Château de Fontainebleau

Château de Fontainebleau

A palace of many kings

In a great forest south of Paris stands the Château de Fontainebleau, one of the most history-rich palaces in all of France. While Versailles was the creation of a single king, Fontainebleau was shaped by ruler after ruler over some seven hundred years — from medieval kings to emperors. Almost every age of French history has left its mark here, making the palace a vast and fascinating patchwork of styles, rooms and memories.

A medieval hunting castle

Fontainebleau began as a medieval royal castle, prized above all for the hunting in its surrounding forest, which teemed with deer and game. French kings came here to hunt and to escape the cares of the capital, and a castle existed on the site by the 1100s.

For centuries it remained a favourite royal retreat, but its great transformation came in the 1500s.

The Renaissance treasure-house

King Francis I, the same king who built Chambord, fell in love with Fontainebleau and decided to turn the old castle into a Renaissance palace worthy of his court. He brought talented Italian artists to France to decorate it, and they created a famous long gallery covered in paintings and richly carved and moulded decoration. Their work was so admired that it influenced art across France and beyond, giving rise to what is known as the "School of Fontainebleau".

Later kings and queens kept adding to the palace, building new wings, halls, chapels and gardens, so that it grew ever larger and grander.

Napoleon's palace

Fontainebleau is closely linked to one of the most famous figures in French history: the Emperor Napoleon. He loved the palace and restored and refurnished it after the Revolution, calling it "the house of the centuries". Many of its rooms still show the rich Empire style of his day, including his throne room and apartments.

It was at Fontainebleau, in 1814, that Napoleon's reign came to a dramatic end. Forced to give up his throne, he gathered his loyal soldiers in the palace courtyard and bade them an emotional farewell from the grand horseshoe-shaped staircase before going into exile. That courtyard is still known as the Court of Farewells.

Forest and gardens

Around the palace lie beautiful gardens, ponds and the vast Forest of Fontainebleau, famous for its rocks and trees and beloved by walkers, climbers and artists. The forest that first drew kings here remains one of the treasures of the region.

Visiting today

Visitors can explore the many royal and imperial apartments, the famous Renaissance gallery of Francis I, Napoleon's rooms, the chapels and the gardens, then walk in the great forest beyond. Protected by UNESCO, the Château de Fontainebleau offers a journey through the whole sweep of French history under one enormous roof — from medieval huntsmen to the farewell of an emperor.