Fontainebleau: The Castle In The Middle Of The Forest

Its not as well known and is further from Paris than the Versailles Palace but the Fontainebleau castle is a place that many people should visit

. The king's had constructed a castle because of the surrounding forest that they liked. Its classified as an historical world monument by UNESCO.

The Fontainebleau castle which is also known as the Royal Chteau of Fontainebleau is the largest of the royal chteaux in France. In the middle of the forest which surrounds it by 25,000 hectare. The chteau and formal garden grounds provide an impressive glimpse into royal and imperial lifestyle taking up the space of a mid-sized industrial park in the town of Fontainebleau, surrounded by a tree thick forest, about an hour south of Paris where the Seine River dips before flowing to the capital city.

In the 12th century this area was used as a royal hunting ground and the Fontainebleau Castle was the centre of royal activity during hunting season. The castle has had various occupants over a period of eight centuries and had been a residential palace of French kings. These various occupants made numerous additions to the building, which leads to different architectural and decorative styles which makes the Fontainebleau Castle so unique. Louis XVI and his wife Marie Antoinette undertook some alterations which included redecorating her suite in keeping with the trends of the times, also after the French Revolution Napoleon found the place and stripped it of possessions and he set about refitting the whole castle right before the Pope visited in 1804 to crown him. The current castle was constructed in the 16th century and refurbished by the resident now most associated with it.

The castle was one of Napoleon's favourite places and his throne room is still there for visitors to see. He loved it so much that even after his exile at St. Helena he spoke of Fontainebleau Castle with fondness. Distinguished by the letter N and Eagles the throne room he made sure that even after he was gone his presence would still be there. There is also a Napoleon I Museum in the Fontainebleau Chteau that has several rooms displaying memorabilia of Napoleon and his family during his reign as Emperor. In the collection are also his trademark robe, sword and cocked hat.

There are plenty of activities in the surrounding areas to do rather than visiting the castle. Thanks to the terrain not being level, Fontainebleau forest has been described as a mini-Alps and is a popular area for hikers, climbers and nature enthusiasts. There are special climbing circuits where hikers can use a special map that ensures they can get the most out of their excursion plus helps them so they don't get lost in maze of trails while leading you through fantastic places of exquisite beauty. If you're a bird watcher then you can expect to see a mixture of birds which includes six species of woodpeckers, crested tit work lark and short-toed tree creeper. villas in France available to rent in the Fontainebleau area offer plenty of options when planning your exploration of the forest.

by: VacationRentalPeople

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