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Château
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Château du Moulin Chambord Castle in the Loire Valley, France, with ornate towers and spires, broad symmetrical facade, and a moat in the foreground. The Chateau de Chantilly in France, a grand historic building with ornate architecture, is reflected in the surrounding water and set against a backdrop of trees and sky. château of the dukes of Anjou Château at Chambord, France, design attributed to Bernabei Domenico da Cortona, executed by Pierre Nepveu, 1519–47. Chambord Castle in the Loire Valley, France, features ornate towers and spires, with manicured gardens and a moat in the foreground. Chateau de Chenonceaux, a grand Renaissance castle with arches spanning the Cher River in France, reflected in the water below. Château in Azay-le-Rideau, France. Château of Langeais, in the Loire valley, west-central France. Villandry
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Hagia Sophia. Istanbul, Turkey. Constantinople. Church of the Holy Wisdom. Church of the Divine Wisdom. Mosque.
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Château du Moulin
Château du Moulin Château du Moulin near Lassay-sur-Croisne, Fr., 1480–1502

Château

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Château, in France, during the 13th and 14th centuries, a castle, or structure arranged for defense rather than for residence. Later the term came to designate any seignorial residence and so, generally, a country house of any pretensions. Originally, châteaus functioned as feudal communities; but with the rise of secular prosperity in the 14th century, the restrictive manorial system relaxed, giving rise to the spacious yet still-fortified private residence of the nobility. These compounds, or...

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