The town of Angers, formerly a large and central city, was the seat of the Plantagenet dynasty and the kings of the House of Anjou. In the town of Angers, Duke Falk was born and, after being widowed, was called to Jerusalem to marry Melisande, the heiress of the Kingdom of Jerusalem. Thus Falk became King of the Kingdom of Jerusalem and the Dukes of Anjou became kings for the first time (Falk's grandson later became King of England and became known as Henry II).
The castle was built in 1238-1228 by Louis IX (1214-1270), the king who died on the Crusades. During the 15th century, the castle housed the magnificent court of René the Good (1409-1480), which hosted the best intellectuals of the 15th century. Henry III of France (1551-1589), who feared that the castle would fall into the hands of the Protestants, decided to lower the castle towers. Despite this, the castle continued to serve as a military fortress until the end of the 18th century and over time became a military academy for officers. Ironically, one of the students of that academy was none other than Arthur Wellesley, who would later become the Duke of Wellington and defeat Napoleon at the Battle of Waterloo… During the 19th century, the castle's military importance diminished and it became a museum.
The castle is a magnificent example of medieval fortified architecture and contains 17 towers built of black slate and white stone found in the area. The castle is also surrounded by a moat, which is now planted with magnificent gardens. Inside the castle is an ancient and important tapestry called "TENTURE DE L'APOCALYPSE" which depicts 76 scenes of the end of days from the Book of Revelation.