Château des Ravalet, Tourlaville, France

Château des Ravalet is an outstanding Renaissance style castle, built between 1562 and 1575. Transformed into a farm during the 17th century, it was restored between 1859 and 1874 by Alexis de Tocqueville’s family, the author of on democracy in America. They created the park, with its ponds and its exotic greenhouse. The Cherbourg city acquired the castle in 1935. Today, the castle and its park are both listed as national heritage sites. The 14 hectares park is made of both an English and a French garden. The French garden is located in front of the magnificent 19th century greenhouse.

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User Reviews

Anthony Asabre (4 years ago)
Lovely day to catch the castle, bright and sunny with no clouds in the sky.

Karim Ouafi (4 years ago)
It's very good ?

Sherif Mohamed (4 years ago)
Very nice and quite place to spend the day in..

Philippe RB (4 years ago)
Beautiful setting. Ideal place for family with children. Lots of nice picnic places and immaculate lawns to laze around. Absolutely fabulous glass house and ponds.

A K (6 years ago)
Absolutely stunning parc and gardens. Should not be missed if you're anywhere nearby. Entry is free, parking is free, no dogs allowed. There's a cafe and toilets on-site. There's a play area for children, lovely water features, lots of exotic plants with some information displayed. Gardens in different styles: English, French, Middle-ages. Places to just sit down, relax, read and contemplate in serenity. Not a lot of visitors on a weekday in July. The castle didn't seem accessible when we went. There was also a collection of interesting pictures from Cherbourg on display with legends in English and French.

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Photo from Flickr, copyright caminanteK

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Château de Foix

The Château de Foix dominates the town of Foix. An important tourist site, it is known as a centre of the Cathars. Built on an older 7th-century fortification, the castle is known from 987. In 1002, it was mentioned in the will of Roger I, Count of Carcassonne, who bequeathed the fortress to his youngest child, Bernard. In effect, the family ruling over the region were installed here which allowed them to control access to the upper Ariège valley and to keep surveillance from this strategic point over the lower land, protected behind impregnable walls.

In 1034, the castle became capital of the County of Foix and played a decisive role in medieval military history. During the two following centuries, the castle was home to Counts with shining personalities who became the soul of the Occitan resistance during the crusade against the Albigensians.

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