CHENONCEAUX, a village of central France, in the de partment of Indre-et-Loire, on the right bank of the Cher, 20 m. E. by S. of Tours on the Orleans railway. Pop. (1931) 162. Chenonceaux owes its interest to its château, a building in the Renaissance style on the river Cher. Founded in 1515 by Thomas Bohier (d. 1523), financial minister in Normandy, the château was confiscated by Francis I. in 1535. An isolated tower flanking a drawbridge is part of an earlier building of the 15th century. Henry II. presented it to Diane de Poitiers, who on his death was forced to exchange it for Chaumont-sur-Loire by Catherine de' Medici. The latter built the gallery which leads to the left bank of the Cher. Chenonceaux passed successively into the hands of Louise de Vaudemont, wife of Henry III., the house of Vendome, and the family of Bourbon-Conde. It came into the possession of Claude Dupin (1684-1769) and in 1864 it was sold to the chemist Theophile Pelouze, whose wife executed extensive restorations.