Château de Chantilly: Where Art Rivals Versailles
A Renaissance treasure house with France's finest art collection outside the Louvre
The Condé Legacy
For nearly five centuries, Chantilly belonged to some of France's most powerful and cultivated nobles. The Montmorency family built the original château in the 16th century, and the Condé princes—a cadet branch of the Bourbon royal family—transformed it into one of Europe's most important cultural centers. What visitors see today reflects this aristocratic refinement.
The château complex actually comprises two connected buildings: the Grand Château, rebuilt in the 1870s, and the Petit Château, a genuine Renaissance structure from the 1560s. Together they create a harmonious composition rising from waters that reflect their elegant facades.
The Great Condé
Louis II de Bourbon, Prince of Condé—known as the Great Condé—was one of France's greatest military commanders. His victories in the Thirty Years' War made him a national hero, though his later involvement in the Fronde rebellion temporarily cost him royal favor. When restored to grace, he retired to Chantilly and devoted himself to making it magnificent.
The Great Condé commissioned André Le Nôtre—the landscape architect who created Versailles' gardens—to design Chantilly's grounds. Le Nôtre created a masterpiece of French formal gardening, with parterres, fountains, and the famous Grand Canal. Many consider his work at Chantilly even finer than Versailles.
The Duc d'Aumale's Collection
The château owes its extraordinary art collection to Henri d'Orléans, Duc d'Aumale, son of King Louis-Philippe. An exile for much of his life, he spent his fortune assembling one of the 19th century's greatest private collections. When he bequeathed Chantilly to France in 1884, he stipulated that nothing could ever be changed or loaned out.
The Musée Condé, as the collection is called, contains over 800 paintings, 2,500 drawings, and 30,000 books. Old Masters include Raphael, Botticelli, Poussin, and Ingres. The library holds medieval manuscripts including the Très Riches Heures du Duc de Berry, considered the finest illuminated manuscript in existence.
A Perfect Forgery
The Grand Château that dominates Chantilly today is not the historic building but a meticulous 19th-century reconstruction. The original was destroyed during the French Revolution, and only the moat and foundations remained. The Duc d'Aumale commissioned architect Honoré Daumet to rebuild in Renaissance style, creating a new château to house his collection.
Daumet's reconstruction is so skillful that many visitors assume it's an original Renaissance building. The exterior matches historical engravings of the lost château, while the interior was designed specifically as gallery space. The result is a purpose-built museum that looks like a historic palace.
The Stables of Princes
Chantilly's Grandes Écuries (Great Stables) are themselves a masterpiece of architecture. Built in 1719 by architect Jean Aubert, they could accommodate 240 horses and 500 hunting dogs. The building's dome and classical proportions make it the grandest stable building ever constructed—legend claims the prince who built it believed he would be reincarnated as a horse.
Today, the stables house the Living Horse Museum, with regular equestrian performances in the historic arena. The adjacent Chantilly racecourse, established in 1834, continues the estate's equestrian tradition. The Prix de Diane and other prestigious races make Chantilly central to French horse racing.
Beyond Versailles
While Versailles attracts millions of visitors, Chantilly offers a more intimate experience with art of comparable quality. The Duc d'Aumale's condition that nothing be changed means the galleries preserve their 19th-century arrangement—itself now a historical artifact. The château feels like stepping into a private collection rather than a state museum.
The gardens, recently restored to Le Nôtre's original design, offer hours of exploration through formal parterres, woodland walks, and the romantic Anglo-Chinese garden added in the 18th century. For those seeking French grandeur without overwhelming crowds, Chantilly may be the ideal choice.
Crème Chantilly's Birthplace
Yes, the château gave its name to whipped cream. François Vatel, maître d'hôtel to the Great Condé, is credited with inventing crème Chantilly for a banquet here in 1671. The same event ended tragically—when a fish delivery arrived late, Vatel killed himself rather than face dishonor. The cream remains; the standards of honor have relaxed.