La Tour de l’Horloge - Crédit : David Darrault
The Clock Tower
The Clock Tower is the emblematic gateway to the Middle Castle. In the Middle Ages, it defended the access to the castle by a drawbridge and a portcullis. These defensive elements have now disappeared. A slender tower, it rises on five levels and is crowned by a parapet walk.
This tower owes its name to the monumental clock that it has housed since 1399. The mechanism, connected to the bell located at the roof level, was operated by two stone weights that went down into the pit under the ground floor of the tower. The bell, nicknamed Marie-Javelle, is one of the four oldest in Touraine.
Since the end of the 14th century, and still today, it rings the hours for the inhabitants of Chinon!
