Château de la Verrerie, Oizon, France

The fine early Renaissance château is located on the edge of the Forêt d’Ivoy. The land was given to the Scot Sir John Stuart by Charles VII, in thanks for defeating the English at the battle of Baugé in 1421. However, the château was not built until the end of the 15th century, at which time Béraud Stuart, the grandson of John Stuart, returning from a campaign in Italy, constructed the main house to the side of the Chapel, that joined onto the Renaissance Gallery, which was built in 1525 by Robert Stuart, the son-in-law of Béraud Stuart and a comrade-in-arms of Bayard.

In 1670, the last Stuart of Aubigny died and the Château de La Verrerie, as laid down in King Charles VII deed of donation, was returned to the French crown. King Louis XIV, acting on a decree of 18 March 1673, gave the land back to Charles II, King of England, who was the direct male descendant of John Stuart. In the same year, at his request, it was given as a gift to his mistress, Louise de Kérouaille, Duchess of Portsmouth.

La Verrerie has a lovely Renaissance gallery with 16th century frescoes. There are also frescoes in the chapel, dating from the same period.

References:

Eyewitness Travel Guide: Loire Valley. 2007
Château de la Verrerie

User Reviews

Patrice Le Fur (3 months ago)
Un lieu découvert par hasard. Mais le hasard fait bien les choses. Nous eu la chance de profiter d'une visite hors période d'ouverture grâce à un groupe qui avait réservé. Nous avons eu droit à une visite commentée par le châtelain, amoureux de son château et de son histoire. Une visite très enrichissante ou la petite histoire côtoie souvent la grande. Il faut vraiment faire le détour pour profiter et de la visite et du cadre extérieur. Un château d'agrément au bord de son étang

Gérard Coustes (3 months ago)
A la lisière d'une forêt au bord d'un étang cet imposant édifice on entre dans cet hôtel par une porte à tourelles style renaissance un bel hôtel cinq chambres d'hôtes de grandes classes le petit déjeuner est gratuit compris car le prix est assez élevé

Benjamin Faes (2 years ago)
Stunning renaissance castle

Takeo K. (2 years ago)
So nice!! Beautiful garden, delicious cuisine:)

daniele borghi (3 years ago)
Excellent and unique location. Very expensive but it has to be seen at last once

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Photo from Flickr, copyright Guido Rudolph

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Lübeck Cathedral

Lübeck Cathedral is a large brick-built Lutheran cathedral in Lübeck, Germany and part of the Lübeck UNESCO World Heritage Site. In 1173 Henry the Lion founded the cathedral to serve the Diocese of Lübeck, after the transfer in 1160 of the bishop's seat from Oldenburg in Holstein under bishop Gerold. The then Romanesque cathedral was completed around 1230, but between 1266 and 1335 it was converted into a Gothic-style building with side-aisles raised to the same height as the main aisle.

On the night of Palm Sunday (28–29 March) 1942 a Royal Air Force bombing raid destroyed a fifth of the town centre. Several bombs fell in the area around the church, causing the eastern vault of the quire to collapse and destroying the altar which dated from 1696. A fire from the neighbouring cathedral museum spread to the truss of the cathedral, and around noon on Palm Sunday the towers collapsed. An Arp Schnitger organ was lost in the flames. Nevertheless, a relatively large portion of the internal fittings was saved, including the cross and almost all of the medieval polyptychs. In 1946 a further collapse, of the gable of the north transept, destroyed the vestibule almost completely.

Reconstruction of the cathedral took several decades, as greater priority was given to the rebuilding of the Marienkirche. Work was completed only in 1982.

The cathedral is unique in that at 105 m, it is shorter than the tallest church in the city. This is the consequence of a power struggle between the church and the guilds.

The 17 m crucifix is the work of the Lübeck artist Bernt Notke. It was commissioned by the bishop of Lübeck, Albert II. Krummendiek, and erected in 1477. The carvings which decorate the rood screen are also by Notke.

Since the war, the famous altar of Hans Memling has been in the medieval collection of the St. Annen Museum, but notable polyptychs remain in the cathedral.

In the funeral chapels of the southern aisle are Baroque-era memorials by the Flemish sculptor Thomas Quellinus.

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