As you may know, I have been a medieval re-enactor for the past 21 years. In that time I have visited many, many castles, in various states of repair, and been privileged to camp at some of the most beautiful ones in the UK as part of our events.
For us as re-enactors we spend a lot of time in what is know as experimental archaeology, which is taking the archaeological evidence that exists, and in our case evidence from written accounts and paintings, and trying to recreate garments, weapons, fighting techniques, encampments and battles. One of the places that has been on my wishlist, and that of I think every other re-enactor I know, is the castle of Guedelon in France.
Guedelon was started in 1997, as an experimental archaeology project, to try and build a castle, using only 13th century techniques. It is impossible to describe the scale of the project, I have watched documentaries on it, and seen lots of pictures, but visiting was a dream come true, and I am so glad that I realised that my route would take me near enough to visit. The castle is located near to Orleans, at the lower green flag on this map below.
Seeing it was amazing, from the nearby quarry, where all the stone is cut and moved, to the scaffolding and pulleys needed to work on the higher levels, just absolutely mindblowing.
There is no end date for the castle, as there is no idea when it will be completed. It was fascinating to see how they were working on the higher levels of the towers.
Aside from the castle itself, which is a feat of engineering like nothing else that I have ever seen, there is a whole village surrounding it, full of the craftspeople needed to support the stonemasons. Basket weavers, carpenters and blacksmiths, work as they would have done, making and mending tools and equipment to support the stonemasons.
There are a few concessions to modern heath and safety, such as face masks, eye protection and sturdy boots, but otherwise it is how it would have been circa 1315. In this photo below the blacksmith is using the giant bellows on the left to enhance the flames, that was fascinating.
My favourite part of the village was where the painters and dyers work. They are using only natural dyes and available minerals, to produce all of the colours needed.
The paint workshop had fantastic displays of how they grind all of the minerals to make the 15 pigments they are using. They are currently painting panels to cover the windows, and one of the finished rooms inside the castle had already been painted.
It was a very emotional experience for me, not only seeing the work that all these hugely dedicated people are doing, but also thinking about the many cultures that still use these methods of construction, for whom this is daily life, not some experiment.
Nearly 16 years ago I was lucky enough to be part of Project Nepal, a Scout led initiative, where after two years of planning and construction training, a group of 40 of us flew out to a Nepalese village and built a school hostel, using many of the methods that these craftspeople were using.
The quarry reminded me very much of the pile of stone that faced us when we arrived, that we sorted into size, and we used wooden scaffolding and mud mortar. We were working with the local people, and every day women from the village came to teach us how to use the mud mortar, and build the walls, while the local stonemason trimmed the blocks.
Due to time constraints we did have access to one modern stone saw, but as the fuel for that also had to be brought from the nearest road, five hours walk away, we could only use it sparingly. It was one of the most amazing experiences of my life, and the two weeks I spent living in the village some of the best times I have ever had. Definitely a life changing experience. If you would like to read more about this, I have two pages on this blog, one on the project itself, and one on the time in Nepal, which you can access from the top of the main page.
The above picture shows the 8 women from the Scout group, and the local women we worked with, just before we left the village.
For my overnight stop after the wonderful trip to Guedelon, I drove a few miles so a very lovely little village, to another Park4Nite find, in the village of Triegny.
This was a brilliant park up, with a bonus toilet which I wasn’t expecting, in a very quiet, peaceful, and very pretty village. Although the park up is free, they ask for donations to help fund trips for the local school, and that you use the local facilities, which I was very happy to do. After a lovely restful night, and a trip to the village shop the next day, I continued on my travels.
I am coming to the end of blogging about my trip back through France, just a couple more posts and then I can get back to all the ones I need to catch up on. There may actually be some crafting posts sometime soon, as I have been spending some lovely time knitting, and at my sewing machine. I can’t remember when I last posted anything that I have made! I also have some fab Trust houses to show you from my time in Surrey and the Cotswolds.
I will be back soon with more French medieval gorgeousness. Until then, have fun, take care, stay safe, and thanks for visiting.
Stitches of Time 