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| A visit to the PALACE OF COMPIÈGNE |
A visit to
the Castle (Palace) of Compiègne
and the castle of Pierrefonds.
Ornamental
woodcarving student’s visit.
For many
years now, in company with the students in training for ornamental woodcarving,
we make an annual excursion. Versailles Palace is one of these places and they
are looking forward to visit it, but this year I have chosen a wonderful destination
in the north of France.
In mid-July (2015), a bit late as normally, it seemed a good
idea to visit the castle (palace) of Compiègne and the castle of Pierrefonds.
Compiegne and Pierrefonds are to completely different historic buildings, but
they had in common that they had same owner/occupant.
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| A visit to Compiègne Castle / view from the garden. |
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| The Palace of Compiègne. The rooms on the first floor |
From Maaseik, in Belgium(Where I live), direction Compiègne, it takes about 3 ½ hrs
driving and is well doable; Pierrefonds is just 15 minutes away from Compiegne.
Compiegne is known for being the start point of the cycling race Paris-Roubaix.
And here was the place where the Germans surrender during the First World War,
in a train car just outside Compiegne.
Compiègne Castle is a castle which is still undiscovered by
mass tourism, situated in a beautiful historic center. Beautiful sandstone
buildings and homes, you notice that there is an atmosphere “that tells you
that once this must have been an important place to be”, the same image you get
in the old town of Versailles.
The choice of a visit to Compiègne was mainly because of the
unique, beautiful preserved, historic interiors dating back to the late 18th
century to mid-19th century. Period rooms crammed with furniture in Empire
style (around 1810) and Napoleon III style (around 1860). It was pleasant to
walk around, affordable ticket (7, 5 euro) and for 2 more euros you can have
the audio guide in order to have more information.
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| Empress’ bedroom / Chateau de Compiègne. |
Chateau Compiègne was one of the residences of Emperor
Napoleon Bonaparte (Empire style) and 50 years later, of Emperor Napoleon III
(Napoleon III style or 2nd empire). Compiegne has unique, beautiful preserved,
historic interiors. We had a bit of luck, there was an exhibition running, an
exhibition over the Empire decorative arts between 1800 -1815. For me,
personally, this was a comprehensive retrospective. And all this beauty was
included in the entry ticket, really worthy.
I will definitely put more attention to the Empire style and
to this castle in my next blog entry.
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| One of the many rooms of the exhibition. | Palace of Compiègne |
Chateau Pierrefonds
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| The Castle of PIERREFONDS |
Chateau Pierrefonds was originally a medieval fortress,
which fell into disrepair and was restored and reconstructed around 1860 by
Napoleon II orders. Napoleon III made of it a place of residence.
But –again- no crowds. Later that day I even had the
impression that there were more visitors around Pierrefonds Castle than in
Chateau Compiegne. This is probably due to the charisma and romantic image of a
“fortress”, and has a great appeal to the younger tourists, which usually do
not have such interest in dusty rooms full of history and furniture.
It becomes apparent that the restoration made by the
architect Viollet-le-Duc was good, following the style of other castles from
the same period. The interior of the castle offers an overview of historic
rooms in neo-style, from neo-Gothic to neo-renaissance.
We found many woodcarvings, but the quality and originality
are exceptional. There is an abundance of ornamentation in stone and stucco of
remarkable craftsmanship, you need to stand still and absorb the beauty of the
work. Even stone ornaments can be the source of inspiration for a woodcarver.
The entry ticket to this castle, individual visitor, is 7, 50 euros. If you
visit both places, you can ask for combination ticket.
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| An excursion with some of my students Ornamental Woodcarving |
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| In the garden of Chateau Compiegne. |
Translation by Lis Alvarado
Here, a brief photo description:
Chateau Compiègne
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| A visit to the PALACE OF COMPIÈGNE |
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| Emperor’s bedroom | The Palace of Compiègne |
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| Room with flowers / Chateau de Compiègne. |
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| Blue Room, Compiègne. |
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| Empress dining room / Chateau de Compiègne |
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| Compiègne Castle / Imperial dining room, detail. |
Chateau de Pierrefonds
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| The Castle of PIERREFONDS |
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| The Castle of PIERREFONDS | Napoleon III bedroom |
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| Carving details, Reception room. |
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| Ornament in stone / ceiling spiral staircase. |
Compiègne : http://palaisdecompiegne.fr
Pierrefonds : http://www.chateau-pierrefonds.fr
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| https://www.patrickdamiaens.info |
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