1. Welcome

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Dear visitors,
My wife and I, along with our children, are delighted to welcome you to L'Islette. The château, of course, will be the focal point of your visit. However, this property, with the river that runs through it, its mill, the English-style park, and a garden, certainly structured in front of the south facade but remaining otherwise very close to nature, forms a very harmonious whole, I believe, and which, I hope, will enchant you.
My parents acquired it in the mid-1960s when the monument was in particularly poor condition. We owe them the credit for saving it by carrying out extensive restoration work. However, in such a place, as you might expect, there is no shortage of projects. They have punctuated our lives since we took over L'Islette in 2010 and opened it to the public. The task is not necessarily easy, but it is certainly exhilarating. And your presence encourages us. I thank you and wish you a pleasant visit.
Pierre-André Michaud

Dear visitors,
I am happy to welcome you into this house.
We live there, as a family, for five months of the year. The other seven months are reserved for you, and we are moving to the neighboring farm so you can discover it. Its interior layout, the size of its rooms and their layout, the light that shines through them, are all characteristics that make it very pleasant to live in. It is this warm, and ultimately very human, dimension that we wanted to share with you and which led us to choose to give you access to rooms that could be considered personal, even intimate.
I love this vibrant place, for its beauty of course, but perhaps even more so because it offers me the opportunity to meet so many wonderful people. I sincerely hope that you will enjoy it too.
Benedicte Michaud

2. Entrance porch, mill and river

ENTRANCE PORCH

Consisting of a stone porch framed by two square pavilions, the complex dates from the early 17th century. It also bears a date engraved on the exterior: 1638. This date should not, however, be misleading, as the castle itself was completed around 1530.

MILL – RIVER

Originally a "banal" mill, that is to say, one that people dependent on the lordship were required to use to grind their wheat... in exchange for a fee to the lord, the old mill has been transformed since the post-war period into a dwelling house. Its mechanism has disappeared, but an examination of the Napoleonic land register tells us that it was equipped with two wheels, one on each side, certainly corresponding to two different productions.

As for the river, it is the Indre, around which the property (approximately 50 ha) stretches. The water element, essential to Islette ("small island"), is intimately linked to the beauty and charm of the site. The river also forms the natural border between two communes: that of Azay-le-Rideau, on the right bank, by which one enters, and that of Cheillé, on the left bank, on which the castle is built.

3. Brick and stone wing

This part is the oldest of the castle and dates back to the 15th century. During the construction, during the Renaissance, of the monument that still stands today, there existed on the wing, facing the river, an old seigneurial dwelling. This construction in brick and stone, an innovation introduced in Touraine by Louis XI, with a length of about 25 meters, was destroyed in the 18th century. Only this part remains - certainly a corner pavilion - which formed the connection with the new castle. Everything that appears in brick only corresponded to interior walls, while the brick and tuffeau walls constituted the exterior walls. We can see that this old building was lower; we can also see various openings that allowed communication and which have been blocked, as well as the mark of the roof slope.

However, the existence of Islette is even older since we know, from a text from 1295, that it was at the time the property of Adam Panaterius, bailiff of Touraine.

4. South facade

Stretching over 54 m with its two towers, the monumentality of this Renaissance façade testifies to the architectural ambition that presided over the design of the Islette. This is also evidenced by the choice of a four-story elevation with the attic. Beyond the stylistic similarities with the Château d'Azay-le-Rideau, the Islette project was certainly conceived earlier but, due to its scale, progressed more slowly.

The two powerful corner towers, inherited from those of medieval castles, frame a main building with a very regular façade, punctuated by windows of identical proportions. These windows, decorated with a volute in the center of the lintel, were all mullioned in the 16th century, as is still the case on the second floor. The floors are separated by a double body of moldings forming a band. And the whole is crowned by a patrol path on machicolations.

Built of beautiful cut stone, yellow tuffeau from nearby quarries, the castle was originally surrounded by moats (on the site of the current gravel pits). And there still remain, above the entrance gate, the two grooves of the drawbridge that provided access to the castle. In addition, the roofs of the towers were pointed and the dormers were topped with a gable of sculpted stones.

Around 1830/1840, Jean-Baptiste Dupuy, then the owner, filled in the moats, truncated the towers, and trimmed the dormers, giving L'Islette its current appearance. Why such changes? It was long thought that the site was cost-saving. Today, it is assumed that this wealthy man with a strong personality wanted to make the place his own and leave his mark.

5. Carved cartouche - Sundial

SCULPTED CARTRIDGE

Located above the entrance door, this particularly finely carved motif dates from the Renaissance period. In the center, two nude male figures hold helmets, surmounting a coat of arms, the whole surrounded by a wreath of flowers and fruit, symbolizing abundance and wealth; below, a beautiful landscape with a windmill and bell tower. The richness and care taken in this bas-relief indicate the extent to which this entrance was intended to be valued.

SUNDIAL

Dating from the second half of the 18th century, the sundial's interest stems in particular from the figure-8 curve, called an analemma, which is represented in its middle. When it is midday in the sun, the shadow of the style meets the figure-8 curve. The signs of the zodiac which run through it thus allow us to know the time of year in which we are.

6. Chapel

Painted at the beginning of the 17th century, the chapel's decorations have regained all their beauty thanks to a restoration carried out in 2012. The ribbed vault is decorated with a scattering of six-pointed stars in gold leaf, on a blue lapis lazuli background. The ribs, sitting on sculpted capitals, are enhanced by a stylized decorative plant frieze.

Before its transformation into a chapel, this level must have been blind and had only defensive functions, like the southwest tower. Two French-style gun ports visible from the outside bear witness to this.

7. Lower room or common room

To access this room, one goes through the entrance hall, a necessary passage point for entering the castle via the drawbridge that originally existed. The monument was indeed surrounded by a moat. This is clearly visible on the Napoleonic land register, a reproduction of which appears in this room. Also note the old engraving: it is that of Islette, surrounded by the water of the moat, with its pointed towers and dormer windows, before the modifications made in the 19th century.

This room, also restored, was dedicated to Camille Claudel and Rodin, thanks in part to some very interesting documents kindly provided to us by the Rodin Museum. These include letters from both artists that have a connection to Islette or that are emblematic of their romantic relationships and their personalities.

CAMILLE CLAUDEL AND AUGUSTE RODIN, THE PASSION OF TWO ARTISTS

In 1882, Camille Claudel became Auguste Rodin's student; she was 17 years old while he was 41. Exceptionally gifted, she quickly joined his studio. From this encounter was born a dual passion between the two sculptors, both romantic and artistic, which lasted for about ten years.

Fed up with being confined to the role of student and wanting to free herself from it to be recognized for her own creative work, Camille Claudel broke off the relationship in 1892. She had also understood that Rodin would not abandon his companion, Rose Beuret, for her.

CAMILLE CLAUDEL AND AUGUSTE RODIN AT L'ISLETTE

L'Islette hosted the passionate love affairs of the two great sculptors on several occasions in the early 1890s. The property was a haven of peace for them. Their relationship was not official, so it was a place where they liked to retreat. Why here? In July 1889, Rodin discovered the Loire and its châteaux, of which he made numerous drawings—including that of L'Islette (in the common room)—and it is assumed that it was during this first trip that he noticed the château. And the owners at the time simply received paying guests. They both returned there during the summers of 1890, 1891, and 1892.

MONUMENT TO BALZAC

(see photos immediately to the left upon entering the common room)
In August 1891, the Société des Gens de Lettres, under the presidency of Émile Zola, awarded Rodin the commission for a Monument to Balzac. Enthusiastic, the artist returned to stay at l'Islette and, looking for a model of the Tours type, he found one in the person of a carter from Azay-le-Rideau, named Estager, whose resemblance to the great writer was apparently striking. Rodin, who before dressing his characters, always began by sculpting them naked, had to pay Estager a louis d'or per session so that the latter would agree to reveal his anatomy! Thus, an important initial phase in the creation of the Monument to Balzac took place at l'Islette. The work would not be completed until 1898, and was even refused. Not a sufficient likeness for the majority of his contemporaries; Rodin, for his part, had wanted to paint a moral portrait of the artist. He then took it to his villa des Brillants in Meudon and it was not installed in Paris, at the Vavin crossroads, until July 1, 1939, well after his death in 1917.

8. Great Hall

The Great Hall, with its beautiful and high-quality decor, is the pride of this château. It appears even more prestigious when we consider that it may have served as a studio for Camille Claudel and Rodin during their stays at L'Islette.

It is called the Saint-Paul Room because of a painting depicting Paul's conversion on the road to Damascus that previously adorned the fireplace. It has since disappeared and been replaced by a Virgin and Child attributed to the school of Simon Vouet.

This room (14 m long by 8 m wide and 5 m high under the ceiling) offers a remarkable pictorial decoration from the beginning of the 17th century, constituting an iconographic program of high symbolic and theological significance, testimony to this period marked by confessional conflicts. The entire ceiling, the fireplace, the woodwork of the basements, the impost panels above the doors are painted, one of which is missing, but also an entire frieze that runs along the top of the walls. On the plinths, small paintings alternate either of elegant bouquets of flowers, or of landscapes often having water as their theme, an element so present in Islette: we can for example distinguish a fishing scene or a shepherdess watching her sheep on the edge of the river.

The frieze also features various medallions: to the right of the fireplace, Venus, goddess of beauty, and Eros, divinity of love, armed with his bow and quiver; opposite, on the other side of the room, is a combat scene. The whole is richly decorated with fruit and flowers symbolizing abundance.

CHIMNEY

Beneath the central painting adorning the fireplace (the Virgin and Child), a painted medallion depicts a hunting scene, again on the banks of a river, which once again underlines the importance of this element at Islette. On each side of the painting are depicted allegories of virtues that the lord of the place must have wanted to emphasize. On the left, two theological virtues: at the bottom, Hope, recognizable by its anchor; above, Faith, with attributes such as a Bible and a crucifix. There is a third that is not found here: Charity. As for the cardinal virtues, in addition to prudence and temperance, which do not appear, justice and fortitude can be seen on the right side. Finally, up close, one can see that the four bundles of arms are additions. The fireplace is still very ornate, but in their place, there must have originally been sculpted motifs.

COAT OF ARMS FRIEZE

The castle was built around 1530 by René de Maillé, a member of an important family of the Touraine nobility who owned it for three centuries, from 1350 to around 1650, and we owe this frieze of 27 coats of arms, painted at the top of the walls, to his great-grandson, Charles de Maillé, who became marquis in 1612. It is of particular historical interest here since the coats of arms of the Maillé family, the owners of Islette, occupy the entire frieze on the south side and end, in the middle, opposite the fireplace, with that of Charles, surmounted by the marquis's crown (those of his maternal family are represented on the north side).

Among these coats of arms, however, there is an intruder: there is nothing noble about this one! It is the one at the top of the chimney that Dupuy had painted (you can clearly see a well there!), the owner who decided on the facade work carried out in the 19th century.

9. Bedroom

ROOM IN THE WEST TOWER

A square room in a round tower, the thickness of its walls (2.30 m) was put to good use... Perhaps Camille Claudel lived in this room. Indeed, on the one hand we know that Rodin rented several rooms on this floor and, on the other hand, in a letter she sent to him on June 25, 1893, she wrote to him: "Miss Vaissier came to see me and told me all sorts of fables forged about me at Islette. It seems that I go out at night through the window of my tower, hanging from a red umbrella with which I set fire to the forest!!!"

10. Small bedroom

SMALL ROOM WITH BRICK WALLS

There we find the old 15th century part of the building, this time on the interior side. This brick facing, with its so-called "iron-tight" joints - up close, we can clearly see the two sides of the joint corresponding to the mason's trowel strokes - has remained as it was at the time.

11. Kitchen

You are now in the other tower of the castle, the one located to the east. We are just above the chapel; one of the locked doors opens onto a small staircase dug into the wall providing access to it.
Today, this room has been converted into a kitchen. Here too, you may have noticed, the thickness of the walls has been put to good use. This is evidenced by the household appliances, particularly the Frigidaire, a brand that Mr. and Mrs. Michaud absolutely wanted to keep and therefore had completely repaired. Finally, note also the lovely view of the river.
You have crossed the entire first floor, from one tower to the other.
The second floor has an identical layout. It will likely never be open to the public. It consists of other living areas for the owners' private use.

12. Dining room

This room, very pleasant to live in, thanks in particular to the large windows which give it plenty of light during the day, offers a lovely view of the garden.
During the Renaissance, this room and the kitchen certainly formed the lord's apartment. The current dining room constituted the bedroom, with its bed placed next to the fireplace (the widest section of the wall), and the kitchen corresponded to the wardrobe. And the small room covered with a pretty ribbed vault constituted a study. On the second floor, the lady of the house's apartment can be located in the same location.

THE LITTLE CHATELAINE

Camille Claudel, returning alone to l'Islette from September 1892, certainly to recover from an unfulfilled pregnancy, and at the time of her breakup with Rodin, had little Marguerite Boyer, 6 years old, granddaughter of the owners, pose 62 times. From these numerous sessions, she created La Petite Châtelaine, one of her most famous sculptures, "the Little Girl of l'Islette" as she called her, perhaps the child she never had. Upon seeing one of the marbles, Rodin declared: "This bust gave me the punch of emulation."
There are several variations of La Petite Châtelaine, the difference being the hair. Here you can admire a bronze of this marvelous sculpture, with a nuanced brown patina. This is the model with the tightly curved braid.

THE LOVESEATS

Also in the dining room is an original bronze of Camille Claudel's Causeuses. From 1892 onward, she distinguished herself from Rodin in particular with miniature sculptures depicting intimate scenes from everyday life. She received much praise and produced numerous versions. The model presented here is made of bronze with a brownish-black patina, signed "C. Claudel 1896" on the front.

THANK YOU FOR YOUR VISIT!