Palace of Fontainbleau

I rented a car with driver on Monday (I'm a little out of sequence with these pics) and went out to see the Palace of Fontainbleau. I don't think it is possible to properly photograph a place like this and or the Palace  de Versailles. Both these Palaces are overwhelming with virtually every inch of every room covered with some famous painting or tapestry etc. It would have been nice if I could have attached the tour listening device you buy to this blog since I can't remember but 3 or 4 percent of what I heard on the listening device you use between displays.

The "Eagle" pictured above is Napoleon's symbol and the "F" was King Francois I's symbol and both spent a lot of time at this place during their time and both were very influential with its development. There is an amazing collection of Napoleonic treasures to explore. I tried to take some photo's of some of the more interesting stuff but the light was poor so I'm not sure I truly captured them. The pistols pictured below were his, as was the various outfits and armour, the throne and the bed he slept in. The double outside staircase is quite famous as it was in front of these that Napoleon gave his famous abdication speech before departing for Alma.

I used my fisheye lens to capture the ceiling of the chapel ( pic is above) and was quite pleased with this picture though.

In many respects this Palace is more significant than Versailles since it was the residence of so many Kings and Queens over the centuries and therefore has a lot more history than Versailles which although massive in size and as opulent a place you will ever see anywhere in Europe, it was essentially just a play house for Louis XIV and that's all.

Fountainbleau is about an hours drive from Paris and therefore more difficult to get to than Versailles which is on the RER and therefore there are fewer tourists although quite a few. Never go to these places on a Tuesday since the Louvre is closed and the tourists flock to these Palaces. I went on Monday and even then it was quite busy.

The architecture and decor of the Palace of Fontainebleau exerted considerable influence on the artistic evolution of France. François I intended to make a new Rome of this royal residence. It was in this spirit that he brought artists of renown from Italy, whose work marks the decisive stage in the introduction of the Renaissance into France.

Used by the kings of France from the 12th century, the medieval royal hunting lodge of Fontainebleau was one of the most important and prestigious sites of the French Court. The construction of the royal palace began during the reign of François I, who in 1528 ordered an ambitious campaign of demolition and expansion of the old royal residence which nowadays consists of five courtyards, arranged irregularly and surrounded by wings of buildings and gardens. The original royal residence on this site was built in the 11'th century and only the footings remain.

Like the buildings, the gardens of Fontainebleau also underwent major transformations over the centuries and was gradually simplified until it attained its present-day configuration with four grassy panels surrounded by flowering borders.


I do recommend a visit to this place if in Paris but plan on all day. I only had my car for 5 hours and this was not enough time to see this place properly.


Life is good ... enjoy.


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