The most convenient real castle Ive found within Paris (you can get there on the Metro) - has a library - however, Ive concluded that it may be just for display purposes - a fake! but its lead to discovering another library...
Vincennes castle dates back to 12th century when it was built as a hunters lodging amongst woodland for French royalty.
The stone room of the 'library' is small, on the ground floor and is next door to the prison. It contains a model of the shelves and types of huge manuscripts that may have been stored there. (Can anyone confirm if the kind of documents in these pictures are likely for a 12th century castle? The whole thing - including the giant volumes are all carved from wood)
On the second floor above, Charles V (1364 -1380) had his study chambers, where he kept his gold, received visitors and worked with the assistance of two secretaries in the turrets, so there was very likely some serious mediaeval archival record keeping going on close by.
The French writer and philosopher Denis Diderot (1713 - 1784) was imprisoned in the donjon of Vincennes in 1749 and wrote the following essays whilst imprisoned there:
'Lettre sur les aveugles a l'usage de ceux qui voyent' (Essay on Blindness)
'Lettre sur les sourds et muets, a l'usage de ceux qui entendent et qui parlent' (Letter on thé deaf and dumb, for those who hear and speak)
'Des Lettres de cachet et es prisons d'Etat' (Detention without trial and State prisons)
'Theorie de l'impot' (Theory of Taxation).
BUT!!!
The weaponry pavilion behind the castle, however, is now a library of the Ministy of Defence's Historical Service archives - and this is where the fun begins - but they explain it so much better than I do - please visit their great site and have a read:
http://www.servicehistorique.sga.defense.gouv.fr/Records-held-by-the-SHD.html
Weapons pavilion housing the Ministry of Defence archives - the castle is in the background ...
Visit the website for the Castle Vincennes:
http://en.chateau-vincennes.fr/
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