Dominating the Loir River, this unassailable stronghold protected the town of Angers. The initial construction went back to the 11th. Over the ages the Fulk the Black’s castle turned into a sumptuous monument representative of the 15th, 16th and 17th centuries that Kings of France, from Henry II to Louis XIII, enjoyed visiting. 
The castle is a noteworthy example of the transition between the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. The proud castle of the Counts of Anjou is a veritable lesson of architecture and now it still protects the town of Durtal that is lying under its fortification.
http://www.chateau-durtal.com

Château de Durtal

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Le château de Bazouges est une ancienne forteresse bâtie dans la cité de Bazouges-sur-le-Loir au XIe siècle pour défendre le Haut-Anjou de toute velléité de la part de la Maison de Blois ou du comté du Maine. Le château fut profondément remanié au xve siècle en vue de renforcer la défense de l'Anjou lors de la guerre de Cent Ans. Le château s'élève sur les berges du Loir.
Historique
Le château de Bazouges dépendait de la sénéchaussée de La Flèche. Il marquait, à l'intérieur de l'Anjou, la limite avec la sénéchaussée de Baugé et son fief de Durtal dominé par le château de Durtal. Ses propriétaires étaient membres de la famille de Champagne. Un premier Baudouin de Champagne du xve siècle, était un important personnage du duché d’Anjou. Il était chevalier et chambellan du roi René, il représenta notamment ce roi lors d’un voyage à Venise. Il fut capitaine du Mans puis de Tours, pendant la guerre de Cent Ans contre les Anglais. Au siècle suivant, un autre Baudouin de Champagne, fut chambellan des rois Louis XII de France puis de François Ier. François Ier le nomma ambassadeur extraordinaire auprès de divers royaumes dont celui de Charles Quint.
Du XVIe au XIXe siècle, le château fut aux mains de divers propriétaires qui modifièrent la forteresse en la transformant en une demeure de plaisance et lui donnèrent progressivement la configuration actuelle
Le dernier changement de propriétaire eu lieu en 1910, lorsque le château fut acheté par Adrien Mithouard, la demeure est aujourd'hui encore propriété de ses descendants.
Description
L'entrée du château est gardée par un châtelet à deux tours ovales avec mâchicoulis. Dans l'une d'entre elles se trouve une chapelle du XVe siècle avec une belle voûte angevine. Des douves, fossés, pont-levis et un verger avec la glacière complètent la partie médiévale du château.
Plusieurs corps de logis se sont progressivement ajoutés, transformant l'ancienne forteresse médiévale en château de la Loire de la Renaissance. Dans la salle des gardes trône une impressionnante cheminée. Des salons attenants datent du XVIIIe siècle.
Des jardins à la française entourés d'eau ceinturent le château et dans le parc, se dresse un moulin seigneurial construit entre les XVe et XVIe siècles, conservé avec son bief et ses transmissions en bois.
Protection
Le château fait l’objet d’un classement au titre des monuments historiques depuis le 30 janvier 1928.
Les communs en enceinte, les moulins, la cour intérieure, la douve et l’île du château, le sol du jardin et celui du verger avec sa glacière font l’objet d’une inscription au titre des monuments historiques depuis le 28 décembre 1994.

Château de Bazouges sur le Loir

The Château de Baugé is a castle, extensively altered and restored to create a château, in the commune of Baugé-en-Anjou in the Maine-et-Loire département of France. Construction dates from the first quarter of the 11th century, the second half of the 14th century, the second and third quarters of the 15th century and the second quarter of the 16th century.
History
In 1007, Foulques III Nerra, Count of Anjou, built a powerful fortress on a rocky outcrop at the confluence of two rivers, the Couasnon and the Altrée. The fortress had to withstand the later attacks of his enemy, the Count of Blois.
In the 15th century, Yolande of Aragon, mother of René, Count of Anjou, began construction of a castle within the fortress. She burnt it down during the Hundred Years' War to prevent it being taken by the English. The present structure dates from 1442, when René of Anjou inherited the ruin. He decide to build a majestic residence on the site to benefit from the well-stocked game forest of the country and to reside. In 1454, he appointed as his architect Guillaume Robin and construction began the same year. By 1462, some parts were occupied, and the whole was completed in 1465. René also designed the gardens which were planted with shrubs and flowers. The château became one of his favourite homes and he often visited to hunt and for magnificent banquets.
After René's death in 1480, Anjou was annexed under the crown by Louis XI. The barony of Baugé and its château passed through several hands and noted families, notably the family of Alençon, the Comte d'Enghien, the Comtesse de Soissons, Louise et Marie de Savoie-Carignan, the Duchesse de Luynes, the Duc de La Rochefoucauld and the Duc d'Estissac. Eventually, the barony was given to "Monsieur", the King's brother, Count of Provence, the future Louis XVIII.
Upkeep of the château was neglected by successive owners who preferred to live elsewhere. In 1790, it was very dilapidated. During the 19th century it was partly used as a cavalry barracks; part was given to the commune and a theatre was installed in 1844. Various piecemeal attempts at repair and restoration were made. In 1960, a major project was begun for the restoration of the exterior of the château.
The castle is the property of the commune and is now a municipal museum. It has been protected since 1961 as a monument historique by the French Ministry of Culture.

Château de Baugé

Château de Grésillon is a building from the eighteenth century and its 18 hectare park, works as a cultural house of Esperanto. It is located in Baugé-en-Anjou, about thirty kilometers east of Angers in Maine-et-Loire. Purchased through the subscription of Esperanto donors grouped into non-profit association "Kulturdomo of Franclandaj esperantistoj" founded in 1951 on the initiative of Henry Micard it hosts ever since Esperanto from all countries who come to make tourist trips cultural. The cultural house basically works when the school holidays and offers a varied program of linguistic and thematic courses. It welcomes in particular the training camp in international mathematics Olympiad every summer between 2007 and 2011.
http://www.frenchchateau.net/chateaux-of-pays-de-la-loire/chateau-de-gresillon.html

Château de Grésillon

The Château de Montgeoffroy is an 18th-century manor house located in the commune of Mazé (Maine-et-Loire), France.
In 1676, Érasme de Contades acquired the property. In 1772, the Marshal Louis Georges Érasme de Contades, governor of Alsace, decided to rebuild the château as a retirement home. He called on the Parisian architect Jean-Benoît-Vincent Barré, who worked with the local architect Simier.
The marshal being far from Anjou, the work was directed primarily by his son, le marquis de Contades, his daughter-in-law, Julie Constantin de Marans, his mistress, Hélène Hérault, and her daughter-in-law, Marie-Marguerite Magon de La Lande. It took three years.
The old château was burned down, but Barré appreciated its U shape and kept two towers and the moat, as well as the chapel, which dated from 1543.
The building miraculously survived the French Revolution and the Revolt in the Vendée conserving its common buildings, agricultural structures, chapel and park. It also kept its archives and its furniture, which was studied by Pierre Verlet.

Château de Montgeoffroy

Château du Plessis-Bourré is a château in the Loire Valley in France, situated in the commune of Écuillé in the Maine-et-Loire department. Built in less than 5 years from 1468 to 1472 by Finance Minister Jean Bourré, the principal advisor to King Louis XI. The château has not been modified externally since its construction and still has a fully working drawbridge. It was classified as a Monument historique in 1931.
The château was purchased in 1911 by Henry Vaïsse who, when he died in 1956, bequeathed it to his nephew, François Reille-Soult, Duke of Dalmatie, descendant of the marshals of the French empire Soult, Reille and Masséna.
In 1978, Antoinette de Ferrières de Sauvebœuf, born de Croix, granddaughter of the Duke of Dalmatie, and her spouse Bruno de Ferrières de Sauvebœuf took the responsibility of heading the renovation and maintenance of the château until 2009. They lived there with their three children, Victor (1976), Matthias (1978), and Jean-Baptiste (1980), for 31 years, the longest stay of a single family since 1473.
Since 2010, it has been inhabited by descendants of François Reille-Soult of Dalmatie and managed by Aymeric d'Anthenaise and Jean-François Reille-Soult de Dalmatie.
The Château du Plessis-Bourré has been the location for numerous films, including:
Peau d'Âne (1970) by Jacques Demy
Louis XI by J.C. Lubtchansky
Jeanne d'Arc (1989 telefilm) by Pierre Badel
Le Bossu (1997) by Philippe de Broca
Fanfan la Tulipe (2003) by Gérard Krawczyk
La Reine et le Cardinal (telefilm)
The Princess of Montpensier (2009) by Bertrand Tavernier
Louis XI, Le Pouvoir Fracassé (2010) by Henri Helman with Jacques Perrin