Did you know that the Château de Vaux le Vicomte, to the east of Paris, was one of the main sources of inspiration for the Château de Versailles? It is surrounded by the most elegant and geometrically harmonious of all high Baroque gardens. Have you been? via
4 comments:
Wow, no, I didn't know that. I will have to read more about this. So pretty, can you imagine living in a manor like this?
Karen
Yes I finally made it to this chateau a couple of summers ago whilst staying with friends in Meaux.It is very lovely and extremely stylish.Famous also of course for the garden design of Le Notre.
By the way your post today of the sky is wonderful- we are snowed in - in the countryside so staying cosy inside after a walk across the fields.Snowbrings the UK to a halt!
Oh yes I've been there. One week in the Loire Valley stopping at every chateau that we could fit in in 5 days. We stayed in someone's home (B & B) a few miles from Vaux le Vicomte. I remember the bedroom that we stayed in had NFL wallpaper. I couldn't believe that I was in the beautiful French countryside, staying in a French home in a bedroom with NFL wallpaper.
To get to Vaux le Vicomte we drove on a two lane road that had very tall trees lining either side of the road. The trees had grown together at their tops and it created this wonderful tunnel. We actually drove on several roads in France that were like that.
Louis XIV was not happy with his finance minister for building a home finer than the one he owned. The King had his Finance Minister arrested after he attended a lavish fete the Minister hosted to show off his grand home. It's never a good idea to entertain and live better than the King.
I got there in the summer of 1982 and have never forgotten it -- it is truly remarkable in person; at the time they had enormous fish in the moat waters around the chateau. One huge room had marble flooring, evidently put in for use as a summer dining room so the people at table wouldn't be troubled too much by the heat.
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