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Palace & château

Vaux-le-Vicomte

🇫🇷 France · 17th century

Vaux-le-Vicomte in France
Photo: Jean-Pol GRANDMONT · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons

The Château de Vaux-le-Vicomte (French pronunciation: [ʃato d(ə) vo l(ə) vikɔ̃t]) or simply Vaux-le-Vicomte is a Baroque French château located in Maincy, near Melun, 55 km (34 mi) southeast of Paris in the Seine-et-Marne department of Île-de-France.

Built between 1658 and 1661 for Nicolas Fouquet, Marquis de Belle Île, Viscount of Melun and Vaux, the Superintendent of Finances of Louis XIV, the château was an influential work of architecture in mid-17th-century Europe. At Vaux-le-Vicomte, the architect Louis Le Vau, the landscape architect André Le Nôtre and the painter-decorator Charles Le Brun worked together on a large-scale project for the first time. Their collaboration marked the beginning of the Louis XIV style combining architecture, interior design and landscape design. The garden's pronounced visual axis is an example of this style.

Text adapted from “Vaux-le-Vicomte” on Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Vaux-le-Vicomte ranks #90 of 7,738 worldwide in the atlas's castle fame ranking, and #12 of the 469 mapped in France. Founded 1656, it is older than 26% of the atlas's dated landmarks — one of 580 atlas entries founded in the 17th century. Its Wikipedia articles were opened 36,428 times in the last 60 days, more than 99% of the atlas. 5 more atlas landmarks stand within 25 km. The nearest day-trip guide is Paris, 42 km away. See how France compares in the castle statistics.

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Frequently asked questions

Where is Vaux-le-Vicomte?

Vaux-le-Vicomte stands in France, at 48.56583°, 2.71415°.

When was Vaux-le-Vicomte built?

The atlas dates its founding to 1656. Earlier structures may have stood on the site; this is the earliest documented founding year.

How famous is Vaux-le-Vicomte?

In this atlas's fame ranking: #90 of 7,738 worldwide, and #12 in France. Fame here combines how many Wikipedia language editions cover a landmark with how many people read them.

What is the nearest castle to Vaux-le-Vicomte?

Château de Blandy-les-Tours, about 5 km away.

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