Palaces and Chateaux

[norwegianne]

I was looking around at the website for the Louvre museum, and they had a history section on how the Louvre has changed from being a royal fortress/palace to a museum. I thought it might be of interest to others as well.

The history section of the website

I remember once I was in Paris when I was younger, I was standing on Rue de Rivoli and noticed the grand building across the street. I still remember the feeling of looking at history I had. Looking at presentations like this I almost get the same feeling.

[magnik]

I found it Louvre, Medieval Paris Stroll

- History 230A New Frontiers of Cultural History

- present aerial view The Louvre Aerial View - GreatBuildings.com
- and earlier Great Buildings Online Image - The Louvre

Some history Artist - History Of The Louvre
and History of The Louvre -- Part 3 of 5: The Renaissance

[sesa]

thank you both so much for the links that you posted. I love reading about this place and the history of it.

I went to Paris for the 1st time when I was in my very early 20's. When I was asked if I wanted to go to the Louve, I scoffed at the person. Who wanted to go to a stuffy old museum filled with "crap".

I went again in my late 20's and pratically dragged my friend in there. She was very upset because I spent the entire day and would not leave to get anything to eat. She had been there before and was bored by it. About miday, I started sharing what little knowledge I had with her about the building itself and the paintings and stuff in there. Once I grabbed her interest, we were like to little kids in a candy store.
this place is amazing.I would love to go back one of these days and take my daughter so she can actually see history rather than read about it. But for thatI must wait until she is older and can appreciate it. I don't want her to be stupid like I was. I can still kick myself for being so ignorant the 1st time I was there!!!

[AdmiralSteven]

Thanks for posting those links, I've always been interested in the Louvre. I can't wait to get home and start looking at the links ad nauseam.

[sinulord]

The day I step into this greatest of European museums will be a dream come true....

[ortiz]

For those wanting to visit The Louvre, this is a very informative briefing on what to expect!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=or_6-D_EgUw

[PrincessKaimi]

There are definitely places to eat inside the Louvre. If you went years ago, before they opened up the actual Medieval Castle (found upon excavation for the Pyramid), it is one of the most amazing parts of the museum, which is saying a lot.

So much of it is preserved. As years went by, the moat silted in, the banks of the Seine were raised again flooding, slowly the Castle itself disappeared. But you can walk through it, look into the water wells that were used to supply the Castle, and see much of its ramparts (the upper part is mostly gone, as you look up, it disappears into the ceiling of the ground floor of the main Louvre, above). Near it is an exhibit of the history of the Louvre.

[An Ard Ri]

Was the church of Saint-Germain l'Auxerrois the Palace Church or was their another church/chapel within the Louvre Palace?

Imagine what the Louvre would look like if the Tuileries Palace was still standing!

[Vasillisos Markos]

I recently traveled for the first time to Paris and the Louvre is beautiful. I can imagine the sumptuous scenes which took place there when it was a royal palace. Such a magnificent structure . . .

[An Ard Ri]

Imagine what the Louvre would be like if the Tuileries Palace was still standing.

[carlota]

funnily enough, not many people visit the older parts of the louvre - the medieval zone, the voutes... i found myself alone there, walking through extremely old rooms (barely lit) all by myself once. it was such an experience.
not only the museum is such a jewel, and it's great to get lost in it, i also loved having some intimate time by myself exploring the lesser known areas.

[CyrilVladisla]

The Castle of Blois was a residence of three kings. They were Charles VIII, Louis XII, and Francis I.

The building at the back of the courtyard was built between 1635 and 1638 for Gaston, the Duke of Orleans. Gaston was the brother of King Louis XIII.
.

[An Ard Ri]

Chateau de Blois - Loire Valley, Centre, France

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X_YNlEKU8Rg

[An Ard Ri]

Originally Posted by CyrilVladisla

The Castle of Blois was a residence of three kings. They were Charles VIII, Louis XII, and Francis I.

Henri III also resided there,his mother, queen Catherine de Médicis died at Blois on January 5th,1589.Catherine was also buried at the Chateau's church of Saint-Sauveur de Blois,her remains were later transported to St Denis Abbey.The Collegiate Church of Saint-Sauveur de Blois was destroyed in 1793 at the height of the French Revolution .

[CyrilVladisla]

Chateau Mortefontaine was the property of Joseph Bonaparte, Napoleon Bonaparte's elder brother. Joseph bought the castle in 1798.

In 1800 the Treaty of Mortefontaine, the treaty of friendship between France and the United States of America, was signed at the castle of Mortefontaine.

At Chateau Mortefontaine were celebrated the weddings of Caroline Bonaparte and Joachim Murat on January 20th, 1800 and of Pauline Bonaparte and Camillo Borghese on November 5th, 1803.

The King Louis XII wing at Blois was not a royal logis (living quarters).
In December of 1501 the Archduke and Archduchess of Austria stayed there.
The royal logis of the King and Queen of France were located in another wing.

Philip the Handsome, the Archduke of Austria and Joanna, the Archduchess met the French King in Blois.

The Castle of Chambord was to be enclosed by a wall 20 miles long.
The wall was begun at the end of the reign of Francis I (1542) and was completed under Gaston d'Orleans in 1645.

The Cour du Cheval Blanc of Fontainbleau is also known as the Courtyard of Farewells.
The Courtyard of Farewells commemorated the leavetaking ceremony at the foot of the staircase in honor of the Emperor Napoleon I when he left Fontainebleau for the Island of Elba in 1814.

The fireplace in the Francis I Salon bears the signature of Primaticcio. Primaticcio was the artist from Bologna called to serve at the court of Francis I.

The initial project for building the castle of Chambord was based on the shape of a Greek cross.
Repeated on each floor, the symmetry of the apartments had four towers, four square apartments and a large hall in the form of a cross.

[An Ard Ri]

Philip the Handsome and Joanna of Castile?

[Warren]

Chateau Royal de Blois



image in public domain

The Chateau Royal de Blois comprises several buildings constructed from the 13th to the 17th century around a central courtyard.
Each of the wings is of a different architectural style, typical of many 17th century Loire Valley chateaux.
It has been the residence of 7 kings and 10 queens of France.
Largely abandoned after 1660, it was ransacked during the revolution and later scheduled for demolition.
The chateau was saved by King Louis-Philippe in 1841 when it was classified as an historic monument and subsequently restored.

⚜ . . ⚜ . . ⚜

[An Ard Ri]

The Château de Chambord

Chateau de Chambord, France. In Loire Valley Near Blois - YouTube

[Lady Nimue]

Originally Posted by An Ard Ri

The Château de Chambord

The video is wonderful! Thank you for posting it.

P.S. So much to see on this site!

BTW - has anyone used Google Maps to take a tour - on the outside - of Versailles? One can actually go down small roads - I've done it a few times - and once actually and very unexpectedly came upon Marie Antoinette's Hameau de la Reine - amazing - I wasn't even looking for it and there it was! I could spend hours doing that.

[CyrilVladisla]

It was in the Chateau de Brissac where King Louis XIII reconciled with his mother, Marie de Medicis.

From the france.ff website, it was mentioned:

The emblem of the palace remains the renowned horseshoe staircase by Jean Androuet du Cerceau. This work, commissioned by Louis XIII, connects the various sections of the palace.

In Royal Palaces, it was written:

It is said that Moliere found inspiration in the rooms of Chambord for his play "Le Bourgeois Gentelhomme".