The Château de Maisons, the masterpiece of classical architecture by François Mansart served as a model for Versailles and Vaux-le-Vicomte.
An architectural turning point
The castle built by François Mansart welcomed the young Louis XIV in April 1651 during a sumptuous party. The Sun King would later call on his site at Versailles sculptors and decorators who had worked at Maisons and the architect’s great-nephew, Jules Hardouin Mansart. It marks an architectural turning point, that of the end of the late Renaissance and the beginnings of classicism.
One of the most beautiful residences of its time
Considered one of the most beautiful residences of its time, in 1777 the estate became the property of the Count of Artois, brother of Louis XVI and future Charles X. No more massive constructions inherited from the Middle Ages. , Here for the first time the key word is light. The Château de Maisons-Laffitte has large openings with a central vestibule with Doric columns on which opens a grand staircase revolving around a central day, a new technique at the time. Symmetry, balance of forms, elegance of the roofs: the castle is a veritable architectural manifesto that foreshadows classical art. The castles of Vaux-le-Vicomte and Versailles will be strongly inspired by it !
In the footsteps of Uma Thurman and Isabelle Adjani
Inside, admire the 17th century tapestries as well as the paintings, engravings and furniture from the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, which adorn the king’s apartment, the salons of the Comte d’Artois and the bedroom of Marshal Lannes. The magnificence of the place has served as a backdrop for many films. Follow in the footsteps of Queen Margot and Isabelle Adjani or Uma Thurman who filmed Dangerous Liaisons there. Original thematic visits offer to discover the castle in a different light, to access, with a guide-lecturer, through the back doors to hidden and little-known spaces !
2 avenue Carnot
78600 Maisons-Laffitte
+33 (0)1 39 62 01 49
