Castle of Pierrefonds
The castle of Pierrefonds is imposing a strong castle located at Pierrefonds with the south-eastern edge of the Forêt of Compiegne, in the north of Paris, between Villers-Cotterêts and Compiegne, in the Département of Oise.
The castle of Pierrefonds presents the majority of the characteristic of the defense work of the Moyen-âge.
The castle of Pierrefonds is classified historic building since 1848.
History
At the 12th century, a castle rose already with the locality " Rocher" of Pierrefonds.
14th century
Three centuries later, in 1392, the king Charles VI, sets up the Comté of Valois (of which Pierrefonds forms part) in Duché, and gives it to his/her brother Louis of Orleans. This last offers the first castle to the Sisters of Saint-Sulpice and, of 1393 with its death in 1407, makes build a new building by the architect of the court, Jean the Black, with the current site.
17th century
In March 1617, in the disturbed beginnings of the reign of Louis XIII, the castle is the property of François-Annibal d' Estrées (brother of beautiful the Gabrielle d' Estrée), member of the “party of dissatisfied” carried out by Henri II, prince de Condé. The castle is besieged and taken by the troops sent by Richelieu, Secretary of State to the war. Its dismantling is undertaken but is not concluded its because of the extent of the task. The outer works are shaved, the roofs destroyed and of the bleedings are practiced in the turns and the curtains.19th century
The castle will remain in ruins during more than two centuries. in 1810 for less repurchases: 3000 francs. During the 19th century, which redécouvre the architectural heritage of the Middle Ages, it becomes a “romantic ruin”: in August 1832, Louis-Philippe offers to it a banquet at the time of the marriage of his/her Louise daughter with Léopold of Saxony-Cobourg Gotha, first king of the Belgians. Like other artists, Corot on several occasions represents the ruins between 1834 and 1866.
The prince chair Louis-Napoleon Bonaparte visits it in 1850. On the councils of Prosper Mérimée, Napoleon III, become emperor, demand for 1857 with the architect Eugene Purple-the-Duke to undertake his restauration.
An anecdote tells that the hesitant emperor between the restoration of the castle of Pierrefonds and that of another castle, Eugenie Bonaparte proposed a drawing lot to him, whose the name left Pierrefonds. And due: to satisfy its preference, she would have written this name on two papers of the tirage.
It is then question only of one simple repairing of the livable parts (keep and appendices), the “picturesque” ruins having to remain for the decoration. In 1861, the project becomes extensive: the sovereign wishes this time to make an imperial residence of it, the castle must thus be entirely recontruit. Work, which will have cost 5 franc million of the time (of which 4 million were taken on the Civil list of the Emperor), will be stopped in 1885, six years after the death of Purple-the-Duke. The departure of Napoleon III will stop the rebuilding. For lack of money, the decoration of the rooms remains inachevée.
Purple-the-duke will do for the interior a work of invention and re-creation much more than of restoration. He will imagine how should have been the castle, without basing himself on the strict history of the building. The interior court with its galleries Rebirth, very as much as polychrome paintings of medieval inspiration testify to its eclecticism and its freedom of interprétation.
One on the other hand recognizes in architecture external sound excellent knowledge of art castral of the 14th century. The architect will offer himself however in the park and the fortifications an eclectic range of defensive constructions of the other times.
Remaining with the foot of the Castle in the " purple-the-Duc" turn; , the architect left free course to a very personal inspiration. He even crunched his cat, which finds itself out of cast iron on the roofs of the château.
This work is not without recalling that carried out by Purple-the-Duke to the Château of Roquetaillade.
Died before the end of the building site, it is his/her son-in-law who will finish the rebuilding, although the castle is not inhabited already any more
If its detractors reproached him this réinvention of a néo-medieval architecture, which took broad freedoms with the archaeological truth, Purple-the-Duke made watch in this rebuilding of an exceptional direction of rise and volumetry and of an undeniable sensitivity of the site.
A monument to be redécouvrir
At the end one period of disaffection which saw decreasing its visitors (: 100000 in 2000), the field is directed since 2003 by energetic the preserving Isabelle de Gourcuff. The gallery of lying was the subject of a new scenography after the final assignment of the coming plaster sculptures, for the majority, of the necropolis of the Basilique of Saint-Denis.They represent characters closely related to French monarchy and had been ordered by Louis-Philippe for the National museum of the castle of Versailles.
The park, on its side, is the subject of a program of restoration.
Media
The castle is frequently used as place of film turnings: Visitors (1993), Jeanne d' Arc (1999), etc
| Random links: | Spirits | Final Furnace | Laurent Seksik | Viagrande | The Last Torpedo |