Château de Ferrières () is a French

château A château (; plural: châteaux) is a manor house or residence of the lord of the manor, or a fine country house of nobility or gentry, with or without fortifications, originally, and still most frequently, in French-speaking regions. No ...

built between 1855 and 1859 for

Baron James de Rothschild James Mayer de Rothschild, Baron de Rothschild (born Jakob Mayer Rothschild; 15 May 1792 – 15 November 1868) was a German- French banker and the founder of the French branch of the Rothschild family. Early life James de Rothschild was bor ...

in the

Goût Rothschild Le Goût Rothschild, (; en, the Rothschild taste), describes a detailed, elaborate style of interior decoration and living which had its origin in France, Britain, Austria, and Germany during the nineteenth century, when the rich, famous, and p ...

style located in central France, some 26 km east of Paris. Rothschild ownership of the Château de Ferrières was passed down through the male line according to the rule of

primogeniture Primogeniture ( ) is the right, by law or custom, of the firstborn legitimate child to inherit the parent's entire or main estate in preference to shared inheritance among all or some children, any illegitimate child or any collateral relativ ...

, until it was donated by the family in 1975 to the

University of Paris , image_name = Coat of arms of the University of Paris.svg , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of Arms , latin_name = Universitas magistrorum et scholarium Parisiensis , motto = ''Hic et ubique terrarum'' (Latin) , mottoeng = Here and a ...

. Considered to be the largest and most luxurious 19th-century château in France, it can be reached from Rue Rucherie in the town of

Ferrières-en-Brie Ferrières-en-Brie (, literally ''Ferrières in Brie'') is a commune in the Seine-et-Marne department in the Île-de-France region in north-central France. Geography Ferrières-en-Brie is located east of Paris, on the Brie plateau, between the ...

in the

Seine-et-Marne Seine-et-Marne () is a department in the Île-de-France region in Northern France. Named after the rivers Seine and Marne, it is the region's largest department with an area of 5,915 square kilometres (2,284 square miles); it roughly covers its ...

department.

Early history

Sitting at the crest of a long entry drive, the château was designed by the

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

architect

Joseph Paxton Joseph is a common male given name, derived from the Hebrew Yosef (יוֹסֵף). "Joseph" is used, along with "Josef", mostly in English, French and partially German languages. This spelling is also found as a variant in the languages of the mo ...

. The inspiration for the design of Ferrières was

Mentmore Towers Mentmore Towers, historically known simply as "Mentmore", is a 19th-century English country house built between 1852 and 1854 for the Rothschild family in the village of Mentmore in Buckinghamshire. Sir Joseph Paxton and his son-in-law, George ...

Buckinghamshire Buckinghamshire (), abbreviated Bucks, is a ceremonial county in South East England that borders Greater London to the south-east, Berkshire to the south, Oxfordshire to the west, Northamptonshire to the north, Bedfordshire to the north-e ...

, England, the house that Paxton had built for Baron James's nephew,

Mayer Amschel de Rothschild Mayer may refer to: *Mayer (name) Places * C. Mayer (crater), named after Christian Mayer * Mayer, Syria * Mayer, Arizona, United States * Mayer, Minnesota, United States * Mayersville, Mississippi, United States * Mayerthorpe, Alberta, Canada ...

. On seeing Mentmore, Baron James is reputed to have summoned Paxton and ordered him to "Build me a Mentmore, but twice the size". Built in the

Neo-Renaissance Renaissance Revival architecture (sometimes referred to as "Neo-Renaissance") is a group of 19th century architectural revival styles which were neither Greek Revival nor Gothic Revival but which instead drew inspiration from a wide range ...

style inspired by the architecture of the Italian Renaissance, with square towers at each corner, the house sits on a formal terrace that gives way to 1.25 km² of gardens in a parkland landscaped ''à l'anglaise'' that was part of a surrounding 30 km² forest contained in the estate. The showpiece central hall is 120 feet (37 m) long and 60 feet (18 m) high, its roof a full glass skylight. The sculpting of the interior atlas columns and caryatids was by

Charles Henri Joseph Cordier Charles Henri Joseph Cordier (19 October 1827 - 30 May 1905) was a French sculptor of ethnographic subjects. He is known for his polychrome sculptures in the later realist phase of Orientalism. Early life and education Cordier was born in Cam ...

, and the decorative painting was supervised by

Eugène Lami Eugène Louis Lami (12 January 1800 – 19 December 1890) was a French painter, watercolorist, lithographer, illustrator and designer. He was a painter of fashionable Paris during the period of the July Monarchy and the Second French Empire and a ...

. The massive library held more than 8,000 volumes. Because lavish entertaining was important, in addition to the private Rothschild apartments, the Château de Ferrières was built with eighty guest suites. Ferrières was inaugurated 16 December 1862 with a gala attended by

Napoleon III Napoleon III (Charles Louis Napoléon Bonaparte; 20 April 18089 January 1873) was the first President of France (as Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte) from 1848 to 1852 and the last monarch of France as Emperor of the French from 1852 to 1870. A neph ...

. Baron James acquired a vast collection of works of art, and statues adorned a number of the château's rooms. Several of the many sculptures were by

Alexandre Falguière Jean Alexandre Joseph Falguière (also given as Jean-Joseph-Alexandre Falguière, or in short Alexandre Falguière) (7 September 183120 April 1900) was a French sculptor and painter. Biography Falguière was born in Toulouse. A pupil of the � ...

and the 18th-century Italian, Antonio Corradini and the Baron's son later added works by

René de Saint-Marceaux Charles René de Paul de Saint-Marceaux (23 September 1845 – 23 April 1915) was a French sculptor. Biography He was born in Reims on 23 September 1845 to Alexandre Jean de Paul de Saint-Marceaux, a member of a noble family, and Emélie Isabell ...

. During the Franco-Prussian War of 1870-71, the Château de Ferrières was seized by the

Germans , native_name_lang = de , region1 = , pop1 = 72,650,269 , region2 = , pop2 = 534,000 , region3 = , pop3 = 157,000 3,322,405 , region4 = , pop4 = ...

and was the site of negotiations between

Otto von Bismarck Otto, Prince of Bismarck, Count of Bismarck-Schönhausen, Duke of Lauenburg (, ; 1 April 1815 – 30 July 1898), born Otto Eduard Leopold von Bismarck, was a conservative German statesman and diplomat. From his origins in the upper class of ...

Chancellor Chancellor ( la, cancellarius) is a title of various official positions in the governments of many nations. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the or lattice work screens of a basilica or law cou ...

of the

North German Confederation The North German Confederation (german: Norddeutscher Bund) was initially a German military alliance established in August 1866 under the leadership of the Kingdom of Prussia, which was transformed in the subsequent year into a confederated st ...

, and the French

Minister of Foreign Affairs A foreign affairs minister or minister of foreign affairs (less commonly minister for foreign affairs) is generally a cabinet minister in charge of a state's foreign policy and relations. The formal title of the top official varies between co ...

Jules Favre Jules Claude Gabriel Favre (21 March 1809 – 20 January 1880) was a French statesman and lawyer. After the establishment of the Third Republic in September 1870, he became one of the leaders of the Opportunist Republicans in the National Assem ...

. The Germans again seized the château during the occupation of France in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, and this time, they looted its vast art collections. The château remained empty until 1959, when

Guy de Rothschild Baron Guy Édouard Alphonse Paul de Rothschild (; 21 May 1909 – 12 June 2007) was a French banker and member of the Rothschild family. He owned the bank Rothschild Frères from 1967 to 1979, when it was nationalized by the French government, an ...

and his new wife, Marie-Hélène de Zuylen van Nyevelt, set about refurbishing it. From 1959, they hosted regular parties at the château, the theme of which would be personally designed by artists or designers such as Yves Saint Laurent. Their parties would mainly consist of aristocrats, but they always included many of her friends from a wider society, such as

Brigitte Bardot Brigitte Anne-Marie Bardot ( ; ; born 28 September 1934), often referred to by her initials B.B., is a former French actress, singer and model. Famous for portraying sexually emancipated characters with hedonistic lifestyles, she was one of the ...

Grace Kelly Grace Patricia Kelly (November 12, 1929 – September 14, 1982) was an American actress who, after starring in several significant films in the early to mid-1950s, became Princess of Monaco by marrying Prince Rainier III in April 1956. Kelly ...

and

Audrey Hepburn Audrey Hepburn (born Audrey Kathleen Ruston; 4 May 1929 – 20 January 1993) was a British actress and humanitarian. Recognised as both a film and fashion icon, she was ranked by the American Film Institute as the third-greatest female screen ...

Recent history

In 1975, Guy de Rothschild and his wife charitably donated the château to the chancellery of the

. The property is now used as a school called "École Ferrières" (Ferrières School), which opened in late 2015 and focuses on gastronomy and the hospitality industry.École Ferrières website
/ref> There are also two restaurants on site, named "Le Baron" and "Le Chai".

In popular culture

*Several episodes of '' Highlander: The Series'' and '' Highlander: The Raven'' were filmed at the château between 1995 and 1999 *Scenes in the

Roman Polanski Raymond Roman Thierry Polański , group=lower-alpha, name=note_a ( né Liebling; 18 August 1933) is a French-Polish film director, producer, screenwriter, and actor. He is the recipient of numerous accolades, including an Academy Award, tw ...

film '' The Ninth Gate'' (2000) were filmed at the château in 1998 *An episode of the TV series '' Relic Hunter'' (1999-2002) was filmed at the château *The music video of American singer

Beyoncé Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter ( ; born September 4, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Beyoncé's boundary-pushing artistry and vocals have made her the most influential female musician of the 21st century, according to ...

’s song " Partition" was filmed at the château in 2013 *The music video of French singer Indila's song " Tourner dans le vide" was filmed at the château in 2014

References

External links

*
École Ferrières
- official website {{DEFAULTSORT:Ferrieres, chateau de Châteaux in Seine-et-Marne Monuments historiques of Île-de-France Rothschild family residences Joseph Paxton buildings and structures Buildings and structures completed in 1859