The Metro lines in Paris are denoted by their final destinations. So if you want to know which platform to stand on (and it can be a bit daunting at times if you're not sure), you need to know which direction you're going. For example, line 1, which is one of our local lines from Bastille, goes in two directions - the signs in the Metro say La Défense and Ch. de Vincennes. We've never really taken much notice of what these directions mean, we just know that La Défense goes in towards town, and Ch. de Vincennes goes back towards home. That is until yesterday when we collected a few tourist brochures, one of which is for Le Château de Vincennes - oh! that's what that means!! And it's so close - only 7 Metro stops, a mere 10 minutes or so. Right in our own backyard, it would seem.
Paris has turned on sunshine and blue sky again today, so after enjoying the sunny markets this morning we don't want to spend the afternoon inside. The weather forecast for this week is not promising, so we need to make the most of the sunshine. And what better way than to take our time exploring a medieval castle in the 'burbs (read: les banlieues, the regions of Paris that lie beyond the 20 arrondissements).
The Metro station is literally right outside the front drawbridge of the Château - the imposing entrance soars above us just beyond a large moat - intimidatingly impressive!!
This fortified royal residence began as a hunting lodge in the 1100s and was then added to by John the Good in the 1300s. Charles V completed work on the keep, with a protective wall, nine towers and a massive moat.
Many monarchs took refuge behind the huge castle walls in the troubled 16th and 17th centuries, and the once royal residence then became a major arsenal when Louis XIV moved to Versailles. Napoleon Bonaparte had the 9 peripheral towers removed so he could use artillery against anyone who tried to attack him, without them sneaking up behind the towers.
Several well-known people in history were imprisoned here, in particular the debauched Marquis de Sade. Others were imprisoned without cause, simply for writing something that the monarchy didn't like, or if they were too difficult for their family to deal with! There would be no escaping these huge thick walls and enormous heavy doors with solid bolts.
The church on site, Saint Chapelle, is simple but beautiful, and it's possible to climb up the steps to the mezzanine to view the interior from above.
After our tour of the château, we walk around the perimeter of the walls, enjoying the sunshine and marvelling at the structure, which is so uniquely impressive and starkly beautiful that people come to have their wedding photos taken here :-)
This château isn't as well-known or anywhere near as extravagant as the other more famous ones (Versailles, for example) but for the cost of a Metro ticket to get here and a small entrance fee, it's well worth an afternoon visit.
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