CHAMBORD

chambord, a village of central france, in the department of loir-et-cher, on the left bank of the cosson, 10 m. e. by n. of blois by road. the village stands in the park of chambord, which is enclosed by a wall 21 m. in circumference. the celebrated chateau (see architecture: _renaissance architecture in france_) forms a parallelogram flanked at the angles by round towers and enclosing a square block of buildings, the facade of which forms the centre of the main front. the profusion of turrets, pinnacles, and dormer windows which decorates the roof of this, the chief portion of the chateau, constitutes the main feature of the exterior, while in the interior are a well-preserved chapel of the 16th century and a famous double staircase, the construction of which permits two people to ascend and descend respectively without seeing one another. there are 440 apartments, containing pictures of the 17th century and souvenirs of the comte de chambord. the chateau was originally a hunting-box of the counts of blois, the rebuilding of which was begun by francis i. in 1526, and completed under henry ii. it was the residence of several succeeding monarchs, and under louis xiv. considerable alterations were made. in the same reign moliere performed _monsieur de pourceaugnac_ and _le bourgeois gentilhomme_ for the first time in the theatre. stanislaus, king of poland, lived at chambord, which was bestowed by his son-in-law, louis xv., upon marshal saxe. it was given by napoleon to marshal berthier, from whose widow it was purchased by subscription in 1821, and presented to the duc de bordeaux, the representative of the older branch of the bourbons, who assumed from it the title of comte de chambord. on his death in 1883 it came by bequest into the possession of the family of parma. chambre ardente (fr. "burning chamber"), the term for an extraordinary court of justice in france, mainly held for the trials of heretics. the name is perhaps an allusion to the fact that the proceedings took place in a room from which all daylight was excluded, the only illumination being from torches, or there may be a reference to the severity of the sentences in _ardente_, suggesting the burning of the prisoners at the stake. these courts were originated by the cardinal of lorraine, the first of them meeting in 1535 under francis i. the _chambre ardente_ co-operated with an inquisitorial tribunal also established by francis