Top 5 Castles around Monthou-Sur-Cher

A tower that was deliberately sawn off. Yes, really. During this loop through Montrichard Val de Cher, you'll climb to the ruins of the Château de Montrichard. With views over the Cher, it's as if you were ruling the region yourself. Only... that keep didn't collapse. It was deliberately lowered by Henry IV. Impressive. A magnificent view.

Today the chateau functions as a hotel/restaurant – nice surroundings, good food, very friendly staff, and still at acceptable prices.

Small castle away from the crowds in a small sleepy town.

History: In the 10th century, Eudes I, Count of Blois, built a castle on the hills. Of the old building, only the so-called Agar Tower, or keep, remains, with some wall removals. The current castle, set at right angles, was rebuilt in the 16th century by the Beauvilliers. The north facade is divided by two brick and stone pavilions. The attic is decorated with pedimented dormers. To the south, in the main courtyard, the two buildings intersect at right angles. They are pierced by cruciform mullioned windows, separated by pilasters and bands on which figures are sheltered in small niches. Stone dormers with pinnacled and shell pediments adorn the roofs. A modern polygonal tower, outside the building, connects the two main buildings. It is highly decorated with pilasters and twin columns. The west pavilion is the most richly decorated. A frieze decorated with Italianate medallions supports an openwork balustrade. The ruins of the original castle are located opposite the current castle. The building was extensively restored in the 19th century.

Castle of Saint-Aignan-sur-Cher https://www.sudvaldeloire.fr/offres/chateau-de-saint-aignan-saint-aignan-fr-2608592/

Located in the heart of the Loire Valley, the castle of Fougères-sur-Bièvre built at the end of the 15th century is the image of the ideal fortified castle with its keep, its machicolated entrance curtain and its fortified postern. Built by Pierre de Refuge and modified by Jean de Villebresme around 1520, the castle acquired its definitive appearance in three generations and will retain it. A castle designed for entertaining, its defensive Gothic architecture allows Pierre de Refuge to assert his social status and his belonging to the French nobility. Acquired by the Lambot family in 1738, René Lambot had the idea of creating a spinning mill in the castle from 1813 to 1901. This made it possible to largely preserve it from revolutionary damage and to maintain life and activity there. Classified as a historic monument in 1912, put up for sale after the stock market crash of 1929, the castle of Fougères-sur-Bièvre was acquired by the State in 1932. The castle of Fougères-sur-Bièvre has a double face: an entrance facade with a particularly defensive Gothic appearance and a courtyard facade decorated with Renaissance decorations. Particularly well preserved, the castle today remains very close to that of 1525-1530 with its military exterior facade, the civil and domestic architecture of its interior courtyard and its medieval interior plan with rooms in a row without distribution corridors. The castle of Fougères-sur-Bièvre stands out from the great castles of the Loire by its sober and powerful architecture, very little altered over the centuries. It illustrates the art of building in the region with its walls made of limestone rubble from Beauce and its sculpted parts in tuffeau from the banks of the Cher. Young and old alike will easily find all the military attributes and the interior layout of a particularly well-preserved small castle from the end of the 15th century.

Pretty little village with the added bonus of Château de Chissay, a former fortified castle which was built under Charles VII for the treasurer of France. Today a Hotel / Restaurant.

Chissay Castle is a former royal residence dating from the Middle Ages. You can discover the history of the castle, admire its architecture and enjoy its park and courtyard. The castle is located in a charming village which offers numerous running trails along the Cher and through the vineyards.