Here you are at Château des Condé - chateau accommodation church, accommodation wedding rental. At the foot of the citadel of Vallery, opposite the entrance postern (1). The loopholes in the towers were widened in the 17th century, during the period of relative calm that followed the religious wars (see the groove in the thick walls along which the portcullis used to slide). To the right of the postern, the old mediaeval chateau (2) signals the start of the ramparts. In those days, the fortress could accommodate 5,000 men in arms.
The scale of the pigeon-house (3) amongst the outbuildings, gives an indication of the size of the fiefdom. Traditionally, there were 7 pairs of pigeons, and therefore 7 alcoves in the pigeon-house, per acre of land.
On April 16th in the year of Our Lord 1548, Marshal Saint André erected a sumptuous palace over part of the medieval boundary walls: the Renaissance Chateau (4) was designed by the most talented architect of that time, Pierre Lescot.
During the course of the centuries the Grande Galerie had been closed in and sectioned off. But, with the help of the Department for the Conservation of Monuments and Historic Buildings, the intermediary rooms were demolished to reveal the original architecture of the Grande Galerie as it had been designed by the architect responsible for the Cour Carrée in the Louvre.
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THE HISTORICAL VISIT
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The Salle des Tentures with its 500-m2 trompe-l'oeil of precious fabrics is situated on the first floor. Your wedding ceremony, or any other event, can be held in this hall or in the Grande Galerie. The facades are made from brick and stone that boast some very detailed rustic work.
The most illustrious artists worked at Vallery, some of whom had contributed to the king's palace at Fontainebleau. They included Francesco Primaticcio, or "Le Primatice" as he was known in France. The facades of the chateau were clad in red and black polychromatic marble of which a few vestiges have survived on the lintels of certain cartouches and on the triangular pediments that crown some of the windows. At the beginning of the 18th century, Mademoiselle de Sens, daughter of Louis III of Condé, demolished the south wing (5).
In 1621, an oak tree (6) was planted 50 metres to the right of the bridle-path overlooking the castle. It marked the birth of the fourth Prince of Condé and is now almost four hundred years old; an extremely fine specimen, it is definitely worth admiring. The princes of Condé buried their hunting dogs at the foot of this tree.
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Tour of the 17th-century ramparts (7). The corbelled out elements to be admired in certain of the towers are a specificity of military defence architecture. Machicolations were used to dissuade assailants from attacking the base of the fortifications.
We would now invite you to find out more about visiting the heart of our small village, the famous Renaissance Gardens (8) , currently being restored.
The church (9) is usually locked (contact the Mairie). This is where Henri II of Condé's (1588-1646) mausoleum is to be found, designed by the illustrious 17th-century sculptor, Gilles Guérin. The caryatids represent the 4 cardinal virtues: from left to right Prudence (mirror and snake), Temperance (horse's bridal and a balance-wheel), Fortitude (bludgeon, an animal skin and a shield bearing a lion, a wild boar and a three-headed dog) and Justice (sword and scales). Two skulls situated above the door to the tomb - one with a dove's wings and the other with the wings of a bat - remind the living that although death shows mercy to the Just, it is without pity for non-believers. The stick in Condé's hand is the insignia of command. The theatrical mask behind the statue infers that he who lies there has finished his role in this world. All of the princes and princesses of Condé, including the daughter of Louis XIV, repose in this church.
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