Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
for the king of France, and by 1150 Henry II Plantagenet (king of England) made this the
center of his continental empire. A few hundred years later, Charles VII took refuge be-
hind those walls during the Hundred Years' War, during which Chinon was France's cap-
ital city.
Down on the water, you'll see reproductions of the traditional wooden boats once
used to shuttle merchandise up and down the river; some boats ventured as far west as the
Atlantic.
• Walk toward the city, then make a right along the riverbank and find the big statue that
honors a famous Renaissance writer and satirist.
Rabelais Statue:
The great French writer François Rabelais was born here in 1494.
You'll see many references to him in his proud hometown. His best-known work,
Gar-
gantua and Pantagruel,
describes the amusing adventures of father-and-son giants and
was set in Chinon. Rabelais' vivid humor and savage wit are, for many, quintessentially
French—there's even a French word for it:
rabelaisien
. In his bawdy tales, Rabelais cri-
tiqued society in ways that deflected outright censorship—though the Sorbonne called his
work obscene. A monk and a doctor, he's considered the first great French novelist, and
his farces were a voice against the power of the Church and the king.
• Turn your back on Rabelais and follow the cobbled sidewalk leading to the center of
Chinon's main square.
Place du Général de Gaulle:
The town wall once sat on the wide swath of land run-
ningfromthissquaredowntotheriver,effectivelywallingthecityofffromthewater.This
explains why, even now, Chinon seems to turn its back on its river. In medieval times, the
market was here, just outside the wall. The town hall building, originally an arcaded mar-
ket, was renovated only in the 19th century. Today it flies three flags: Europe, France, and
Chinon(withitsthreecastles).Fromhere,youcanseethehandyelevatorthatconnectsthe
town with its castle.
