Château de Saint-Loup-sur-Thouet, 17th century castle in Saint-Loup-Lamairé, France.
Château de Saint-Loup-sur-Thouet is a 17th century castle with an H-shaped plan and brick and stone pavilions topped by steep slate roofs. The property includes several outbuildings such as a pigeon house, orangery, ice storage, and farm structures arranged across the grounds.
The site originated as a fortress in the 11th century positioned in a strategic location. In the early 1600s the wealthy Gouffier family commissioned the current building, transforming the place into a grand residential estate.
The gardens display traditional cultivation methods with ornamental and vegetable sections that show visitors how the estate inhabitants organized their plant spaces. The layout reveals the daily relationship between the castle and its agricultural surroundings.
The estate covers substantial grounds with pathways connecting the various buildings and garden areas. Comfortable walking shoes are advisable since visitors need to navigate between different sections and deal with the natural slope of the land.
The master tower contains a carved medallion bearing the coat of arms of the Dercé family positioned within a window recess across four levels of the tower. This handcrafted heraldic detail marks the legacy of earlier residents within the stone itself.
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