Step into the story of Château Plessis Gallu
A domain shaped by over six centuries of history in the heart of the Loire Valley
This discreet château, with its quiet history, has long remained in the shadow of its grand neighbour, the Château of Azay-le-Rideau.
SINCE 1379
Timeline of the Domaine du Plessis Gallu
1379 - Jean de Brion, First Lord
The first recorded mention of the Plessis Gallu estate. Jean de Brion was a vassal of Jean de Sancerre, Lord of Azay-le-Rideau. Under the feudal system, the land of Plessis-Gallu was dependent on the lordship of Azay.
1445 - Nicolas Desaubuys
Declaration of allegiance made to the Lord of Azay-le-Rideau because of his fief of Plessis-Gallu.
1607- Jean de Gennes & Anne Maille
Squire, lawyer at Parliament, and Lord of Plessis-Gallu. The godfather of his son Artus (born in 1612) was the powerful Artus de Lusignan de Saint-Gelais, Lord of Azay.The de Gennes family remained Lords of Plessis-Gallu until 1644.
1663- François de la Barre
Counsellor to the King at the Royal Court of Chinon and husband of Suzanne Desloges.His son Jean-François inherited the estate and became bailiff of the châtellenie of Azay.
1738- The d'Alègre Family
Marthe de la Barre married Jean d'Alègre.Their son, Thomas-Antoine d'Alègre, became Lord of Plessis-Gallu and La Clousière.
1802 - Cyr Emery Pigou
Thomas d'Alègre sold the estate to Cyr Emery Pigou, a registrar, for an annual income of 1,700 francs.Pigou later became Mayor of Azay-le-Rideau from 1830 to 1842.
1865 - Charles Lemaître
A notary and banker, Charles Lemaître purchased the estate from the Baron de Charentais for 20,000 francs.He later sold it in 1882 for 52,000 francs.
1924 - Elizabeth Cahen d'Anvers
Born into a famous Parisian banking family and immortalized as a child in a portrait by Renoir, Elizabeth Cahen d'Anvers purchased the estate for 200,000 francs.She sold it in 1938 before being deported to Auschwitz in 1944.
1957 - L'Entraide Coopérative
The estate was converted into a convalescent home and remained so until 2012.
ART & HISTORY
Renoir ans the Cahen d'Anvers Family
The collector Charles Ephrussi, owner of the Gazette des Beaux-Arts and close to the Cahen d’Anvers family, introduced Pierre-Auguste Renoir to the banker Louis Cahen d’Anvers in 1880.
He later commissioned the artist to paint portraits of his daughters, including Little Girl with a Blue Ribbon (Irène, 1880) and the famous Young Girls at the Piano (1881), in which the younger sisters Elisabeth and Alice appear together.
This work is now held at the São Paulo Museum of Art.Elisabeth Cahen d’Anvers, the young girl dressed in blue in the painting, later became the owner of Plessis Gallu from 1924 to 1938. Arrested in 1944, she died in Auschwitz at the age of 69.
ETYMOLOGY
The origin of the word "Plessis"
Plessis: a masculine noun dating back to around 1120. It originally referred to a fortified place surrounded by wooden palisades — a defensive enclosure made of interwoven branches forming a natural barrier.
In the 12th century, this structure described a tightly woven hedge used in winter, which would later grow into a natural enclosure in spring.
The origin of the word Gallu remains uncertain. In Latin, gallus means “rooster.” Given that Touraine was occupied by the English during the medieval period, the name may also derive from the Gaulish gallu (caer), meaning “power” or “stronghold.”
HERITAGE
Medieval architecture
The Plessis Gallu Castle, dating back to 1379, features distinctive defensive elements, including gunports, machicolations and arrow slits along the rampart wall, particularly visible at the entrance to the Plessis pathway.
An ongoing architectural study confirms its medieval origins, evidenced by the four towers of the château, the extension of the enclosing wall, and the remains of an additional tower. The estate also includes deep, unused stone quarries.
RÉFÉRENCES
At the origins of the estate
This account is based on extensive historical research carried out using local archives and period documents.
A meticulous study that retraces the history of the Plessis Gallu estate through the centuries.
We would like to extend our sincere thanks to Geneviève Guilpain for the quality of her research.
The information presented is drawn in particular from the departmental archives of Indre-et-Loire, civil registry records, and the archives of Azay-le-Rideau.
Discover the estate
Immerse yourself in the atmosphere of a place steeped in history in the heart of the Loire Valley
