The Coronation of Charles VII
Tapestry
Wool and silk
Aubusson, Jacques Corneille workshop
17th century
Royal Fortress of Chinon Collection
Inv No. CH.2025.001.0001
This tapestry depicts a historical moment: the coronation of King Charles VII on July 17, 1429 in Reims Cathedral. In accordance with the rites that had been customary for four centuries in France, the Archbishop Renault of Chartres administered the holy anointing.
In the tapestry, 11 figures attend the ceremony, including the King, the Archbishop and Joan of Arc (bottom right). The Archbishop holds the phial containing the holy oil for anointing in his left hand. Other Regalia (coronation instruments) can be seen in this tapestry: the holy sword Joyeuse is brandished by a figure beside the Archbishop and the crown is placed near Joan of Arc.
Contrary to the depiction in the tapestry, the coronation of Charles VII during the Hundred Years' War was reduced to the sacred anointing alone. In fact, some of the royal insignia (the crown, the sceptre and the orb) remained in Saint-Denis which was still under the control of English troops.
The tapestry of the coronation of Charles VII was made in Aubusson in Jacques Corneille’s workshop in the second half of the 17th century (1652 – 1668).
This tapestry first belonged to the Château de Comblat (Cantal), and then the Château de Rigny-Ussé (Indre-et-Loire).
The tapestry of the coronation of Charles VII was originally part of a set of tapestries recounting the life of Joan of Arc in eight episodes. But almost the entire series was stolen from the Château de Rigny-Ussé chapel, where it had been exhibited during a funeral ceremony in November 1975. Only the tapestry of La Reconnaissance (also known as the tapestry of the Meeting of Charles VII and Joan of Arc at Chinon) escaped burglary. It was on loan to the Royal Fortress of Chinon at the time of the theft. It had been on display there ever since, and the Department of Indre-et-Loire finally bought it from the Marquis of Rigny-Ussé in 2005.
Unlike the La Reconnaissance tapestry, the Coronation tapestry was one of those stolen. It was finally tracked down in 2011 by the French governmental body fighting the trafficking of cultural assets, the OCBC. It was in an art gallery in Madrid, which had bought it from a Belgian antiques dealer. The Department of Indre-et-Loire was able to acquire it in 2024, from the Madrid gallery, after validation by the OCBC. This acquisition was made possible thanks to financial help from the Region and the State. So, 50 years after the theft from the Château de Rigny-Ussé, the two tapestries were finally reunited at the Royal Fortress of Chinon in 2025! This was both unprecedented and definitive: the two tapestries will remain at the Fortress after this exhibition.