Presentation

The château is built in the valley of Chevreuse, on a kind of promontory whose wooded slopes, prolonged as far as the eye can see by the neighboring forests, constitute a reserve of verdure, an immense 175 acre park 35 kilometers from Paris. The Romans, with their gift for discovering appropriate dwelling sites, were probably the first to settle on this spot. Later, in the feudal period, a stronghold was erected here; the moats and the dovecot go back to this early time. Under the reign of Henry IV, in 1604, a pleasure dwelling replaced the medieval fortress; it constitutes the central part of the present Château which has been progressively modified in the course of succeding generations.

In 1712 both the lands and the castle came into the possession of the Breteils. The members of this family attached to this handsome dwelling, are constantly enlarging and beautifying it.
The Breteuil family served the Kings of France closely throughout the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.
The ground floor is decorated with numerous family portraits of ministers, ambassadors, high-ranking officers, and bishops who lived at the time of Louis XIV, XV, and XVI. The influence of the court of Versailles under the Sun King can be seen in the sculpted woodwork, sometimes gilded, and in the Gobelins tapestries as well as in the furniture shown mostly on the upper floor.

The chateau is open for visits and is an exquisite place to organise receptions.