The Château de la Napoule is a restored French castle, located in

Mandelieu-la-Napoule Mandelieu-la-Napoule (; ; locally spelled Mandelieu-La Napoule) is a commune in the Alpes-Maritimes department of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in Southeastern France. Located on the French Riviera, just to the southwest of Cannes and ...

in the

Alpes-Maritimes Alpes-Maritimes (; ; ; ) is a Departments of France, department of France located in the country's southeast corner, on the France–Italy border, Italian border and Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean coast. Part of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'A ...

Department of France, It has been classified as an historical landmark since 1993, and the gardens are listed by the French Ministry of Culture as among the

notable gardens of France The Remarkable Gardens of France is intended to be a list and description, by region, of the more than three hundred gardens classified as ''"Jardins remarquables"'' by the Ministry of Culture (France), Ministry of Culture and the Comi ...

. It was featured as one of the main locations in the 1999 movie ''

Simon Sez ''Simon Sez'' is a 1999 action film starring Dennis Rodman, Dane Cook, and John Pinette. The film was directed by Kevin Alyn Elders, and the score was composed by Brian Tyler. The film received negative reviews and grossed $292,152. Premise ...

''.

History

The castle was constructed in the 14th century by the Countess of Villeneuve. Over the centuries it was rebuilt several times. In the 19th century it was turned into a glass factory. In 1918, it was purchased by Americans, Henry Clews Jr. and Marie Clews (1880–1959), who restored and moved into the castle. They added additional sections in their own personal style, with sculptures by Henry Clews Jr. The castle is owned by the La Napoule Art Foundation, which was founded in 1951 by Marie Clews, and serves as a cultural centre. After Henry's death and during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, the castle was captured by German soldiers. Marie Clews served the soldiers by acting as the maid of the castle's staff so she could stay close to her home and the memory of her husband.

The gardens

When the Clewses acquired the castle, the park had cedar and eucalyptus trees, and had been abandoned for years. Marie Clews began the restoration of the gardens. The park of the castle today has elements of a garden ''à la française'' and of an

English landscape garden The English landscape garden, also called English landscape park or simply the English garden (, , , , ), is a style of "landscape" garden which emerged in England in the early 18th century, and spread across Europe, replacing the more formal ...

, with a grand alley, basins, perspectives, and views of the sea. In addition, there are three smaller gardens in the

Italian style Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...

: the Garden de la Mancha next to the Tower of La Mancha, under which the mausoleum of the Clews family is located; the terraces which overlook the Bay of Cannes, which are planted with cypress trees, hedges and rosemary; and the secret garden, in a corner of the walls with windows looking at the sea, with a Venetian well in the centre.

Sources

This article is an edited translation from the French Wikipedia, with additional information from the site of the Committee of Parks and Gardens of the Ministry of Culture of France.

External links

Site of the Chateau de la Napoule
{{DEFAULTSORT:Napoule, Chateau De La Castles in Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Châteaux in Alpes-Maritimes Gardens in Alpes-Maritimes Arts centres in France Museums in Alpes-Maritimes Historic house museums in Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Art museums and galleries in France