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Richelieu – The Clock Tower, Chinon loop from Rivière

Richelieu – The Clock Tower, Chinon loop from Rivière

Moderate

3.0

(1)

riders

Richelieu – The Clock Tower, Chinon loop from Rivière

02:38

64.4km

230m

Road cycling

Moderate road ride. Good fitness required. Some segments of this route may be unpaved and difficult to ride. The starting point of the route is accessible with public transport.

Last updated: June 22, 2026

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After 60.8 km for 377 m

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3.07 km

Greenway of the Loire-Anjou-Touraine Regional Natural Park

Highlight • Cycleway

Suitable for cycling, on flat old train tracks, toilet on route

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5.74 km

Sanctuary of Our Lady of Rivière

Highlight • Religious Site

Very nice place, free access. entirely covered with frescoes and paintings. Crypt with 3 recumbent figures

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21.8 km

Richelieu, a new town in the 17th century

Highlight • Other

In 1631, to thank his minister, Cardinal Richelieu, for his eminent services, King Louis XIII did him the favor of erecting "a town enclosed by walls and moats and building a market hall" and establishing four annual fairs and two markets per week. Thus emerged from nothing, an "ideal city" according to the precepts of the time which would bear the name of the Cardinal. Richelieu entrusted Jacques Lemercier, architect of the king, author of the Sorbonne and the Palais-Royal, with the task of building, on the site of the family property, a vast castle, a reflection of his grandeur and a new city, nearby. Nearly 2000 workers would work on the site. Inside the walls, the Cardinal gave the land to whoever agreed to build a pavilion within two years according to the plans filed with the city registry. The inhabitants will be exempt from tax and gabelle until there are 100 houses built. 4/5 of the project will be completed between 1632 and 1642, the year of the Cardinal's death. Contrary to the words of Jean de la Fontaine (who also ironically described the town as "the most beautiful village in the universe"), far from being deserted, the town had 4,000 inhabitants in 1690, compared to less than 2,000 today.
This innovative project, which linked the construction of a castle and a town in the same program, foreshadowed the Versailles construction site that would open 30 years after the completion of the city walls of Richelieu. Adjacent to the walls, Richelieu Park, with an area of 475 ha, housed the vast estate of the castle of the du Plessis family (original surname of Cardinal Richelieu), of which only a few vestiges remain today.
Richelieu is now a somewhat unusual town in the French landscape, with its three access gates and its two large symmetrical squares. Organized in quadrilaterals and perpendicular streets in the manner of American cities, it offers a unique testimony to urban planning of the Grand Siècle.

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22.2 km

Richelieu

Highlight • Settlement

Richelieu is a special town: Commissioned by Cardinal Richelieu, it is a remarkable testimony to 17th century town planning. It is based on a checkerboard plan on the model of Roman towns or medieval bastides, and is surrounded by ramparts and monumental gates. It also has pleasant gardens (the Parc de Richelieu) as well as a magnificent market hall.

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43.0 km

L'Île-Bouchard Bridge over the Vienne

Highlight • Bridge

L'Île-Bouchard is a commune made up of two suburbs, Saint Maurice and Saint Gilles, each on opposite sides of the Vienne. The two suburbs are connected by a bridge and separated by the island which gives its name to the city - Île-Bouchard.

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