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Amboise

 
Dictionary: Am·boise   (äN-bwäz') pronunciation

A town of west-central France on the Loire River east of Tours. Leonardo da Vinci is said to be buried in the chapel of its Gothic chateau. Population: 12,400.

 

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Amboise (äNbwäz'), town (1991 pop. 10,972), Indre-et-Loire dept., N central France, in Touraine, on the Loire. It is a wine and wool market, and its manufactures include sporting goods, pharmaceuticals, and film and radio equipment. The town is chiefly famous, however, for its Gothic château, a royal residence from the reign of Charles VIII (who was born and died there) to that of Francis II. Leonardo da Vinci, who probably worked on it, is said to be buried in its chapel. Amboise was the scene (1560) of a Huguenot plot against the Guise family. Other old structures in the town include St. Denis Church (12th, 15th, 16th, and 17th cent.), St. Florentine Church (15th cent.), the town hall (16th cent.; restored), and the Clos-Lucé (15th cent.), where Francis I spent part of his youth and where da Vinci died.


[ahm-BWAHZ] A quaint little town in France's touraine ac that produces higher-quality wine and is allowed to append its name to the label Touraine-Amboise. The white wines are made from chenin blanc and resemble those from vouvray. The red and rosé wines are made from cabernet franc, gamay and malbec. The Touraine province is known as the "château country," and Amboise has a well-known château that's quite popular.

Wikipedia: Amboise
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Coordinates: 47°24′15″N 0°58′48″E / 47.404167°N 00.98°E / 47.404167; 00.98

Commune of Amboise

Location
Amboise is located in France
Amboise
Administration
Country France
Region Centre
Department Indre-et-Loire
Arrondissement Tours
Canton Amboise
Mayor Christian Guyon
(2008–2014)
Statistics
Elevation 52–127 m (170–420 ft)
(avg. 58 m/190 ft)
Land area1 40.65 km2 (15.70 sq mi)
Population2 12,691  (2006)
 - Density 312 /km2 (810 /sq mi)
Miscellaneous
INSEE/Postal code 37003/ 37400
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.
2 Population sans doubles comptes: residents of multiple communes (e.g., students and military personnel) only counted once.

Amboise is a commune in the Indre-et-Loire department in central France. It lies on the banks of the Loire River, 17 miles (27 km) east of Tours. Today a small market town, it was once home of the French royal court. The town of Amboise is also only about 11 miles (18 km) away from the historic Château de Chenonceau, situated on the Cher River near the small village of Chenonceaux.

Contents

Sights

The city is famous for the Clos Lucé manor house where Leonardo da Vinci lived (and ultimately died) at the invitation of King Francis I of France, whose Château d'Amboise, which dominates the town, is located just 500 meters away. The narrow streets contain some good examples of timbered housing.

Just outside of the city is the Pagode de Chanteloup, a 44 metre tall Chinese Pagoda built in 1775 by the Duke of Choiseul. The Pagoda is seven levels high, with each level slightly smaller than the last one. An interior staircase to reach all levels is open to the public.

The Musée de la Poste (in the Hôtel Joyeuse) is a museum tracing the history of the postal delivery service.

A 19th-century fountain by John Oswald of a turtle topped by a teddy bear figure, standing in front of the spot where the markets are held.

History

Clovis I (c. 466-511) and the Visigoths signed a peace treaty of alliance with the Arvernians in 0503, which assisted him in his defeat of the Visigothic kingdom in the Battle of Vouillé in 507.

Joan of Arc passed through in 1426 on her way to Orleans to the Battle of Patay.

The Amboise conspiracy was the conspiracy of Condé and the Huguenots in 1560 against Francis II, Catherine de' Medici, and the Guises.

The Edict of Amboise (1563) conceded the free exercise of worship to the Protestants.

The great Leonardo da Vinci spent the remaining years of his life in Amboise. Some of his inventions are still there and have not been removed. The house has lost some of its original parts, but it still stands today and has a beautiful overlook of the Loire River.

Here was born in 1743 – Louis Claude de Saint-Martin French philosopher, known as le philosophe inconnu. (d. 1803).

Abd el Kader Ibn Mouhi Ad-Din (c.1807-83) was imprisoned at the Château d'Amboise.

Twin cities

Miscellaneous

There are two weekly markets. Thursdays specialize in fish, while the main market in Amboise operates on Sundays.

External links


 
 
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Dictionary. The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2007. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.  Read more
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