Le Roi du Château
NotebookPassportENFR
The directory of European châteaux

Every château, documented.

Location, century, style, protection status and visiting information for 6,665 French châteaux and manor houses — drawn from public heritage records, held in one consistent archive.

Open the directoryRead the Journal
6,665
Records published
15
Regions covered
VI–XXI
Centuries spanned
III
Public sources

Domaine de Chenonceau · Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 3.0

01

Explore a château

Six thousand records is a great deal to face with a search box. Three ways in that ask nothing of you first.

01Take me to a châteauOne record, drawn at random from the archive.02Châteaux near youOrdered by distance, once you share your location.03Open the mapNinety-six departments, tinted by how much is recorded.
02

The Collection

View all

Twelve of the buildings that define the type — and the way every one of the 6,665 records is put together.

Nouvelle-Aquitaine — XII–XVII

Château de Beynac

Château de Beynac is a château at Beynac-et-Cazenac, Dordogne, in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region of France.

Beynac-et-CazenacClassé
Nouvelle-Aquitaine — XVII

Château de Hautefort

Château de Hautefort is a château at Hautefort, Dordogne, in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region of France.

HautefortClassé
Brittany — XVI

Château de Josselin

Château de Josselin is a château at Josselin, Morbihan, in the Bretagne region of France.

JosselinClassé
Hauts-de-France — XIX

Château de Pierrefonds

Château de Pierrefonds is a château at Pierrefonds, Oise, in the Hauts-de-France region of France.

PierrefondsClassé
Centre-Val de Loire — XVI–XIX

Château d’Azay-le-Rideau

Château d'Azay-le-Rideau is a château at Azay-le-Rideau, Indre-et-Loire, in the Centre-Val de Loire region of France.

Azay-le-RideauClassé
Centre-Val de Loire — XV–XVI

Domaine de Chenonceau

Domaine de Chenonceau is a château at Chenonceaux, Indre-et-Loire, in the Centre-Val de Loire region of France.

ChenonceauxClassé
Centre-Val de Loire — XIV–XX

Château de Villandry

Château de Villandry is a château at Villandry, Indre-et-Loire, in the Centre-Val de Loire region of France.

VillandryClassé
Centre-Val de Loire — XVII–XIX

Château de Cheverny

Château de Cheverny is a château at Cheverny, Loir-et-Cher, in the Centre-Val de Loire region of France.

ChevernyClassé
Hauts-de-France — XVI–XIX

Domaine de Chantilly

Domaine de Chantilly is a château at Chantilly, Oise, in the Hauts-de-France region of France.

ChantillyClassé
Centre-Val de Loire — XVI–XVII

Château de Blois

Château de Blois is a château at Blois, Loir-et-Cher, in the Centre-Val de Loire region of France.

BloisClassé
03

Itineraries

All itineraries

Châteaux rarely stand alone. These routes group the records that lie closest together, so a day out can take in more than one — with the distances between them and, where it exists, the château's own website for opening times.

016 châteaux around Beynac-et-CazenacNouvelle-Aquitaine · 6 stops27 km026 châteaux around OrschwillerGrand Est · 6 stops36 km036 châteaux around Soultz-Haut-RhinGrand Est · 6 stops44 km046 châteaux around ChantillyHauts-de-France · 6 stops46 km056 châteaux around Allemagne-en-ProvenceProvence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur · 6 stops49 km
04

Regions

6,665 records
01Nouvelle-Aquitaine1,10002Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes86403Normandy74704Occitanie70605Centre-Val de Loire58206Bourgogne-Franche-Comté55807Pays de la Loire50008Brittany41409Grand Est39910Hauts-de-France35811Île-de-France26512Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur16013Corsica1014Réunion115Martinique1
05

Centuries

View all
VI1VIII2IX5X27XI128XII477XIII713XIV816XV1,766XVI2,345XVII2,434XVIII2,404XIX1,732XX312XXI2
06

Journal

View all

How to look at a château — construction, materials and protection, explained in general terms and never about one particular building.

01How to read a French heritage recordSources02How to read a slate roof from the groundRestoration03Tuffeau, granite, brick: the stones of French châteaux and how they ageMaterials04Classé or inscrit: what French monument protection actually meansProtection
07

Le Marché du Château

An advertisement may point at an archive record, never the other way round. A château does not leave the archive because nobody advertises it, and it does not gain a line in its record because somebody does. Nothing on this page changes what the register says.

01Le Cercle du ChâteauThe people who keep historic estates standing: architects of the patrimoine, restoration contractors, stonemasons, roofers, and the advisers around them. A paid directory, kept apart from the archive.02Le Marché du ChâteauAdvertisements placed by owners, operators and agents: estates for sale, châteaux that receive guests. Separate from the archive, and marked as advertising on every page.