Scattered all over the world are countless ancient majestic castles and palaces built several hundred years ago. These places allow a modern person to get access to the past of his own or a foreign country in order to feel the spirit of past centuries and try to imagine how people lived in those days, and in what conditions. One of them is the Luxembourg Palace in Paris. What are the powerful walls of this architectural structure hiding?
The history of the palace
In 1615, on April 2, Queen Marie de Medici solemnly laid the foundation stone for her future palace. After 16 years, it will become her desired and beloved castle. But the wife of Henry IV of Bourbon and the mother of Louis XIII the Just will not be able to enjoy their chambers for long. Terribly disliked the Louvre and constantly missing Italy, Maria, becoming a widow, decided to build a palace that would remind her of the architecture of her native Florence. She wanted to buy somethingown. She dreamed of a place where she would be pleased to be and live.
The Luxembourg Palace was built according to the design of the architect Salomon de Brosse, who made the Florentine Palazzo Pitti the basis of his creation. However, the result was a mixture of Italy and France. But this combination was great. The queen had excellent taste, so she decided to choose the best for her beloved mansion. To this end, Maria hired the designer Rubens - at that time a very famous person in Europe.
Having entrusted him with the interior decoration of the premises, the queen subsequently did not regret her choice. For her, Rubens created a series of paintings called "Biography of Marie de Medici". The queen liked these 24 works so much that she decided to order portraits of her husband from the designer to perpetuate his memory. But the lady did not have long to admire her dream.
A few months after the castle was built, the queen was driven out of Paris by her own son. Subsequently, the Luxembourg Palace overtook hard times. During the Nazi occupation, it was the headquarters of the German air force. Then the castle played the role of a prison for political prisoners, and after that it became the residence of Napoleon Bonaparte.
Earlier, even before the construction of the castle, the property belonged to Francois of Luxembourg. When Maria bought them back, they were 3 times smaller than they are today. Without delay, the queen purchased several more plots of land around her property, where there used to be farms, houses and gardens, in order to make the plot larger and plant a garden. Total turned out to be 23 hectares of park areawith green spaces, ponds and sculptures - an area that today is considered one of the most beautiful and ennobled in the world.
Luxembourg Palace today
In 1790 the castle acquired national status. It was then that he was turned into a prison. And since that time, the Luxembourg Palace in Paris, the photo of which can be seen above, began to be actively transferred from one hand to another. Only in 1958, after almost 200 years, it began to belong to the Senate. Today, meetings are held inside a beautiful and majestic architectural structure. Changes were made to the interior and exterior of the building several times, as the castle is old and needs regular restoration. But on the outside, it remained almost the same as it was four centuries ago.
Luxembourg Palace description
The central gate of the castle is crowned with three-storey pavilions. And on the upper tier there was originally a terrace for the queen, from where the crowned lady could admire the garden. Surprisingly, each floor had columns made in different styles of architecture:
- on the first - in Tuscan;
- on the second - in Doric;
- on the third - in Ionic.
The architectural style that prevails in the palace is called transitional: from the Renaissance to the Baroque. It is for this reason that the castle looks so unusual. And it's not called unique for nothing. The interior of the palace has not survived to this day. This is understandable. After all, after the status of residenceMarie Medici, he changed a lot more names and purposes. Since the building belongs to the Senate, the entrance to it is strictly limited. However, there is a museum located in one of the wings, where various exhibitions are held. And the external charm of the palace can be admired all year round.
Castle grounds
Properties include the Luxembourg Gardens and a palace in Paris. The park zone is no less charming sight. Everyone can walk on this territory 12 months a year and 7 days a week. The garden arose approximately at the same time as the palace. And together with his stone “friend” of the same name, he changed depending on the circumstances in which he was immersed by the state authorities. Gradually, original sculptures appeared in the park, uniting into single ensembles, representing the images of emperors, generals, kings, thinkers and other personalities.
Throughout its existence, the garden has seen many now famous poets, sculptors, writers and artists. Today, it receives a huge number of tourists from all over the world, many of whom are children. For them, this is a real expanse, because the park offers a lot of entertainment:
- music show in the gazebo;
- puppet show;
- pony ride;
- pond, where ships of various models are launched on a "long" voyage;
- playground with attraction.
Also, for the convenience and satisfaction of guests, the Luxembourg Gardens wasopen air restaurant. It serves delicious national cuisine and, of course, local wine.
Excursions to the Luxembourg Palace
The garden is open to visitors in winter from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. and in summer from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. The museum is also open throughout the year from morning to evening. Some of the 365 days can become significant - the doors of the palace will open and everyone will be able to take a look at the interior of the castle. The only thing you need to do is to call the French museum management by phone: 331/44-61-21-70. Entrance to the Luxembourg Palace, the photo of which is shown above, and the garden of the same name are paid: for adults - 11 €, for youth under 25 years old - 9 €. But kids up to children under 9 years old can visit it for free.
Luxembourg Palace in Paris: location
The castle is located at: Paris, 75006, 6th arrondissement, 15 rue de Vaugirard (Saint-Germain-des-Prés). You can get to it if you take the metro line B to the Luxembourg RER station. Contact phone: 33 01 42 34 20 00.
