Issue No. 16

Amboise in the Loire is dominated by a
grand chateau, its turrets reaching high
into the sky and windows giving
impressive views over the ancient town
and the surrounding Loire Valley
countryside.
A few minutes’ walk away is a much
smaller chateau, far less grand. It was the
home of a man who changed the world
with his art and his designs – the great
renaissance man, Leonardo da Vinci.
The Chateau du Clos Lucé where Leonardo
lived, has been wonderfully restored to look
as it did when he arrived in 1516 at the
invitation of King Francis I of France.
Leonardo found himself down on his luck,
without commissions and struggling to
keep going in Italy. Francis I offered him his
dream job: "First Painter, Engineer and
Architect to the King" plus a home for life.
Leonardo was a nomad, he had no home to
call his own and moved from town to city –
wherever the work was. He wasn’t rich, and
jumped at the offer from the French King,
making his way from Italy to France on a
donkey. Among the belongings he took
with him were his precious manuscripts,
and an almost finished painting of a
woman he called La Giaconda or Mona
Lisa. It was to become one of the most
famous paintings of all time.
Francis I had never met Leonardo but his
mother Louise de Savoie had seen the
artist’s work and loved it. The King offered
Leonardo the chance to practice his skills
as he wished, quite an innovative prospect
at the time when a painter was a painter
and an engineer was an engineer.
Leonardo’s genius extended to several
areas and the opportunity to do as he
wished was irresistible.