Why go
Begin with the Gothic Salle des États Généraux, then compare Louis XII’s brick-and-stone entrance, Francis I’s sculpted staircase and the classical Gaston d’Orléans wing. The courtyard makes the sequence visible without needing to memorize every ruler. Each face of the courtyard tells a different chapter of royal building.
What to look for
- The Salle des États Généraux preserves Blois’s Gothic layer.
- The Francis I staircase opens toward the courtyard.
- The Gaston d’Orléans wing uses a markedly classical façade.
The full story
Blois developed in layers rather than according to one master plan. The early thirteenth-century Salle des États Généraux preserves a large Gothic civic room associated with the Counts of Blois and later assemblies. Under Louis XII, the château became a favored royal residence. His entrance wing combines red brick and gray stone with late Gothic details and early Renaissance touches. Francis I added another wing after taking the throne in 1515. Its carved, open spiral staircase faces the courtyard, making movement and royal display part of the architecture. In the seventeenth century, Gaston d’Orléans commissioned a wing from François Mansart. Classical columns and a more disciplined façade mark a clear break from the earlier work. Looking around the courtyard therefore gives you a quick visual history of changing royal taste. It also shows that a château can be an accumulation of decisions by different patrons, not one frozen Renaissance design.
Useful to know
- Use the central courtyard to compare the wings before entering the rooms.