Strangely, I had never been to the Château de Vaux-le-Vicomte and by a twist of fate, as only life can orchestrate, in 2017 I went there twice. The first time was during the day for a guided tour of the château’s interior, followed by a self-guided tour of the gardens. The second time was in July to discover the venue’s summer candlelight evenings. In this article, I will introduce you to the château, as well as the different types of tours and events, such as the candlelight evening, that it offers throughout the year.
Table of Contents
The history of the Château
First of all, the history of this place is very important, since this château ultimately served as the model for the creation of the Château de Versailles. Indeed, this achievement is the work of the 3Ls as they were known at the time: Le Nôtre for the French-style gardens, Le Brun for the painted decorations, and Le Vau for the architecture. And it is obviously these 3 artists who are also found at the time of the construction of the Château de Versailles. The Château de Vaux-le-Vicomte was therefore built by and for Nicolas Fouquet, Attorney General of the Paris Parliament and Superintendent of Finances in the 17th century.
The château is also famous for the party given on August 17, 1661, in honor of the young King Louis XIV. Subsequently, in September 1661, Louis XIV had Nicolas Fouquet arrested for embezzlement by d’Artagnan, and Colbert organized his trial. In the end, Fouquet was sentenced to life imprisonment and died in 1680 in the fortress of Pignerol. It was Alfred Sommeil, an ancestor of the current owners and an art lover, who acquired the property at auction in 1875. The latter was opened to the public in 1968 thanks to the efforts of Patrice and Cristina de Vogüé. This allows us today to be able to visit this superb estate.
Temporary exhibitions
The château regularly organizes temporary exhibitions on very varied themes.
2017: exhibition “Vaux Le Vicomte goes to the movies”
In 2017, I was notably able to discover the exhibition “Vaux Le Vicomte goes to the movies” which was very interesting.
Candlelight evenings at the Château de Vaux-le-Vicomte
For the candlelight evenings that take place every summer between the month of May and the month of October, 2,000 candles are set up every Saturday night in the magnificent garden created by André Le Nôtre and in the state rooms of the château.
This gives a whole new aspect to the place with an extra touch of magic… For our part, we will also remember this evening for a long time because we got caught in a huge thunderstorm, just as we were trying to take beautiful photos of the place (so I advise you to check the weather carefully before choosing your evening!). As a little bonus, the evening ends with a musical fireworks display that is launched every Saturday around 11 PM.
Practical info: if you don’t have a car, it is quite possible to come to the candlelight evenings by public transport. There is a shuttle system from the Verneuil l’Etang train station, specifically for Saturday night evenings.
Château de Vaux-le-Vicomte
77950 MaincyTour prices: €18.50 / €13 for children aged 6 to 17
The candlelight evenings take place on Saturday nights between May and October
Candlelight evening prices: adult €19.50 / reduced €17.50 / €16 for children
Photo credits: Mademoiselle Bon Plan and Nicolas Diolez Photos are not royalty-free, photographer's authorization required before any use
