Fontainebleau Palace
This gate is the witness of the Napoleonic era but Fontainebleau is not just one monarch’s palace The royal home of the kings of France passed down from generation to generation from the middle ages to the 19th century our visit starts at the wing added by Louis XV A gallery of splenders that houses a collection of paintings that would evoke the most important historical events in the history of the château has to be crossed in order to reach the plate gallery Here 128 Sèvres porcelain plates are set in Renaissance revival style wood paneling presenting some of the key events that occurred during the reigns of the greatest sovereign This eleven-room guest apartment is the most sumptuous living space in the palace Pope Pius VII stayed here since 1804 and became Napoleon’s prisoner in 1812 and 1814 It is in fact presented today as a double princely apartment from the Second French Empire Come take a peak of the Royal Chapel of the Trinity that we’ll see in details later on There are three remarkable historical
rooms built as part of the king’s apartments and they make up the greatest decorative artefacts of the French Renaissance And we owe them all to Francois I that this gallery holds his name This vast room was for the king’s guards who watched over the entrance to the monarch’s apartment This sumptuous ballroom makes the second renaissance masterpiece It features pillars wrapped in oak panelling with fluted pilaster columns The rich coffered ceiling is covered with moon emblems and Henri II’s motto These two rooms evoke the memory of the most famous monarch of the middle ages Louis IX known as Saint-Louis Like a delicate casket inlaid with precious paintings the Louis XIII Salon was formerly the room adjacent to the King’s bedchamber The tapestry room which served as an antechamber used to be the Queen’s guard room The longest room of the castle called Diana Gallery blew my mind away This huge globe once belonged to the first emperor of the French of course From Queen Marie de Medici (wife of Henri IV) to Empress Eugénie all of Queens of France occupied this room Marie-Antoinette didn’t have the chance to spend one single night in the bed she ordered you know what happened later on The King’s bedchamber no longer looks like it did in the Ancien Régime After the revolution in 1808 Napoleon I turned it into a throne room In this bedroom, Napoleon attempted to poison himself following his abdication that he signed between the 4th and 6th of April 1814 in this exact room on this exact red chair We go down to the church of the former convent of Trinitaures that was rebuilt by François I It was not until the reign of ’Henri IV that it got its vault we see today It fell to Napoleon Bonaparte when he became emperor to restore the palace after the French revolution very close to the cour d’honneur where Napoleon first bade farewell to his old guard on 20 April 1814 There is now a museum dedicated entirely to the First Empire that goes from 1804 to 1814 The dining table a showcase of power since the Ancien Régime became an opportunity for the Emperor to display the pomp and ceremony of his regime by reviving the traditions of the monarch The elm cradle, which was in the bedroom at the Tuileries Palace where Napoléon-Joseph-Charles was born on the 20th of March 1811 as well as the paintings of Napoleon first son and the collection of toys given to this child to further his education give us an insight of a difficult birth for Marie-Louise You cannot visit a French castle without of course going for a tour in the splendid gardens i mean the French are known for that Formerly the queen’s private garden this garden is bordered by the monarchs’ most intimate spaces Redesigned in the style of an English landscape garden and planted with a remarkable trees such as Katalpa and an American tulip tree it takes its name from a fountain decorated with a statue of Diana the Huntress Facing south the carp pond owes its name to the famous carp which have been at Fontainebleau since Henry IV What a joyful moment to spend here, admiring the different creatures in their natural habitat The creation of the Grand Parterre between 1660 and 1664 the largest in Europe 14 hectares reflects Louis XIV’s desire for open spaces at Fontainebleau We reached our end of our tour I hope you liked it and until next time!
Join me on an unforgettable journey through the Palace of Fontainebleau, one of France’s most stunning royal residences! Located just outside Paris, Fontainebleau is a hidden gem filled with centuries of history, breathtaking architecture, and lush gardens that have been home to French monarchs from François I to Napoleon.
In this video, I explore:
🏰 The stunning Renaissance and classical architecture
🖼️ Ornate interiors and royal apartments
🌳 The vast gardens and forest of Fontainebleau
📜 Fascinating history behind this UNESCO World Heritage Site
Whether you’re a history lover, architecture enthusiast, or planning your own trip to France, this video offers a beautiful glimpse into one of the most iconic châteaux in Europe.
Music copyright: @epidemicsound