The Château de Monte-Cristo is a writer's house museum located in the country home of the writer Alexandre Dumas. The château was built in 1846 by the architect Hippolyte Durand. Dumas named it after one of his most successful novels: The Count of Monte Cristo (1845–1846). Durand also built a writing studio on the grounds, which Dumas named the Château d'If after another setting from the same novel. In 1848, short of money, Dumas had to sell the property.
The château fell into disrepair by the 1960s, it was restored with the patronage of King Hassan II of Morocco, who financed the restoration of its Moorish room. Since 1994, the two châteaux and gardens have been restored. The entire property is operated as a public historic museum memorializing Dumas.
References:The Château du Lude is one of the many great châteaux of the Loire Valley in France. Le Lude is the most northerly château of the Loire Valley and one of the last important historic castles in France, still inhabited by the same family for the last 260 years. The château is testimony to four centuries of French architecture, as a stronghold transformed into an elegant house during the Renaissance and the 18th century. The monument is located in the valley of Le Loir. Its gardens have evolved throughout the centuries.