Château de Chantilly

Chantilly, France

The Château de Chantilly comprises two attached buildings: the Petit Château built around 1560 for Anne de Montmorency, and the Grand Château, which was destroyed during the French Revolution and rebuilt in the 1870s. Owned by the Institut de France, the château houses the Musée Condé. It is one of the finest art galleries in France and is open to the public.

The estate's connection with the Montmorency family began in 1484. The first mansion (now replaced by the Grand Château) was built in 1528–1531 for the Constable Anne de Montmorency by Pierre Chambiges. The Petit Château was also built for him, around 1560, probably by Jean Bullant. In 1632, after the death of Henri II, it passed to the Grand Condé who inherited it through his mother, Charlotte Marguerite de Montmorency.

Several interesting pieces of history are associated with the château during the 17th century. Molière's play, Les Précieuses ridicules, received its first performance here in 1659. Madame de Sévigné relates in her memoirs that when Louis XIV visited in 1671, François Vatel, the maître d'hôtel to the Grand Condé, committed suicide when he feared the fish would be served late.

The original mansion was destroyed in the French Revolution. It was repaired in a modest way by the last Condé, but the entire property was confiscated from the Orléans family between the years 1853 and 1872, during which interval it was owned by Coutts, an English bank. Chantilly was entirely rebuilt in 1875–1881 by Henri d'Orléans, duc d'Aumale (1822–1897) to the designs of Honore Daumet. The new château met with mixed reviews. Boni de Castellane summed up one line of thought: 'What is today styled a marvel is one of the saddest specimens of the architecture of our era — one enters at the second floor and descends to the salons'. In the end, the Duc d'Aumale bequeathed the property to the Institut de France upon his death in 1897.

The château's art gallery, the Musée Condé, houses one of the finest collections of paintings in France (after the Louvre). It specializes in French paintings and book illuminations of the 15th and 16th centuries. Works in the art gallery include Sassetta's Mystic Marriage of St. Francis, Botticelli's Autumn, Piero di Cosimo's Portrait of Simonetta Vespucci, Raphael's Three Graces and Madonna of Loreto, Guercino's Pietà, Pierre Mignard's Portrait of Molière as well as four of Antoine Watteau's paintings and Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot's Le concert champêtre. Other paintings in the collection include works by Fra Angelico, Filippino Lippi, Hans Memling, 260 paintings and drawings by François and Jean Clouet, Veronese, Barocci, Annibale Carracci, Domenichino, Salvator Rosa, Nicolas Poussin, Philippe de Champaigne, Van Dyck, Guido Reni, Jean-Baptiste Greuze, Joshua Reynolds, Eugène Delacroix, Ingres, Géricault.

The library of the Petit Château contains over 1500 manuscripts and 17,500 printed volumes, that is part of the collection of over 700 incunabula, and some 300 medieval manuscripts, including one page of the Registrum Gregorii (c. 983), the Les très riches heures du Duc de Berry, the Ingeborg Psalter and 40 miniatures from Jean Fouquet's Book of Hours of Etienne Chevalier.

The main French formal garden, featuring extensive parterres and water features, was laid out principally by André Le Nôtre for the Grand Condé. The park also contains a French landscape garden with a cascade, pavilions, and a rustic ersatz village, the Hameau de Chantilly. The latter inspired the Hameau de la reine of Marie Antoinette in the Gardens of Versailles.

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Details

Founded: 1560/1875
Category: Castles and fortifications in France

Rating

4.6/5 (based on Google user reviews)

User Reviews

Marta Azevedo (14 months ago)
It’s absolutely stunning! One of the most beautiful castles I have ever seen. The architecture, the history, the grounds,… simply magnificent. If you can, take the time to stroll through the grounds and the adjacent village. They’re so, so beautiful! Totally worth it!
Olga S (2 years ago)
An amazing place! We've visited in Christmas day, and even then we've found a lot of people. Amazing view, everything is in perfect shape, tidy, the castle inside is amazing. I've admired the library. We'll visit it once again in spring to see outside beauty. Great fountains and swans in the lakes!
Shawna Hampeys (2 years ago)
We saw a lot of chateaux in France and this one was one of the best. The château was beautiful as well as the enormous grounds. The horse exhibition was short but awesome. Make sure to go around the complete round about to almost the beginning to find parking for cars.
Cathy Blakeley (2 years ago)
A truly beautiful estate. Well worth the visit. The outside grounds are just as beautiful as the actual château with stunning gardens rich in wildlife and history. I'd recommend comfortable walking shoes and plenty of water. You won't regret it
SHARON BOUCHER -HASKINS (2 years ago)
This was a beautiful day trip for us. 45 minutes from Paris and you end up here ,Château de Chantilly is beautiful like some of the others and in this little town is alot to discover beside the Château. If you like to adventure out of the city its a must see.
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