Saumur - last stop on the Loire

Saumur is a mid-sized town - about 30,000 folk - and like Tours, the old town is built on a narrow strip of land between the Loire and, in this case, the Thouet rivers. There is a large island in the Loire at this point, which is heavily built up and is used by both of the town's bridges as a stepping stone across the river.
The town has a military background being home to the Cadre Noir, The National School of Horsemanship, the Officer School for Armored Forces and the Musee des Blindes, the largest collection of armored vehicles in the world. Saumur was also vigorously involved in the closing year of WWII in Europe and was the first recipient of the Tallboy Bomb, designed by the extraordinary engineer Barnes Wallis. Worth a quick look if you have any nerd blood in your veins whatsoever!
But, I digress. We didn't visit any of the above but instead, roamed around gaping at the chateau and other excellent edifices. To see more of Saumur, follow this link.