That there exists the remains of a chapel underneath the chapel which now goes by the name of St. Hubert Is no mystery. Saint Blaise was a Christian Martyr in Turkey, a very popular Saint with a cult following all over Europe.

Did the Château really have lions? Hard to take in, but, yes. You do wonder how they got here and how they were they fed along the way. The danger to life and limb alone beggars belief.

May 2nd marks the anniversary of the death of Leonardo da Vinci in Amboise.

In 1888, in Amboise, James McNeill Whistler had never been so happy. He was on his honeymoon, with his beloved Trixie in his beloved France. He was fifty, Beatrix was thirty. It was his first marriage, her second. They had known each other for many years.

Turner’s book, Wanderings By The Loire, inspired English artists to paint Château Amboise.

Many know Turner, the artist. Many know Louis-Philippe, the last king of France. Not many know that the son of a poor Londoner and the French aristocrat, admired each other, became friends and stayed friends, or that in October 1826 Turner came to Amboise to sketch the Royal Château. It was empty. Louis Philippe was not invited to be King of the French until 1830.

A Dutch artist with the wonderful name of Lambert Doomer, arrived in Amboise in the summer of 1646. He left with a sketchbook of wonderful drawings which captured the spirit of the age.

Jean Clouet (1480–1541) was Court Painter to François I. Like his predecessors Fouquet, Bourdichon and Perréal (all named Jean) he lived in Tours. Like his predecessors, Clouet did his drawings in red and black chalk. Also like them he was a gifted miniaturist. Seven are in BNF (Bibliothèque Nationale de France).