Logis Royal

The 14th-15th century royal residence within the citadel, with Joan of Arc's audience hall and the tomb of Agnès Sorel

The Logis Royal stretches along the western wall of the citadel above the river Indre. The older south wing is a tall 14th-century block with a square tower and walkways; the newer north wing, late 15th-century, is in early Flamboyant Gothic, with two tall stair-towers and decorated dormer windows. Together they form one of the most complete late-medieval royal residences in France.

The interior is restored but largely empty -- the original furniture is long gone. The two halves are connected by the great hall where Joan of Arc met the Dauphin in 1429. In the lower oratory is the tomb of Agnès Sorel, the first officially recognised royal mistress in French history, with her marble effigy guarded by carved lambs; a fine 15th-century portrait of her, attributed to Jean Fouquet, is shown nearby.

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A story
It was in the great hall of the Logis Royal in June 1429 that Joan of Arc met the Dauphin and persuaded him to march on Reims for his coronation. Within months he was Charles VII, crowned king, and the French had begun their recovery from the English. The hall is preserved much as it was.