Let’s talk about a magical fairy tale city I love, and been there several times with family and believe or not on business once! I am talking about magical Château de Chantilly, I like to post older new pictures to my blog that were left in my vault that fell need to be in, Therefore, this is an extra effort on the Château de Chantilly, interiors, part I !!! I like to mention that I am Friends of the castle/condé museum since 2008 !!! Hope you enjoy this new post as I.
For info, the City of Chantilly is in the département of the Oise,60 in the region of Hauts-de-France at the center of the forest of Chantilly, in the valley of the Nonette. It is only 40 km from Paris.
The Orgemonts, the Montmorencys, the Condés and above all the Duke of Aumale made the estate an aristocratic stronghold. Over the centuries, they have built a haven of sumptuous apartments and collections of priceless works of art, preserving the castle, with each generation, from deterioration. Today, the estate offers an exceptional example of 19C architecture perfectly inspired by that of the Renaissance.
With an area of 115 hectares, the park of the Château de Chantilly brings together several periods of creations, The castle is a true sample of French Renaissance heritage, the current castle was built on an old medieval fortress for Henri d’Orléans, son of King Louis-Philippe I. It contains the Condé Museum, where the rich collection of paintings by the Duke of Aumale is exhibited, which includes paintings by great masters such as Raphaël, Fra Angelico, Poussin, Ingres and Watteau.
The apartments, overlooking the vast balcony of the small castle, perfectly illustrate the interior decorations under the July Monarchy. The Salon de Guise, the Chamber of the Duchess, the Boudoir of the Duchess, the Little Singerie, the Chamber of the Duke of Aumale, the Salon de Condé, the Marble Room are witnesses of the decoration of the time. There are marquetry furniture, a large roll-top desk by Grohé, and medallioned ceilings. The apartment of Madame de Clinchamp, lady-in-waiting to the Duchess of Aumale; as well as the apartment of Jean Bullant who built the small castle around 1560.
The Condé museum houses the 2nd collection of old paintings (before 1850) in France after that of the Louvre museum! A collection essentially acquired by the Duc d’Aumale which houses more than 800 paintings and nearly 4,000 drawings, The Duc d’Aumale built up a collection of rare books (30,000 volumes) and painting manuscripts (approximately 700), including famous “Très Riches Heures du Duc de Berry” (15C) or the forty miniatures by Jean Fouquet, “Les Incunables”.
A bit of history as brief as possible that I like tell us that Chantilly was mentioned in an act around 1223,between Guy IV de Senlis and the priory of Saint-Leu-d’Esserent that mentioned for the first time the Terra cantiliaci (or Cantilian lands). It was in 1282 that it mentioned the forest around the two found on a parliament act of Paris. Then, in 1358, we hear of the first mentioned of a castle ,its destruction while the local wars and its reconstruction by 1394. By 1673, the Grand Condé ordered built a new road of Gouvieux that is today the rue du Connétable, the lands on each side are what it is the first inhabitation of the town, shops for the builders and trademens of the castle and domestic housing. The Grand Condé writes a wish on his will to built a Church not far from the castle ,and is son Henri Jules de Bourbon-Condé fulfilled the wish of his father in 1692 by ordering built the Church of Notre-Dame , and a parish subject to the bishop of Senlis. However, it is his grandson Louis IV Henri de Bourbon-Condé,that is credited as the real founder of the city and the first map of it by mapping the axe on the route de Gouvieux, that is today the Grande Rue. Upon the beginning of the construction of the Great stables or Grandes Écuries in 1721,the Prince created in 1727 the lots at the end of the road which were later the officer’s houses under the French revolution.
At the French revolution the Condé’s were amongst the first ones to escape just after the taking of the Bastille July 17 1789. The domain was taken over from 1792 and sold in lots ! with the first one sold between 1793 and 1795 ; the old vegetable garden, the cascades garden, the last lots available along the current rue du Connétable , and around the current lawn and all houses belonging to the Prince ; many of which will never come back to the family. The rest of the domain is divided in lots in 1798 and sold thereafter. The castle is turned into a prison from 1793-1794. Followed by the sale as national asset in 1799,and changed into stone quarries with only the small castle or « petit château » preserved. The stables or Grandes Écuries were taken by the army where they are house thereafter from 1803-1806 and other regiments from 1808-1814. By 1815,the Prince Louis V Joseph de Bourbon-Condé returned to his castle or what is left of it; he gets back some and buys the rest. His son Louis VI Henri de Bourbon-Condé has installed in town the fountains in 1823 and a great part of the streetlights in 1827.
By 1834, the lawns of Chantilly welcome for the first time horse racing with stands , improved over the years to the one you see today. Before the start of WWI in 1912 the first prize Jockey Club was held . This horse racing ambiance brought many British families as jockeys, trainers, helpboys becoming about 76% of the workforce here and creating a community by with even an Anglican Church was built in 1870. This horse tradition brought many wealthy families of the time over to Chantilly to build big mansions such as the Rothschild at Gouvieux. As well as the building of luxurious hotels such as Grand Condé 1908 .At the castle , the Duke d’Amale rebuilt between 1876 -1882, and enriched it with the best collections of Art at the times while receiving famous visitors such as the emperatrice of Austria Élisabeth, dite Sissi,Grand Duke Vladimir Alexandrovitch of Russia etc it was opened to the public in 1898 and later bequested to the Institut de France, the current owners.
By September 3 1914,the Germans entered the town but spares it all leaving the next day. Even with the occupation of the castle they did not destroyed anything! After the Battle of the Marne ,General Joffre installed the HQ army here as it was good transport by train from Paris ;this is done on November 29 1914 while Gen Joffre lived at the mansion Villa Poiret,a few meters from the castle main. He brings the allies to the conferences held here December 6-8 1915 to determine the course of action in the war in 1916. The Army HQ leaves the city in December 1916 for Beauvais. Chantilly host a ambulatory hospital for the wounded in the front located at the mansion or hôtel Lovenjoul as well as Pavillion Egler. The land lot of Aigles, just outside city limit at the town of Gouvieux host an aviation squadron of the French army coming from 251 Étampes-Mondésir from and until the peace was signed in WWI. The Nazis entered the city again in September 13 1940 and stayed; using the Grandes Écuries as veterinary hospital for their horses while the HQ is set up at the hotel or hôtel du Grand Condé . The city is liberated by American tanks on August 31 1944, and later the 8th US Air Force set up HQ at the same hôtel du Grand Condé.
The Official Château de Chantilly: https://chateaudechantilly.fr/en/
The Chantilly-Sanlis area tourist office on the castle : https://www.chantilly-senlis-tourisme.com/en/patrimoine/chateau-de-chantilly/
The Friends of the Château de Chantilly/ Condé museum: https://www.amismuseecondechantilly.com/home
The city of Chantilly on heritage: http://www.ville-chantilly.fr/category/decouvrir-chantilly/patrimoine/
The managers/owners of the Château de Chantilly is the Institut de France :https://www.institutdefrance.fr/lepatrimoine/chateau-de-chantilly/
There you go folks, a must to visit while in France ! All worth it at magical Chantilly, and of course, the main sight, the Château de Chantilly, interiors, part I !!!. Again, hope you enjoy the post as I.
And remember, happy travels, good health, and many cheers to all !!!
Paris1972-Versailles2003 