Vaux Le Vicomte

An insider’s tour of the magnificent seventeenth-century castle and gardens, conceived by Le Vau, Le Brun, and Le Nôtre, that inspired the great châteaux of Europe. Vaux le Vicomte’s rich history began in 1641, when infamous finance minister Nicolas Fouquet bought the estate and enlisted architect Louis Le Vau, decorator Charles Le Brun, and garden designer André Le Nôtre to transform it into a lavish residence. His extravagance piqued Louis XIV’s jealousy, and he was thrown into prison for mishandling funds. The château inspired the design of Versailles and was later home to the great chef Vatel, who famously died for his art. This volume traces the château’s history from the seventeenth century through the Belle Époque, World War I, and its public opening in 1968. Exclusive photography and archival documents offer unprecedented access to the château, furnishings, and gardens, and illuminate the extraordinary secrets of court life and centuries of celebrations that include the enchanting candlelit tours held today.

This comprehensive monograph is an exclusive look inside the château that inspired the design of Versailles and today continues to enchant visitors and film directors alike. Vaux-le-Vicomte’s rich history began in 1641 when infamous French finance minister Nicolas Fouquet, the original owner, surrounded himself with the most skilled and talented artisans of the time: the architect Louis Le Vau, the painter Charles Le Brun, and the garden designer André Le Nôtre, to create a perfect harmony between architecture and landscape. The Château de Vaux-le-Vicomte and its spectacular gardens fascinated Louis XIV and were the inspira­tion for Versailles. Classified as a historical monument since 1875 under the impetus of the owner at the time, the castle of Vaux-le-Vicomte quickly became a model of the artistic genius of the seventeenth century. This volume traces the château’s history from the seventeenth century through the Belle Époque, World War I, and its public opening in 1968. Exclu­sive photography and archival documents offer unprecedented access to the château, furnishings, and gardens, and illuminate the extraordinary secrets of court life and centuries of celebrations that include the enchanting candlelit tours held today.

The French chateau Vaux-le-Vicomte was built in just five years from 1657 to 1661 by Louis XIV's Minister of Finance Nicolas Foucquet, halfway between the royal summer houses of Vincennes and Fontainebleau. Designed by Louis Le Vau, decorated by Charles Le Brun and with gardens laid out by Andre Le Notre, the house was still partially unfinished on the 17th August 1661 when Foucquet invited the King to the celebrated reception that was followed almost immediatley by Foucquet's arrest. Within weeks, the house was under judicial seal, the team of craftsmen disbanded or removed to Versailles and Foucquet was in prison. Despite its politically unstable history and the threat of demolition during the French Revolution, Vaux has survived remarkably unaltered and intact.

Isabel and Julian Bannerman have been described as "mavericks in the grand manner, touched by genius" (Min Hogg, World of Interiors) and "the Bonnie and Clyde of garden design" (Ruth Guilding, The Bible of British Taste). Their approach to design, while rooted in history and the classical tradition, is fresh, eclectic and surprising. They designed the British 9/11 Memorial Garden in New York and have also designed gardens for the Prince of Wales at Highgrove and the Castle of Mey, Lord Rothschild at Waddesdon Manor, the Duke and Duchess of Norfolk at Arundel Castle in Sussex and John Paul Getty II at Wormsley in Buckinghamshire. The garden they made for themselves at Hanham Court near Bath was acclaimed by Gardens Illustrated as the top garden of 2009, ahead of Sissinghurst. When they moved from Hanham it was to the fairytale castle of Trematon overlooking Plymouth Sound, where they have created yet another magical garden. Landscape of Dreams celebrates the imaginative and practical process of designing, making and planting all of these gardens, and many more.

Resource added for the Landscape Horticulture Technician program 100014.

Goldstein shows how the connection between Vaux and Versailles is at the heart of classical style. She retraces the roots of Versailles in Fouquet's short-lived experiment, and destabilises any easy understanding of the court of the Sun King as the origin of French national style.

INDIEFAB Book of the Year Awards -- 2014 Finalist For gardening aficionados and Francophiles, a love letter to the Versailles Palace and grounds, from the man who knows them best. In Alain Baraton's Versailles, every grove tells a story. As the gardener-in-chief, Baraton lives on its grounds, and since 1982 he has devoted his life to the gardens, orchards, and fields that were loved by France's kings and queens as much as the palace itself. His memoir captures the essence of the connection between gardeners and the earth they tend, no matter how humble or grand. With the charm of a natural storyteller, Baraton weaves his own path as a gardener with the life of the Versailles grounds, and his role overseeing its team of eighty gardeners tending to 350,000 trees and thirty miles of walkways on 2,100 acres. He richly evokes this legendary place and the history it has witnessed but also its quieter side that he feels privileged to know. The same gardens that hosted the lavish lawn parties of Louis XIV and the momentous meeting between Marie Antoinette and the Cardinal de Rohan remain enchanted, private places where visitors try to get themselves locked in at night, lovers go looking for secluded hideaways, and elegant grandmothers secretly make cuttings to take back to their own gardens. A tremendous best seller in France, The Gardener of Versailles gives an unprecedentedly intimate view of one of the grandest places on earth. From the Hardcover edition.