Park of Seals

The town of Sceaux is famous for its immense Parc which extends not only on this commune but also on that from Antony. The field of Seals depends today on the general advice of the Hauts-de-Seine.

The park was drawn by André Ours at the end of the 17th century at the request of Colbert then of his/her son the marquis de Seignelay. On several occasions this park failed to disappear. With the Révolution, it was transformed into school of agriculture and all that made some the beauty disappeared. At the beginning of the 19th century the castle was destroyed after the field had been sold like national good.

The surface of the park is of 181 Hectare S: 121 belongs to the commune of Sceaux, 60 of the commune of Antony whose second park in term of surface is the Parc Heller.

History

The first castle of Seals

At the 15th century, there is in Sceaux a manor: in 1470, the lord of Seals, Jean Baillet, receives the king Louis XI there and all the Court.

At the beginning of the 17th century, the Potter of Gesvres, lords of Seals since 1597, make build a castle of style Henri IV or Louis XIII (the exact date is not known).

The castle of Colbert

In 1670, Jean-Baptiste Colbert, minister of Louis XIV, which wishes to have a field close to Paris and not far from Versailles, buys the ground of Seals to the Potier family of Gesvres. It proceeded to important land acquisitions in order to increase the field which he carries to a hundred hectares. When the son of Colbert, the marquis de Seignelay, acquires of the seigniory of Châtenay, the park will reach the surface of 225 hectares (approximately 700 arpents). Colbert makes increase the building, which had been built after 1597, at the beginning of the 17th century and draw a formal garden by André Ours. The architect is not known, but taking into account the eminent position of the silent partner - who had seen himself entrusting since 1664 the load of Superintendent of the Building industries of the King - there is hardly doubt that they were to be one largest of this time: perhaps Antoine Pautre. Recent research made it possible to find the name of the two contractors: Maurice Gabriel and Jean Girard who built the central body of the castle of Saint-Cloud. Claude Perrault intervened for the construction of the vault which was in the southern wing of the castle.

The castle comprised a flanked central body of two houses and, in return of square, two long wings in ground floor finished by two houses. That of left, square outside but circular inside and summoned of a cupola, contained the Chapelle, decorated by Charles Le Brun. The decoration of the castle (frontage and interior) saw the intervention of excellent artists like François Girardon, Jean-Baptiste Tuby, the Marsy brothers, Jean-Baptiste Théodon. The study of Colbert was decorated of twenty-four marble busts of emperors, empresses and senators Roman and white marble medallions of the twelve Césars, within frameworks out of gilded wooden. One also found there a bust of Homère, a group of white marble fighters and two red marble sphinges.

The overall party, already obsolete at the time of construction, betrayed the concern for Colbert not to repeat the error of Nicolas Fouquet with Be worth-the-Viscount: although increased considerably compared to the modest residence of the Potter of Gesvres, the building was to give the feeling of an establishment former to work of the minister.

For the gardens, Ours created a North-South axis parallel with the principal frontage of the castle: on more than one kilometer. It began side of the village with a basin in half-moon, then followed two alleys, a large cascade and, downwards, the basin known as of the Octagone. Of in west étageaint is terraces with cut sides. In the east, the kitchen garden was dominated by the house known as of the Dawn. The park was decorated many statues whose Gallic Hercules celebrates it Pierre Puget (today with the Musée of Louvre). The Large Cascade, whose water left the ballot boxes of two statues of rivers due to Antoine Coysevox, made the admiration of the contemporaries.

In 1673, Colbert receives in its castle Mister, brother of the King, come to request subsidies for a festival which it projects to give. In June 1675, the Queen, the Dolphin and the Dauphine visit in their turn the field. In July 1677, the King finally comes to Sceaux. It is for Colbert a difficult and high-risk exercise, of which he discharges as a perfect courtier. Their Majesties visit the apartments, of which they notice “ marvellous cleanliness ” before hearing the prolog of the opera Hermione in the gardens. After the supper, one gives Phèdre of Racine in the first orangery, located in the right wing of the castle. While leaving, Louis XIV is acclaimed by the population of Seals joined together in the garden marvelously enlightened. The sovereign, enchanted, will say to his minister whom it never so agreeably diverted, and the gallant Mercure writes festival “ which it was sumptuous without ostentation, and abundant in all things without he having nothing surperflu there”.

In October 1677, Colbert invites all the members of the French Academy. After the lunch, Philippe Quinault reads out sound Poème of Seals in the house of the Dawn while Charles Perrault reads very applauded stanzas.

The castle of the marquis de Seignelay

When Colbert dies in 1683, the castle of Seals becomes the property of his/her son, the marquis de Seignelay. This one luxuriously made refit the interiors, in particular ordering an apartment in the Chinese taste, decorated with lacquers, intended for its wife. It makes build in 1686 by Jules Hardouin-Mansart the Orangerie which remains partly today (long at the origin of 80 meters, she was cut down by its part is during the Guerre of 1870).

It increases considerably the park in which it makes create a second axis, perpendicular to the original axis, by digging the large channel, 1140 meters length, completed in 1691. The whole of the earthworks and the floors in front of the castle are altered to create four levels of soft inclined terraces, decorated floors of embroideries with basins, a floor of compartments overhanging the channel and of a Green Carpet

The July 16th 1685, Seignelay receives the King and the Court at the time of a famous remained festival. The king walks lengthily in the gardens. He admires the house of the Dawn, the basins and the fountains then he regains the castle. The orangery which then occupies the southern wing of the castle was transformed into theater. The festival ends in a sumptuous feast. The tables were laid out around a new basin close to the castle.

The marquis de Seignelay dies in 1690.

The castle of the duke of Maine

In 1700, the heirs to the marquis de Seignelay sell the castle with the duke of Maine, wire naturalness legitimated of Louis XIV and Madam de Montespan. The duchess of Maine holds in Sceaux a brilliant court. It makes build by Jacques of Guépière the house of the Menagerie (destroyed), located at the north of the large park and surrounded by a garden.

To died from the duchess of Maine in 1753, the castle passes to its sons, the prince de Dombes then, with the death of this one in 1755, with the count of Have. In 1775, with died of count of Have, his cousin the duke of Penthièvre recovers the heritage. In 1786, the duke projects to transform part of the park into garden to English (project with the Public records). In 1791, it gives the field to his/her daughter, the duchess of Orleans. The duke of Penthièvre dies on March 4th, 1793. Its goods are confiscated as of April 1793.

The field with the Revolution

The field is confiscated like Bien national as of 1793. It is transformed into school of agriculture. The majority of the statues are removed by Alexandre Lenoir for his Musée of the French monuments. The field is bought in 1798 per Jean François Hippolyte Lecomte, trader racketeer, is enriched in the trade by the wine, near by Fouché, which, towards 1803, destroyed the castle to sell materials of them.

The castle of the duke of Trévise

In 1828, Anne-Marie Lecomte-Stuart (1808 - 1870), girl of Mr. Lecomte marries Napoleon Mortier of Trévise (1804 - 1869), wire of the marshal Mortier, Duc of Trévise. Second duke of Trévise in 1835, this one made build with the site of the castle of Colbert, the castle of style Louis XIII out of brick and stone which one can see today. Work is directed by the architect Joseph-Michel Soufaché between 1856 and 1862, according to the projects of the architect Auguste Theophilus Quantinet. The park is carefully replanted on the layouts of Ours. Under the Second Empire, the field is the theater of brilliant festivals.

The second duke of Trévise dies in 1869. In 1870, the field is occupied by the Bavarian troops which ransack the village of Seals. The property remains in joint possession a few years then Hippolyte Mortier of Trévise, marquis de Trévise repurchases their shares with his brothers and sisters and continuous to maintain the field until his death in 1892. Seals then becomes the property of his/her daughter, the princess Léonie de Cystria-Faucigny-Lucinge. This one ignores the field whose his/her mother keeps usufruct.

Remain time of the Old Mode (before the Revolution):

the driving center line of highway of Orleans at the entry of honor of the castle with its dry ditches, its bridge sleeping and its two houses of guard;
the house of the Dawn;
the Orangery;
stables, the feeding trough and buildings of the farm;
some statues of Marble or stone rythmant certain alleys of the park (the gardens and floors of today, represent only part of the park of Ours after its partial cutting-up carried out with an aim of creating allotments of great luxury);
main axes of the park;
large the channel and the perpendicular axis;
the basin of the Octagone;
a few degrees in Grass born.

The house of Hanover was installed with Sceaux in 1932 in the part of the park close to Châtenay.

The park of Seals today

The marchioness of Trévise continues to take care on the field. The French troops occupy it in 1914. In 1923, the heiress of the marquis de Trévise, his daughter Marie Léonie Mortar of Trévise, by its marriage princess of Faucigny-Cystria, considers the transfer of this field which it is in the incapacity to maintain. Jean-Baptiste Bergeret de Frouville, mayor of Seals of 1919 with 1925, saves the field while succeeding in convincing the General advice of the Département of the Seine to acquire of it. In 1971, the field became the property of the department of the Hauts-de-Seine.

To finance the restoration of the field, the department of the Seine parcels out the third of them. Work of restoration is undertaken starting from 1928 under the direction of the architect Leon Azéma. The park of Seals finds, in their broad outlines, the provisions wanted by Ours. Mascaron S carved by Auguste Rodin come to decorate the Large recreated Cascades. The overall bias is faithful to the classicism, even if the details reveal, by their examination nonfree from a certain dryness, an execution in the Années 1930. This bias also makes it possible to limit the maintenance costs. Long term job, the restitution is completed only in the Années 1970 with the re-creation of the Green Carpet

Some significant vestiges point out the castle of Colbert and his/her son. The grid of entry is framed of guérites summoned animals carved by Antoine Coysevox which illustrate the virtues whose minister of Louis XIV had wanted to avoid himself: the Licorne transpiercing a dragon symbolizes the purity and satisfying, while the Dogue, which takes a wolf with the throat, represents fidelity. On the right of the entry, stables allotted to Antoine Pautre. In the garden, behind the commun runs, the House of the Dawn, is surmounted by a cupola on which Charles Le Brun painted the Dawn driving out the Night and decorated with paintings of Nicolas Delobel. One can also mention, in addition to the already quoted orangery, the entry of honor with the two houses of guard out of stone and the buildings of the farm.

Close to the castle, one had installed at the time of the exposure the Island-of-France-Brabant , the group, works of Martin Desjardins (1686), of the four subjected nations (Empire, Holland, Spain and Brandebourg) which escorted the pedestrian statue of Louis XIV of the Place of the Victories in Paris (today with the museum of Louvre, Pujet room). At the bottom of the park, one went up in 1932 the frontage of the House of Hanover, built between 1758 and 1760 by the architect Jean-Michel Chevotet in the gardens of the hotel of the duke of Richelieu, street New-Saint-Augustin (currently Boulevard of the Italians), dismounted during the construction of the Berlitz Palate.

The castle accommodates the Musée of the Ile-de-France, inaugurated in 1937. The park is opened with the public.

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