double spiral affair of 188 steps >n the main tower, so arranged that persons ascending and descending may pass each other without meeting.

CORNER OF CHAMBOR.D'S FANTASTIC ROOF