Les Bordes is a village on the outskirts of Sully-sur-Loire, a little east of Orléans. Our main purpose for staying here was to see Guédelon, which is essentially a medieval construction site. They’re building a 13th century castle, using only the materials, tools and methods that would have been available at the time. The project has been going on since 1997 and they expect to finish it in 2025.
We spent an entire day wandering around, watching and listening to the craftsmen and women. The boys were most interested in the blacksmith so we spent ages at the forge, and also spent a while watching the stonemasons dressing stones, but we also saw rope and tiles being made, logs being turned into beams with a special side-axe, fabric being dyed with local, plant-based dyes and many other types of work. A bit of a walk away from the main site we found the watermill which ground flour for the village.
Although they usually only offer English language tours in July and August, we were able to arrange one on the 1st September. It was a small group (just us, an English family with two boys, and an older German couple) and we learned a lot from our Dutch guide who spoke perfect (if accented) English and switched seamlessly to German when necessary. Because we were such a small group, all engaged and asking questions, and it was his last day before holidays, he spent a lot longer with us than I think he was supposed to!
One tower almost complete and another under construction. The pile of stones in front is from the stonemason’s workshop.
Guédelon
The forge
Blacksmith hard at work
Blacksmith at work
Making plant dyes
Twisting fibres into rope
The tilemaker. He pressed clay into a frame to get the shape.
Display of tiles. The colours vary depending on where in the kiln the tile was placed, and therefore the varying temperature.
Underside of the roof tiles. Watching the tilemaker I had wondered about the tabs at one end of an otherwise smooth tile. This view made clear why they were there – they hooked onto wooden crossbars and that was what kept them in place!
Making a beam by cutting out chunks to the same depth all along the length of a log
Next step of making a beam, using a side-axe to cut off the pieces between the chunks. This method helped keep the beam a consistent width, but also followed the grain of the wood which kept it stronger.
Ben looking up at the water mill
View of the water mill. This is a fully functioning mill, capable of grinding large amounts of flour for the whole village.
tower under construction
Boys in front of the “squirrel cage”, or what we would call the hamster wheel. This was the medieval version of a crane – two men walking inside the wheel were able to lift heavy stones up to the building level of the walls.
Mostly happy boys?
The main hall and one almost finished tower
Nate looking down into the courtyard, construction all around us
window seat in the great hall looking out over the construction
window seat in the guest chamber
We’re ready for a feast in the great hall!
Nate looking at the carpenters’ equipment
Tim learning about carpenters’ tools
Nate asking question of our guide, Haydn (? I’m really not sure of the spelling of his name!)
Experimental decorated parchment skin window. Unfortunately it didn’t quite hold up like they’d hoped.
Beautiful decorated walls and inside of the roof in the guest chamber, just off the great hall.
The great hall. I love the huge wreath of dried flowers and greenery over the table.
Squirrel cages (hamster wheels) at the main entrance to the castle which is closed while they build the gate towers. Access is instead by a temporary bridge on a different side.
