The Chateaux represent a nation of builders starting with the necessary castle fortifications in the 10th century to the splendor of those built a thousand years later. When the French kings began constructing their huge chateaux, the nobility, not wanting or even daring to be far from the seat of power, followed suit.
The ascension of King Louis XIV in the middle of the 17th century made Paris the permanent site for great royal chateaux when he built the Palace of Versailles. Nonetheless, those who gained the king's favour and the wealthy bourgeoisie, continued to renovate existing chateaux or build lavish new ones as their summer residence in the Loire.
The French Revolution saw a number of the great French chateaux destroyed and many ransacked, their treasures stolen. The overnight impoverishment of many of the deposed nobility, usually after one of its members lost their head to the guillotine, saw many chateaux demolished. During World War I and World War II, some chateaux were commandeered as military headquarters. Some of these continued to be used this way after the end of WWII.
Today, these privately owned chateaux serve as homes, a few opening their doors to tourist visits, while others are operated as hotels or bed and breakfasts. Many have been taken over by a local government authority or the giant structures like those at Chambord are owned and operated by the national government and are major tourist sites, attracting hundreds of thousands of visitors each year.
Excerpts from Wikipedia
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