By Linda Tancs
Inhabited since the Renaissance, Château de Villandry is a spectacular French castle on the banks of the Loire. Once a defensive fortress used for peace discussions between Philip II and Richard the Lionheart of England, it was renovated in the Renaissance style by its first owner, Jean Le Breton, Minister of Finance for Francois l. The property was later renovated in the neoclassical style after it was acquired by the Marquis de Castellane. In the early 1900s, the property was acquired by Spanish inventor Joachim Carvallo and his American wife, the heiress Ann Coleman. Their particular dedication and attention to the property’s magnificent landscape (restored to the Renaissance style) created one of Europe’s best gardens. Still owned by the Carvallo family, the estate is a major tourist attraction.
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