Nearly three hundred fortified castles were erected on the shores of the Loire Valley between the middle of the 9th century and the end of the l 5th century. The original fortresses were very vulnerable. Attackers merely needed to set fire to the immense wooden constructions to force the leadership within to surrender.

In a bid to bolster their defense, the local lords ordered, at the start of the 11th century, the building of majestic stone castles. These generally featured massive towers sometimes forty meters (131 feet) tall that served as the final refuge for the lord of the castle and his garrison. The surrounding walls were some ten meters (6p feet) high, five meters (l6 feet) wide at the base and two meters (6 feet) wide at the wall-walk level, where armed guards were posted to watch for approaching enemy troops.

Your model contains all of the defensive elements of late 14th century medieval architecture. Thick walls flanked at each corner by huge round towers with loopholes, fortified gates, a drawbridge and deep moats protect this vast dwelling.

In the middle of the 15th century, these heavy fortresses were slowly converted into outright palaces. The moats, which earlier served to impede access to the castle, now, frame these beautiful structures.

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