Château d'Etelan

On August 4, 1563, one of France's most pivotal moments occurred at this château: Catherine de Medici proclaimed the majority of her son Charles IX one year early, at age 13 instead of 14. She drafted, signed, and sealed the 'Letters of Majority of the King' here, and Charles IX left Ételan as the ruling King of France.

The chapel of Sainte-Madeleine holds remarkable hidden treasures. Its 15th-century stained glass windows were discovered intact in the castle cellar after World War II—they had been carefully removed and protected during the war. Even more mysteriously, previously unknown medieval frescoes appeared behind the altar in 1976 when an exceptional heatwave finally dried out the walls.

During the German occupation on October 30-31, 1940, a devastating fireplace fire destroyed three-quarters of the château's roof and the entire east wing. Miraculously, the chapel vault survived despite being left exposed to the elements for decades until restoration.

The philosopher Voltaire was a frequent guest at Château d'Ételan in 1723-1724, staying with Jean-François Hénault, President of the Parliament of Paris. So enchanted was Voltaire by the property that he composed laudatory verses dedicated to it.