The Most Beautiful Castles in France - 21-DVD Box Set

The Most Beautiful Castles in France - 21-DVD Box Set (DVD) (*)

$119.99

Language Selections:
English ( Dolby Digital Stereo )
French ( Dolby Digital Stereo )

Product Origin/Format:
France ( PAL/Region 0 )

Running Time:
1080 min

Aspect Ratio:
Widescreen (1.78:1)

Special Features:
Box Set
Documentary
Interactive Menu
Multi-DVD Set
Scene Access

Movie filmed in 2013 - 2014 and produced in:
France ( France, Benelux )

Directed By:
Jacques Vichet

Written By:
Jacques Vichet

Actors:
Jacques Vichet

Synopsis:

An exceptional package of 21 documentaries of the greatest treasures of French heritage. This box set contains a collection of the most beautiful castles in France. A fascinating insight into the secrets of French history through guided tours by renowned curators, who make us discover the wonders of architecture and sumptuous gardens of the finest castles.
List of Documentaries:
Versailles
Versailles: Guided visit: The Castle, Grounds, Gardens
Amboise
Le Clos Lucé
Saint-Germain-en-Laye
Chenonceau
Villandry
Malmaison
Fontainebleau
Azay-le-Rideau
Blois
Chambord
Chaumont
Cheverny
Breteuil
Chantilly
Compiègne
Ecouen
Rambouillet
Vaux-le-Vicomte
André Le Nôtre : The Gardener of the Louis XIV

The Palace of Versailles
The Chateau of Versailles remains forever the emblematic symbol of Louis XIV, whose reign lasted for almost half a century. It is recognized as one of the most beautiful works of art of the 17th century France. In the beginning it was the site of a modest chateau built by Louis XIII as a hunting lodge. The site was then chosen by Louis XIV for the construction of the palace which stands there to this day, a symbol of royal absolutism and the incarnation of Classical French art.
The Chateau of Clos Luce
Amboise, at the heart of the Loire Valley, was the birthplace of the French Renaissance. In the lands of the ancient fiefdom of the Chateau of Amboise is Clos Luce, home during the last three years of his life, to one of history's great geniuses: Leonardo da Vinci.
The Royal Chateau of Amboise
Located in the heart of Touraine, along the Loire River, Amboise is overlooked by a plateau which hosts the imposing Chateau d'Amboise. Before being taken by the crown in 1434, the chateau was owned by the powerful Amboise Family. An ancient medieval fortress, the chateau became the royal residence during the Renaissance under the reign of Louis the 11th, Charles VIII and Francis I. With a gothic dwelling, Renaissance apartments, and even 'Louis-Philippe' apartments, the Chateau opposes the Italian and French styles. Dismantled during the French Revolution, it was sold, one stone at a time. Now restored, it is a classified historical monument.
The Chateau of Villandry
Completed near 1536, Villandry is the last of the great chateaux built along the Loire River during the Renaissance. Held by the same family since 1906, the domain of Villandry is a chateau that cleverly associates stone work and the art of gardening. During the 18th century, the owner decided to operate a number of changes on the chateau. The changes to the interior date back to that century. Villandry's beauty is almost certainly due to its gardens, which are among the most beautiful in all of Europe. A new Chateau was constructed around the original 14th-century keep where King Philip II of France once met Richard I of England to discuss peace. The gardens are laid out in formal patterns created with low box hedges.
Chateau of Malmaison
In 1799 Joséphine and Napoléon Bonaparte bought this castle and had consulaire furniture. In 1809 Bonaparte left this castle where Joséphine stayed until her death. It then became a museum.
The Royal Chateau of Blois
The Chateau Royal in Blois was the French Kings' favorite residence during the Renaissance. Under Louis XII, Charles d'Orléans son, the Chateau de Blois became a royal residence and the sovereign's main dwelling. Work is then undertaken and the chateau adopts a gothic style. Francis I put a new aesthetic by launching the construction of a Renaissance style wing and the monumental stairway. From then on, a succession of kings lived in Blois, Henry II, Charles IX, who used Blois as their main residence. Built over several periods, the Chateau Royal de Blois has captured different styles, from the Gothic to the Classical, the Renaissance to the Middle-Age.
The Chateau of Cheverny
Alongside Blois and Chambord, Cheverny is one of the Loire valley's most famous chateaux. Lending its traits to Marlinspike, Captain Haddock's chateau, it is known to have inspired the cartoonist Hergé. The chateau of Cheverny, built during the first half of the 17th century, has been in the Hurault family for 600 years. They have taken care of saving the chateau's furniture and have maintained the decoration, for an authentic visit of the chateau as it was in its debuts. The white freestone and the Bourré stone give the chateau de Cheverny its young, bright aspect.Climbing the main stairway.
Chateau of Chambord
The Chateau de Chambord is situated in an immense forest reserve, in a domain covering 5440 ha. Designed as a hunting lodge more than a residence, the chateau de Chambord was erected following Francis I will, who would never see it completed. Started in 1519, it is said that Leonardo da Vinci influenced the monument's architecture. The chateau, of leading vision and ambition, starts as a wonder of the world.
Chateau of Chenonceau
The Chateau of Chenonceau, or the Dames' Chateau, graciously enthrones the Cher river. It reflects in the water as it steps over the river, like the heels of the dames who lived here. It was built in 1513 by Catherine Briçonnet who came from Tours' nobility. After the first owner's demise, King Francis I confiscated the chateau and it became a royal domain.
Chateau of Azay-le-Rideau
Balzac described the Château of Azay-le-Rideau as 'an expertly cut diamond, set upon the Indre river'. It gives the impression of a floating chateau drifting on the river. Its construction started in 1518, on behalf of Gilles Berthelot under the reign of Francis I. Azay-le-Rideau is a classified historical monument and combines Italian innovation and French construction technique.
The Royal Château of St-Germain-en-Laye
Saint-Germain-en-Laye is a town of history and culture. Its chateau was built under the seal of history, having been where numerous historical events took place, such as the handing over of Christ's crown of thorns by the Emperor of Constantinople to Saint-Louis. Witness to Francis I and Claude's wedding, the castle also held the birth of Henri II, Charles IX and Louis XIV. The Chateau with its terrace overlooking the Parisian valley is one the most beautiful dwellings the kings of France have lived in. The park, designed by Le Nôtre, and the irregular garden are a delight for the visitors. Saint-Germain-en-Laye became the de facto seat of the realm's government.
Chateau of Fontainebleau
So much has been written about the Chateau de Fontainebleau and its forest. Ronsard, Malsherbe, Flaubert have celebrated the magnificence of the domain. The Chateau de Fontainebleau is a landmark of France's history; it has been the king of France's residence from Francis I (who made it his favorite) to Napoléon II. Several kings have influenced the chateau's construction and history, becoming a legacy of the different periods of French history since the Middle Ages. Its architecture and interior design and decorations combine Italian art and French tradition. Its monumental size gives it a first class architectural scale and holds one of the greatest collections of ancient French furniture.
Chateau of Chaumont sur Loire
This castle illustrates both the Gothic defensive architecture and the enjoyment architecture of the Renaissance. In XVIIth and XIXth Century its intellectual period with Benjamin Franklin and the writter Germaine de Stael. Each year there is a festival of gardens since 1992.
Chateau of Breteuil
The Château de Breteuil was built in the early 17th century and decorated principally in the 18th century. The château is set in a listed park of some 90 hectares. The family of the Marquis de Breteuil who still lives there gave three ministers to the Kings of France.
The Château of Chantilly
The Château of Chantilly stands in the heart of a 7,800 hectare domain located in one of the largest forests surrounding Paris, called the three forests massif (Chantilly, Halatte, Ermenonville). Built during the Middle Ages among the marshes of the Nonette valley, the Chantilly castle is the result of the constructions and additions of succeeding families. It is mainly the Montmorency family who arranged the chateau to give it its pleasantness and agreeable aspect.
Chateau of Compiègne
The Castle of Compiègne is a royal residence built for Louis XV and restored by Napoleon. Compiègne was one of three seats of royal government, the others being Versailles and Fontainebleau. It is located in Compiègne in the Oise department, and open to the public. Even before the château was constructed, Compiègne was the preferred summer residence for French monarchs, primarily for hunting.
The Chateau of Ecouen
Built on the foundations of a medieval fortress, the Château d'Ecouen was the work of Anne de Montmorency, a Master of the French armies. Inspired by the transalpine palaces which he discovered during his war campaigns in Italy, Anne de Montmorency designed the Château d'Ecouen with the help of Jean Bullant, the architect behind the Palais des Tuileries and the Hôtel de le Reine. Ecouen fast became one of King Henri II's favourite leisure spots. The chateau was confiscated during the French Revolution and used, first as a hospital, and then as a military prison and as a meeting house for a patriotic society. In 1905, Napoleon opened a school here for the daughters of the chevaliers of the Légion d'Honneur. The school left the chateau in 1962. And Ecouen became the property of the Malraux Ministry of Cultural Affairs. It was at that moment that the Château d'Ecouen was transformed into the National Museum of the Renaissance, with a collection of renaissance masterpieces: gold work, Ottoman ceramics, terracotta and tapestries. Even without taking its history of the Château d'Ecouen into account, the building alone is a perfect example of French Renaissance architecture. Built in various stages, the chateau combines a number of different styles: from the first Renaissance (similar to the Loire Valley Chateaux), the second Renaissance (more ostentatious) and Classicism.
Chateau of Rambouillet
Famous characters lived in this castle. In 1883 it became the official residency of the Presidents of the French Republic.
The Château of Vaux-le-Vicomte
Vaux-le-Vicomte, the château which inspired Versailles. A product of the ambition of Nicolas Fouquet, the financial advisor of King Louis XIV, the construction of Vaux-le-Vicomte was entrusted to the greatest artists of the kingdom: Louis Le Vau, the King's chief architect, Charles Le Brun, founder of the Académie de Peinture, and André Le Nôtre, the royal landscape artist. Spread over 3 kilometres, this garden is a testament to the innovative spirit of Fouquet and Le Nôtre.
André Le Notre: King Louis XIV's gardener
André Le Notre is certainly the most famous French gardener. He was also drawer, architect, engineer, landscape artist and urbanist. He worked for Louis XIV from 1645 until 1700 and designed the gardens of Versailles, Vaux le Vicomte, Chantilly and Fontainebleau,as well as the Tuileries in Paris.

This product was added to our catalog on Thursday 08 October, 2015.

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