its two entrance pavilions and 11-hectare grounds
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Location
In the eastern part of Ile-de-France, within the Seine-et-Marne department, the chateau is in a village located 45 kilometres southeast of Paris as well as 20 kilometres south of Marne-la-Vallée and its world-famous amusement park. This determined village succeeded in resisting the assaults of real estate developers over the years and was able to preserve a peaceful environment and authentic architecture.
A high-speed rail train station is accessible by car in 15 minutes, while only a few minutes away, the nearest towns propose all essential services, facilities and shops.
Description
Built at one end of the cobbled courtyard, the chateau is characterised by its symmetry and its brick and stone masonry topped with slate roofs with rounded hayloft dormer windows, which date the chateau’s construction to the beginning of Louis XIII’s reign. All the windows and doors are framed with ashlar stone.
Behind the chateau, a garden, enclosed partially by moats, leads to a drawbridge, which provides access to the grounds. These are organised on each side of the central walkway, which is aligned with the chateau and main entrance.
The estate was the property of the de Vigny family in the 17th century – of whom the poet Alfred de Vigny was a direct descendant – up until 1791, the date on which it was sold as national property following the emigration of the de Vigny family during the French Revolution. Built in the 1610s, a portion of the chateau was burned down during the Revolution and partially reconstructed in 1844. The chateau, including the courtyard, entrance pavilions, moats and bridges over the moats are today protected as historical monuments.
The Chateau
The central building is flanked on either side by two taller wings. The main façade, facing east, has a ground floor organised around a main entrance accessible from a front stone staircase decorated with imposing Medici flowerpots and framed on both sides by two small-paned windows. The first floor is crowned with a singular rounded hipped roof and punctuated by three windows framed on each side by terraces protected by stone balustrades. Initially, the central body was built over three levels, which each connected to the north and south wings, while the roof was dominated by a pinnacle, recalling the architecture of Marshall de Saxe’s chateau in Yerres.
On either side, the symmetrical wings have three levels and are topped with hipped roofs with zinc flame-vase finials.
Behind, the western façade, which faces the grounds, repeats the same architecture.
The ground floor
Past the stone staircase that leads to the front door, the entrance hall, with a black and white limestone cabochon floor from the 17th century, is decorated at its centre with the de Vigny family's coat of arms made out of mosaic tiles. On either side of the entrance hall, two similar doors face each other. To the left, one provides access to the billiards room with its black and white limestone cabochon floor and independent access to the living room. In the corner of the entrance hall, the majestic staircase guarded by a wrought-iron handrail leads to the upper floors, while a staircase below provides access to the basement level. Also accessible from the entrance hall is the dining room, illuminated by two tall small-pane windows that look out onto the western patio and decorated with an Italianate stone fireplace. The fireplace’s pillars as well as its lintel are adorned with vertical decorations composed of objects and motifs suspended along its central axis: shields, helmets and crossed weapons, with floating ribbons above. This recalls the types of motifs that may have been seen in the Doge's Palace in Venice. A step provides access to an open office space from which a glass door opens onto the western patio via a stone staircase with a wrought-iron handrail. To the right of the utility room, accessible via a wooden door, there is a lavatory and sink, while, to the left, the southeast-facing kitchen with mosaic tile floors and tall small-paned windows has a view of the moats below.
Back in the entrance hall, facing the front door, a wooden double door opens onto a large living room with approximately 100 m², bathed in light by four tall small-paned windows facing west and decorated with an imposing Henry IV-style carved wooden fireplace. A central glass door, aligned with the entrance hall opens onto the western patio. In the northern end of the room, facing the fireplace, two wooden double doors lead to the second living room. This room is decorated with a white marble fireplace framed by two doors that lead to the library. From there, a vestibule, the floor of which is in original black and white limestone cabochon, houses a staircase, also from the same era, with a wrought-iron handrail that leads upstairs. Under the staircase is a storeroom. A hallway leads to the first bedroom with brick floors and a view of the courtyard. Another door leads to the second bedroom on this level, which has an en-suite bathroom and lavatory.
The first floor
This is accessible from the staircases in both the southern and northern wings. The first staircase leads to a landing, opposite of which is located a bedroom with an exposed beam ceiling and a floor-to-ceiling height of approximately 4 metres. A mezzanine was created here, accessible from a staircase located near the landing. Two tall windows with wooden shutters look out onto the grounds. The room is decorated with a sculpted stone fireplace and has hardwood floors. A hallway leads to an office heated by a stone fireplace placed in the corner of the room. Adjacent, is a room that could be used as a bedroom, equipped with storage space. A hallway, which is accessible from the bedroom and landing, leads to a bathroom with a shower and bathtub and a separate lavatory. To the right, a room with a wooden staircase leads to the second floor of the southern wing. Halfway up, a side door provides access to a walkway that overlooks the main staircase and leads to the mezzanine in the first room on this level.
Back on the landing, a hallway leads to a room with a pair of French doors facing each other, which open onto the eastern and western patios. A hallway with an octagonal terracotta tomette floor leads to, on the right, a vast double bedroom with an identical floor. This room has two windows overlooking the courtyard and is decorated with a sculpted stone fireplace. A door provides access to the bathroom equipped with a large bathtub, two sinks as well as a lavatory.
Back in the hallway, a door leads to a third bedroom with original hardwood floors and a view of the grounds to the west. Following on, is a wardrobe and a vast bathroom with lavatory. Once again in the hallway, a landing, which is also accessible from the second bedroom on this level, has a wooden staircase that leads to the last floor in the chateau’s central building. The hallway continues until it reaches a set of French doors, which open onto a luminous room that provides access to the two patios protected by stone balustrades. French doors also provide access to the fourth room on this floor, which is adorned with a coffered ceiling, a Renaissance-style stone fireplace that provides heat for this room and hardwood floors. A fifth bedroom is also decorated with a stone fireplace, while a wooden door leads to a bathroom with lavatory. From there, the staircase in the northern wing is accessible. The sixth bedroom, looking out over the courtyard, with a stone fireplace, has walls painted with faux wood patterns, which undoubtedly date from the 19th century. This room will need to be renovated.
The second floor
The second floor is divided into three parts: the southern wing, the central building and the northern wing. Regarding the southern wing, the second floor is accessible via a wooden staircase located on the first landing of the lower floor. From there, a landing leads to a vast attic with an exposed wooden framework to be converted, a bathroom with independent lavatory as well as a bedroom with a view of the courtyard.
In the central building, a second landing leads to two bedrooms to be renovated as well as a variety of small spaces. A wooden staircase provides access via a trapdoor to the flat roof that sits atop the central building.
In the northern wing, between two floors, a door opens onto a lavatory with sink. A landing provides access to a vast attic to be converted within which a door leads to a bathroom with octagonal terracotta tomette tiles and lavatory, also in need of renovation. The landing also leads to a bedroom with a raised bed and an oval, built-in bathtub. A shower room with separate lavatory completes this level.
The basement
Occupying a portion of the construction’s lower level, some of the cellar spaces are illuminated by basement windows. From inside the chateau, this floor is accessible by a flight of stairs located under the main staircase, which leads to an initial cellar used for storage. A wooden door leads to a second cellar area, which is currently used as a wine cellar. A hallway provides access to a third cellar space. Back in the first, a gallery leads to a fourth cellar space in which the furnace can be found. Another hallway leads to a former woodshed with a vaulted stone ceiling, while yet another leads to an alcove with a stone staircase that provides direct access to the northern façade’s exterior.
The Southern Pavilion
Located in the southern corner of the courtyard and partially surrounded by the moats, it has two floors and is crowned with a Mansard slate roof topped with zinc sphere-shaped finials. At each end an arched pediment adds a final flourish. The brick and stone masonry façades recall those of the chateau and are punctuated by tall small-paned windows. Stone steps lead to the front door, also adorned with a small-paned window. Fully restored, like the northern pavilion, it still conserves its original elements while adding modern comfort.
The ground floor
The small entrance hall has, to the left, a wooden and terracotta tile staircase, with a half-timbered stairwell, which leads upstairs and descends to the basement level. To the right, a wooden door leads to the living room. With terracotta tile floors and an exposed beam ceiling, it is decorated with an imposing original stone fireplace. In the corner is a fitted kitchen. This room is bathed in light by tall windows from which the moats are visible. A wooden door leads to the first bedroom.
The upstairs
Accessible from the wooden staircase, a landing leads to two bedrooms illuminated by gabled dormer windows as well as a bathroom with lavatory.
The basement
Occupying the pavilion’s entire lower level, this is accessible from the wooden staircase via a door. It is composed of a first vaulted cellar that is currently being used as a wine cellar and a second that presents a vast area for storage.
The Northern Pavilion
Facing the southern pavilion, it repeats the same architecture, providing the courtyard with a perfectly symmetrical tableau. It also received a complete restoration that focused on preserving its original elements.
The ground floor
A small landing houses an ancient bread oven, entirely restored. To the right, a hallway leads to the stone floor living room, which is also decorated with an imposing stone fireplace. Back in the entryway, another hallway leads to the fully fitted kitchen, illuminated by a small-paned window. To the left of the entry, a wooden and terracotta tile staircase leads upstairs.
The upstairs
This is composed of a hallway with storage that leads to a bathroom with lavatory as well as two bedrooms.
The basement
Accessible from the outside to the north via a door below, which also provides access to the moats, they only occupy a portion of the pavilion’s lower level.
The Grounds
Extending over approximately 11 unsegmented hectares, and completely unoccupied, they are organised along a central axis that follows the path of the sun and in which the chateau appears as the centre of attraction. To the east, from the entrance, an impressive cedar of Lebanon stands. To the left, a dirt pathway leads to a wrought-iron gate, which provides access to what was once a partially enclosed vegetable garden. To the west, the patio overlooking the moats is scattered with espaliered lime trees, which are reflected in the moats’ waters. A drawbridge spans the moats and leads to the other bank from which a horse path provides access to the western end of the domain planted with centenary lime and plane trees.
The grounds have retained its initial French garden layout, but the English style has, however, added a more natural touch to the overall ensemble. The ancient defensive moats are today a refuge for ducks and caper plants, which brighten up its décor.
Past the undergrowth and moats is an authentic timber-framed “pleasure palace”, in need of renovation, which recalls a folly from Marie-Antoinette’s hamlet or the Chateau Bérenger located on the grounds of the Chateau de Canon in Normandy.
Our opinion
Nobility and elegance from the Great Century exudes from this chateau, which was edified during the reigns of the French Kings and has resisted the upheavals of five centuries of history. Once defensive, the moats are today mirrors of a timeless aestheticism. Having been the subject of regular upkeep, the chateau will nevertheless need to undergo some renovations like those that have already been completed in the entrance pavilions. Its historical monument protection will make it possible to benefit from both tax breaks and financial assistance. The site could become a family chateau once again or a country residence only 50 minutes from Paris, as well as a place perfectly suited for hosting events. As for the grounds planted with centenary trees, they appear like a living tableau whose 17th-century symmetrical outline is still visible today.
Reference 318582
Land registry surface area | 11 ha 8 a 94 ca |
Main building surface area | 1000 m2 |
Number of bedrooms | 10 |
Outbuilding surface area | 160 m2 |
NB: The above information is not only the result of our visit to the property; it is also based on information provided by the current owner. It is by no means comprehensive or strictly accurate especially where surface areas and construction dates are concerned. We cannot, therefore, be held liable for any misrepresentation.