Pierrefonds
Oise, Picardy, France
Watercolour
20 x 16 inc mount
After he became Duke de Valois in 1392 Louis, Duke of Orleans built a castle here. It was completed by the time he was murdered in 1407.
In 1616 the castle was bombarded and the Julius Caesar Tower split and collapsed, a year later the interior was burnt and the walls undermined.
It became a romantic ruin, the subject of many paintings and drawings for 200 years.
At the suggestion of the Emperor Napolean III work started on a faithful restoration of the great tower in 1858, but after many visits he decided to fully recreate the medieval castle, which was completed in 1885. The enormous chateau now overshadows the village with the appearance it must have had during the Middle Ages.
