Château du Rivau The Château du Rivau is a castle - palace in Lémeré ( Indre - et - Loire ) , in the Touraine region , France . In Rabelais ' " Gargantua " , it was given to captain Tolmere as a reward for his victories in the Picrocholean Wars . In 1429 , towards the end of the Hundred Years ' War , before the siege of Orleans , Joan of Arc and her followers came to fetch horses at Le Rivau , already renowned for the quality of its equipage and war horses who were raised there . In 1510 François de Beauvau , captain of King Francis I of France , constructed the monumental stables , in the outbuildings ' courtyard , that supplied royal stallions . Those stables became the royal stables of Henri III and housed his stallions . An exhibit shows the history of the King ' s horses and tells the visitor about the mythical horses : Pegasus , Unicorn . . . Since 1992 , the new owners have undertaken a huge renovation campaign to prevent the decay of the castle , stable and winery . This ensemble is quite exceptional in the region and has been classified as a " monument historique " since 1918 by the French Ministry of Culture . The castle . With its majestic keep and its protective drawbridge , the Château du Rivau seems to come straight out of a fairy tale . Its shape is reminiscent of 13th century fortified castles as suggest the square layout one can still discern . The square shaped keep was the heart of the castle ’ s fortification . Yet the Rivau was one of the first ornamental castles to be built : its cheminees , wide windows and frescos endow it with a harmonious style . In the dining hall of the Feast of Belshazzar , a biblical episode of the Feast of Belshazzar was depicted over the fire mantelpiece by a Flemish master of the 16th century . According to the Bible , the son of King Nebuchadnezzar had violated the sacred vases of the temple of Jerusalem . History . The Château du Rivau is intimately linked to the illustrious Beauvau family . Related to the Counts of Anjou , they had the privilege to pay homage to their suzerain with a sword at their side , standing , and wearing hats . During the 13th century , the Beauvau family served the Kings of France . They were then allied to the royal family through the marriage of Isabeau de Beauvau to Jean II de Bourbon in 1454 . Great servants of the Kings of France , many of the Beauvau family members gave their lives for the kingdom . During the 17th century , Le Rivau was protected by Richelieu as his sister Françoise was married to Jean de Beauvau , lord of Rivau . Once they became princes of Lorraine , the Beauvau family left the Touraine region . Le Rivau remained in the family ' s possession for 247 years . In 1510 his heir , François de Beauvau , captain of François I , constructed the monumental stables that supplied royal stallions in the outbuildings courtyard . He died at the Battle of Sesia River , at the side of Bayard , on April the 30 1524 . In 1768 , the marquis Michel - Ange de Castellane , the lord of Villandry , acquired Le Rivau . He stayed there with his family until 1796 . Humanised by the Renaissance , Le Rivau is one of the most important momuments of the Touraine region . Rabelais cites Le Rivau in one of his novels : Gargantua offers it to his captain Tolmere as a reward for his victories during the Picrocholean War . At the turn of the 20th century , the sculptor Alphonse de Moncel de Perrin , who worked on the ornementation of the Petit - Palais in Paris , managed to have Le Rivau listed among the Historical Monuments in 1918 . The painter Pierre - Laurent Brenot lived at Le Rivau from 1960 to 1992 . At the end of the 20th century , Le Rivau as though touched by a magic wand , found once again its original splendour after a 18 - years restoration campaign . Today it seems to be taken directly from a book of fairytales and legends . Royal Stable . Joan of Arc came to Le Rivau to fetch horses in 1429 . At that time , war horses were already bred at le Rivau , where the current commons stand . During the Renaissance period , François de Beauvau , the King ’ s chief squire , decided to build stables ( most certainly in wood ) where they had existed at the time of the Hundred - Years War . He died during the battle of Romagne , to the side of Bayard in 1524 . His heir , Gabriel de Beauvau daringly undertook the erection of original stables , whose plans were directly inspired from the Italian architectures , knights had discovered while fighting for the King . Until then the Rivau ’ s stables were only meant to be functional and had no ornaments whatsoever . One of le Rivau ’ s main idiosyncrasies comes from the fact that for the first time in the history of equestrian architecture , stables were designed by an architect who developed a pioneer style . Fairytale gardens . The 12 gardens of Rivau are designated a Jardin Remarquable ( by a French organisation that recognises remarkable gardens ) . They are inspired by fairy tales and legends and take the visitors on a beautiful and fantastical journey . The Rivau fairytale gardens are also a treat for rose lovers and gardeners , as they display a collection of more than 300 roses from famous rose breeders such as André Eve or David Austin . Art . Le Rivau is also famous for the contemporary sculptures that are displayed around the gardens , with pieces by artists such as Fabien Verschaere , Cat Loray , Jerôme Basserode , Frans Krajcberg and Philippe Ramette .