Culture and Heritage

Châteaux, towns and villages

Intimist, impressive or unusual and always fascinating, the Loiret’s chateaux tell the great stories of the Middle Ages.

Other atmospheres await you in Montargis, the Venice of the Gâtinais, or in Gien, the home of faïence, in Beaugency, an important stopover in the Loire valley with its mediaeval alleys or Châteauneuf-sur-Loire that re-enacts the heyday of the ferrymen of the Loire.

Famous people The history of the Loiret still reverberates with the echo of Joan of Arc who left to conquer the kingdom of France. Faithful to Charles VII and the voices that guided her, Joan entered the city of Orleans on 29th April 1429. The battle of Agincourt followed close after and Joan returned to the region, back from Reims, to spend the following winter with the king. Each year in April and May, "faithful" Orleans and the close by town of Chécy, celebrate a particular festive tribute to that famous period.

Many cultural facilities

• Media library
• Museum and School of Fine Art
• National theatre
• Concert venues including a 6,900-seater Zenith
• 9-screen multiplex cinema