Medieval fortresses, royal castles and Renaissance palaces, bucolic mansions, impressive cathedrals. This artistic miracle, which uninterruptedly developed over more than 3 centuries and is the basis of what historians call 'the art of living a la francesa'; it is in fact the result of a military defeat: the battle of Azincourt (October 1415). A defeat that forces Charles VII, the then king of France evicted from Paris by the English, to take refuge for his safety on the banks of the Loire, in Touraine, where there were already strong fortresses. The region also had many advantages: rich and fertile, crossed by a river, the main communication route between the Mediterranean, the Burgundy, the Lyon region and the provinces of the great west. Refugee first by obligation, the nobility stayed for their solace during long stays! Since then this region was called 'The Garden of France' and the Golden Age of the Loire Valley began then. When peace returned, the economic prosperity allied to the development of the arts gave way to an unprecedented architectural fever ...