Visit to the Château de Chantore in Normandy, with its owner, Bernard Legal
183 Video Views·Jul 31, 2025
Château de Chantore is an 18th-century castle located in Bacilly, Normandy, France, known for its romantic park, views of Mont-Saint-Michel and historic architecture. The castle offers luxurious accommodation in 18th-century style bedrooms, facilities such as a swimming pool, outdoor activities such as hiking, tennis, mountain biking and WiFi.
Address: Chantore, 50530 Bacilly, France
Welcome to Château de Chantor.
It's a pleasure for me to open the doors for you today
of the Château that we live in with Iñaki.
The Château was built in 1780 by the Lord of Chantor,
who was the landowner here on this promontory
because he wants to see the Mont Saint-Michel.
You should know, and I will show you later,
that from the Blue Salon and the Chinese Salon
we can see the Mont Saint-Michel and contemplate it.
I invite you to follow me and we will discover together
the interiors of the Château de Chantor.
Come on, let's go.
Now we are in the 18th vestibule of the Château de Chantor.
I would say that an element that I really like in this vestibule
is this canvas.
It is a canvas from Nantes,
including the first box at the age of the Château, in 1780,
and which represents Artemis, Dia de Chasserez.
A very beautiful canvas.
Now I invite you to follow me in the Chinese Salon,
which was really in the centre of the 18th vestibule.
It is called the Chinese Salon
because you can see on the walls there is a canvas
which represents a somewhat fantasized Chinese character,
a resident of the Middle Empire in the 18th century.
And then, perhaps in the centre, here on this Florentine table,
we see this beautiful replica of Jean de Bologne's Hermès.
So, Renaissance, here it is a 19th-century replica
by one of the greatest founders of the 19th century,
who is Signe Barbédienne.
And, of course, this Salon, its vocation,
because it is not a Salon where you will stay,
it is a Salon de circulation,
to go from the dining room to the Grand Salon, for example,
is to admire the Mont Saint-Michel.
And so, on your left, in the percée,
you can see the sublime Mont Saint-Michel,
but even if there is mist,
if there is a storm, wind, hail,
it is still fantastic.
And I invite you now to go to another Salon,
which is the Salon Bleu Benet.
So, this blue will bear a name,
it is the blue nattier.
It is therefore a blue that is very fashionable in the 18th century,
under Louis XV.
Here, this fabric is a damas,
the two large fabrics that we will use in the 18th century,
the damas, the canvas of Jouy.
And here, what is very interesting in the damas,
is that it has this sparkle,
it brings back the light,
and this blue is really fantastic.
So, what can I tell you here?
There would be a lot of stories to tell,
but for example, I would stop here,
for example, Henri IV Enfant.
There, above, in medallion,
in front of the mirror,
you have the Great Dauphin,
which is the 17th, as a portrait.
And also above the door, for example.
I really like this Bacchanal, which is Renaissance,
and which takes up a bit of the history
of the love, of the party,
that Bacchus and his friends will have.
And before we go,
before we go to the Grand Salon,
we will stop on a sculpture that I like a lot,
which is the Laucon,
and one of his sons.
We are missing his second son.
When we arrived here, in Chantor,
eight years ago,
we really wanted to do a restoration,
not at all a renovation.
That is to say, we wanted to keep the soul of the place.
And so we recreated a salon here,
as we could find it at the end of the 18th century,
in the Louis XVI style.
And now I invite you to go to the 19th century,
to take a leap of 100 years.
So here we will really find the taste,
the desire that the bourgeoisie of the 19th century,
of the Second Empire, will have.
That is to say, to find ambiences
much earlier in the history of France.
And here we will see a salon that tells the story of the Renaissance.
So it's a salon born in the Renaissance,
with its French-style ceiling,
which is really remarkable.
So you might think it's wood.
Not at all.
Of course, we will use the techniques
of the second part of the 19th century.
That is to say, these are metal beams,
covered with stucco,
and painted in chain imitation painting.
Here, for example,
we will find an important figure
in our common history.
It's Louis XIV.
It's what we call a portrait of diffusion.
It's the 17th century.
Here, a very beautiful tapestry,
the 18th century in the bush,
between the two windows.
And on the table, in the center,
we find this very beautiful woman,
the one from Paris, by Pajoux.
So we've just spent a little time,
for example, smoking a cigar,
as we love to do in the Second Empire.
And we're going to have dinner,
and I invite you to follow me to the dining room.
We will cross the blue living room,
the Chinese living room,
to get to the dining room.
So the dining room,
since the construction of the castle,
has always been here.
We tried to find the atmosphere
of the dining room,
and we chose this color,
celadon, or gray green,
which was the color that was fashionable
in the 18th century for dining rooms.
You know that at the end of the 18th century,
the dining room was a creation.
It didn't exist before.
And so, the way of life evolves,
and so it's a very important piece.
And the kitchen, of course,
as in all castles, was far away.
And there it is, in Chantor,
in the cellar, under the dining room.
And so, to bring the dishes,
here, behind these doors,
we're going to find the manjar.
I'm going to tell you about an object
that people often ask me about.
What are these two doors?
Well, it's going to be
the second empire's hot plate,
which works with the heater.
So, why a hot plate?
Well, because in the French dining room,
we bring, to impress the guests,
we bring all the dishes to the table.
And so, the hot dishes
have time to cool down.
And the luxury is, of course,
to serve them, at least,
on a hot plate.
It allows you to heat up
the hot dishes a little bit.
Here, look, it also works
with the second empire's heater.
You have the heater's nozzles here.
That is, before the guests arrive,
the house opens its nozzles,
there is hot air coming in,
which heats up the room.
And when the dinner is over,
before going to the living room,
the house closes its nozzles
to heat up another room.
What are we going to find here
that is interesting,
that the guests, who are at the table,
will be able to admire?
Well, for example,
here you have Delphi's faience,
with the famous Delphi's blue.
All the paintings
on the wall
are 17th or 18th
and represent, for the most part,
the members of the Bourbon family.
So here, for example,
you will admire the Great Dauphin,
one of his sons,
here, the Duke of Anjou,
and the Great Count.
Well, he will be facing
a painting,
which is a representation
that we will find here,
in Chantilly,
the Great Count,
Monsieur Delphi.
So, we have just had
a good meal together,
now we want to find ourselves
in his room,
and I invite you to follow me.
We will go up to the first floor
and we will settle
in the room of the Lord of Chantor
in the 18th century.
Come on!
And in my time,
you can take a look
at the Duke of Guise.
It is on the first floor
that you will find
all the five rooms
that we have here.
And here is the suite of Mont-Saint-Michel,
which is the room of the Lord of Chantor.
The spirit of the Lord of Chantor
is still here.
You should know that
in the 18th century,
when Chantilly was built,
the bed was not here at all.
The bed was in the alcove.
And so the Lord of Chantor
had his head here like this
and by looking through the window
from his bed,
he could see Mont-Saint-Michel.
I invite you to go to the park
and to Mont-Saint-Michel
and the beautiful cedar of Lebanon.
We are lucky in Chantilly
to have a remarkable tree set
with venerable trees
like the cedar of Lebanon,
like the tulip of Virginia,
the giant sequoia, etc.
But also,
and we will see it later,
an exceptional hydraulic set
with 14 waterfalls,
a river,
a valley,
lakes,
and also a tower
that I will show you later
that allows you to travel
and scare the walker.
Now, I invite you
to see a second room
with its bed
in Polish style.
Come on, follow me.
So, here we will find
a bed that is fashionable
under Louis XV.
It is a bed called in Polish
because Louis XV will marry
a Polish princess
who will bring in her luggage
this style of bed
and all the nobility
will appropriate it.
And of course,
it is important in any room
to have a beautiful bathroom
and I invite you to follow me
to admire
the bathroom
of the Val Chamber
with a very beautiful view
once again
on the park and the greenhouse.
Very beautiful grass
and vines
that are very fashionable
of course in the 19th century.
A small view in the distance
of the English River
in the valley between the trees
where we will go later.