Palace of Fontainebleau

Palace of Fontainebleau ( FON-tin-bloh, US also -⁠bloo; French: Château de Fontainebleau [ʃɑto d(ə) fɔ̃tɛnblo]), located 55 kilometers (34 miles) southeast of the center of Paris, in the commune of Fontainebleau, is one of the largest French royal châteaux. It served as a hunting lodge and autumn residence for many of the French monarchs, including Louis VII, Francis I, Henry II, Louis-Philippe, Napoleon I, and Napoleon III. Though the monarchs only resided there for a few months of the year, they gradually transformed it into a genuine palace, filled with art and decoration. It became a national museum in 1927 and was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1981 for its unique architecture and historical importance.

History

Name

"Fontainebleau" took its name from the "Fontaine Belle-Eau", a natural fresh water spring located in the English garden not far from the château. In 1622 Henry Peacham wrote it “is the purest and fairest fountaine esteemed in the world, wherefore it was called Belle eauë.” In the 19th century the spring was rebuilt with an octagonal stone basin, as it appears today.

Hunting Lodge and castle (12th century)

The earliest reference to a royal residence at Fontainebleau dates to 1137 under King Louis VII the Younger, but it had probably been built earlier, during the reign of Philip I of France (1060 to 1108), when the Gâtinais region was annexed from the Duchy of Burgundy. It became a favorite autumn residence and hunting lodge of the kings of France because of the abundant game and many springs in the surrounding forest.

The first chateau was a square "donjon" or keep, a fortified tower surrounded by a wall. It was three stories high, and occupied an area of about fifty square meters. The lower walls were three meters wide while the upper walls were a meter wide, made of stone, had windows facing north and south and were topped by a wooden palisade.