Malmaison

Hello, on my reading jag right now, enjoying %26quot;Josephine%26quot; by Andrea Stuart, and of course now my interest in piqued about seeing Malmaison and its gardens.

Are the gardens maintained ? Is is worth a look? Is it empty or have they furnished it( orginal or reproductions?)

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The gardens are maintained (but are smaller than then original ones and maybe less sophisticated than during Josephine%26#39;s time (closer from what one can expect from a malmaison (an hospital)%26#39;s gardens, the house is partly furnished and partly used for exhibitions, if you are in the area it%26#39;s worth a look

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Joan1:

I went there three years ago. I went in the spring and the gardens were lovely ! The interior was furnished with lots of furniture and paintings. One part looked like a war encampment with lots of drapery as it would be on a battlefield.

A part of the house had burned at one time so they posted sketches of how the place was arranged before the fire.

I just took a bus there and walked a few blocks down to the place and walked thru the entry way garden. I think I spent until 1:00 in the mansion and the town for lunch.

I really enjoyed it but I sooo.... love Napoleon%26#39;s Apartments in the Louvre I just had to make this day trip!!!

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Malmaison is accessible from the RER Grande arche de la Defense (line A) , but it%26#39;s a short bus ride from that station (bus 258). It is indeed worth seeing, since much of the house is furnished (with the bed where Josephine died, etc..).

The site is only in French ww.chateau-malmaison.fr/

Contrary to what the previous poster implies, the apartments at the Louvre are not Napoleon%26#39;s. They were designed much after his death (in the 1850%26#39;s, for the Duc de Morny)

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Hello,

Was quite impressed with Malmaison when I visited it. It was a rainy day so we did not wander in them too much but the gardens looked lovely. I thought the mansion was well furnished with a warm feeling of Josephine. There are many interesting busts and paintings of Napoleon, I guess in his younger years, where he looks quite handsome along with many interesting furnishings and paintings. They have a small shop selling some interesting items.

It somehow has a rather warm feeling, is not real huge and I believe Josephine is buried on the grounds. Across the street is a large park/woods and another smaller mansion (which could be open to visit, maybe) which is nice to wander around on a good day.

The town and area itself is not the quaintest area, rather busy. Tis easy to get to from la Defense by a public bus.

Definately worth a visit.

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Thanks for feedback. I find the more I research the more there is to see in Paris. It is a shame the gardens have been not maintained as close to original as possible as apparently they were very nice.

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Malmaison is very interesting, especially for anyone interested in the Napoleonic period. One caution, however: there were no toilet facilities when we were there. Plan ahead!

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Sorry Joan:

I misled you by implying the apartments at the Louvre were the Napoleon the first! They are Napoleon the III.

%26quot;Although the State Department and other administrative offices, including the Office of Finance, would later occupy them, Napoléon built private apartments in the north wing of the Richelieu Pavilion. In 1870, with the empress Eugénie and their son, he moved in, the first ruler to live in the Louvre since Louis XIV had abandoned the palace, the heart of the city he feared and hated.

The Grand Salon of the emperor%26#39;s apartment, originally the offices of the Ministry of Finance, is grand indeed, but it is also a comfortable, sociable, aristocratic drawing room in the plush and splendid Victorian manner. Fifteen crystal chandeliers add festive brilliance to the ornate surroundings, a sumptuously elegant composition of gilt stucco, mirrors, ormolu, putti, marble and bronze fireplaces, and frescoes. Looking down upon all this imperial grandeur are four lunettes, a series of paintings known as the Étapes du Louvre--the stages of the Louvre. There, framed in gilded arcs are Francis I, Catherine de Médicis, Henry IV, and Louis XIV. And holding pride of place in the center of the ceiling is The Joining of the Louvre and the Tuileries by Napoléon III. Literally central to Napoléon III%26#39;s identity as ruler of France, to his right to live in the palace, is the palace itself.%26quot;

I have never heard that were built for someone else as the previous poster related. I will do a search for that history information. My Louvre guide book calls them Napoleon III%26#39;s Apartments.

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Here is the web site for the previous quote:

http://www.hlla.com/reference/louvre5.html

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%26quot;Contrary to what the previous poster implies, the apartments at the Louvre are not Napoleon%26#39;s. They were designed much after his death (in the 1850%26#39;s, for the Duc de Morny)%26quot;

To the poster how wrote the above: I have tried to use all my search engines to find out if the Napoleon III apartments were design for the Duc de Morny but to no avail. Could you give me the web address with that information.

It was an interesting seach though.

As I posted above the web sites I found state that Napoleon III had them built for himself.

The Duc de Morny ( Charles...etc) was the %26quot;love child%26quot; of Napoleon III %26#39;s mother so he is the 1/2 brother of Napoleon III! He tried to fight for a title and was made Duc. Very interesting!

I love learning about the Napoleon years!

Joan1 : I think you would enjoy the visit! It did not take very long to get there from the 5 Er.

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One more question : Does the throne in the %26quot;Objects of Art%26quot; section of the Louvre belong to Napoleon the first or the third?