Montceaux Castle

En un regard

Le château en bref

Montceaux Castle was located in Seine-et-Marne, in the commune of Montceaux-lès-Meaux. It is also known as the Royal Castle of Montceaux-Les-Meaux, the Castle of the Queens, or the Castle of the Three Queens. It was acquired in the 16th century by Catherine de' Medici, who entrusted its embellishment to Philibert Delorme. Other artists, such as Jacques Androuet du Cerceau, Primaticcio, or Salomon de Brosse, took part in the successive transformations and decorations of the property. Bought back by Henry IV, it was given to Gabrielle d'Estrées, then became the property of Marie de' Medici on the occasion of the birth of Louis XIII. The main attraction of the site was its exceptional view over the plain bathed by the Marne. Demolished a few years after the Revolution, only a few ruins remain today, along with a chapel, the buildings of the forecourt converted into a bourgeois house, and the eastern part of the castle, which became a farmstead. A park known as the Montceaux Castle park also preserves its memory. The castle was listed as a monument historique in 2005.