Looking at the map of Paris, I found two tempting names in the corner: Sevres and Saint-Cloud. The large green area of the Parc Saint-Cloud is located side by side with the famous Sevres manufactory. They can be easily reached by metro (line 9 Pont de Sevres station or line 10 Boulogne-Pont de Saint-Cloud station).
In my dreams, I was already looking at the Sevres porcelain and strolling through the halls of the palace, where Napoleon declared himself emperor. Resolved: let's go! Leaving the metro, we cross the bridge over the Seine and right from the bridge we unmistakably determine the direction: here it is - the famous Sevres Manufactory - a huge, modestly decorated old building on the bank of the river. Coming a little closer, we find two huge porcelain vases the size of a good column at the entrance to the National Museum of Ceramics, which now exists in the building of the Sevres Manufactory. Porcelain lovers will enjoy this place. I have not seen such an amazing variety of forms, decor and techniques for the execution of this fragile beauty anywhere else.
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Having admired enough flowers on porcelain and porcelain, we move on to the second, more voluminous part of the outlined plan. The vastness of the Saint-Cloud Park awaits us.
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Straight as an arrow, the alley takes us into the distant past. Ivy feels like a master here and braids tree trunks, which, with this "design", turn into green plush columns after falling leaves.
The park is located on a hillside, so that a wooded slope rises to the left of us, and to the right is a flat terrace with rare bushes and huge clean lawns, which locals have chosen for walking with dogs.
Here is the first monument on the lawn. The sculptural group "France crowns Art and Industry" was installed here in 1900. In 1855 it reigned over the entrance to the Industrial Palace - the main pavilion of the international exhibition in Paris. After the pavilion was dismantled, this central sculptural group by Elias Robert, flanked by two groups of putti by George Deibelt, was moved to Saint Cloud.
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Ahead, a pond was already shining. The closer, the more interesting ... and finally, from below, a view of the Grand Cascade opens completely. This grandiose structure was built in 1664-65. Antoine Lepotre. The cascade consists of 24 fountains, and the large sculptural group at the top is the embodiment of the union of the rivers - the Seine and the Marne.
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Later, André Le Nôtre was involved in the reconstruction of the park, who also worked on the creation of the Versailles Park. Le Nôtre added the cascade to the general composition of the park, which has survived mainly to our time. Apparently, not a single architect could indifferently walk past this giant without contributing his bit to its expansion. In 1698-99. Arduin Mansart added to it the Great Pool (which we spotted from afar), and the Lower Channel.
Such a large-scale structure, replete with curious details, is worthy of close inspection, which we will do, climbing between the elements of the cascade to its sources on the upper terrace. The height difference between the terrace overlooking the banks of the Seine and the palace terrace is quite large, and the walls of the terraces are reinforced with retaining walls. Every year at the beginning of September, you can admire the largest fireworks in Europe, which breaks out in front of the Grand Cascade.
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Having reached the upper terrace, we look around and check the map. The path leads us to the right, where the regular park is already visible. This means that the intended goal is already close. An alley, a barrier, a security booth ... and behind it is a fountain petal, the wall of which serves as a retaining upper terrace.
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The gaze involuntarily searches for the Palace of Saint-Cloud. We go up to the upper terrace and instead of the palace, on the site between the sheared yews, we find a diagram of the park indicating the location of the lost palace. It was here that he stood ... until 1891.
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A few words about the history of the Palace of Saint-Cloud, which neither we nor our descendants are destined to see. The remaining buildings now belong to the Higher Normal School, the General Directorate of Armaments and the Pasteur Institute.
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The palace was built in the 16th century by Maria Medici according to all the canons of Italian palace buildings. Soon, the queen presented the palace to the Italian banker Gerard de Gondi. His successor, Paul de Gondi, Archbishop of Paris, hired the outstanding Italian hydraulic engineer Tomaso Francini to equip the fountains and their water supply system, who created a whole system of fountains and pools in Saint-Cloud. The difference in elevation is only beneficial to hydraulic structures. And now the numerous fountains of the park delight visitors: among them are pools with fountains Big and Small Bouquet, Pool for Dogs, Pool for Carp, Pool for an Iron Horse, Water Lattice fountains with jets crossing the grid, Big Jet, throwing water 32 m high , and the adjacent "Grossbouillon", surrounded by six nymphs.
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Passing from hand to hand and gradually increasing its territory with each resale, Saint-Cloud is getting closer to its crowned owners. In 1658, the ownership passed into the hands of the Duke of Orleans, the younger brother of Louis XIV, he expanded and completed the palace. Among the new premises, it is worth noting the Apollo Gallery, 45 m long, where many historical events will unfold in the future, and the greenhouse decorated by Jean Rousseau. The Duke of Orleans attracts André Le Nôtre to work on the park. The elevation changes did not allow breaking up the classic French park, and its entire territory was terraced.
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The palace terrace is now adorned with pyramids of yew trees and a parterre with standard roses framed by low-cut boxwood. To the west of the palace was the Orange Terrace, which turned into an orange grove when, in the warm season, tubs of citrus trees were taken out of the greenhouse located right there. Decorated with sculptures of mythological heroes, the “Theater of Crystal Streams” terrace was specially set aside for a 24-jet fountain.
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From the Palace Terrace we are led into the park by the central alley, around which the entire park ensemble was supposed to be formed. We can appreciate the idea of the great "park builder" André Le Nôtre, because the park has remained almost unchanged to our time. He believed that the gardens of Saint-Cloud are more varied and pleasant to walk than the gardens of Versailles. In 1672, the Breteuil pavilion was built in the park, which has been used by the International Bureau of Weights and Measures since 1875. The pavilion was moved from the park to the neighboring Sèvres.
Saint-Cloud belonged to the Dukes of Orleans until 1785, when Louis XVI bought the castle and presented it to the queen for private ownership, causing another attack of hatred towards her from the revolutionary-minded mob. Marie Antoinette already owned the Trianon donated by her husband, but not a single castle had ever belonged to monarchs in France as private property, because they (theoretically) belonged to all of France. At the request of the queen, a rose garden was laid out on one of the terraces. The surrounding landscape park is distinguished by a rich array of plants, rather corresponding to a botanical garden, and exquisitely selected landscape elements, skillfully made natural, which are characteristic of the Parc des Petit Trianon of Versailles, converted into an English park by the Queen's order. In the park of Saint-Cloud, the Queen secretly met with Mirabeau, planning the escape of the royal family from Paris. In 1790, the royal family was forced to return to Paris, and the castle was declared a national treasure. Its furnishings were sold out at auction, and the park and palace were opened to the public.
The next historical figure, whose life is strongly associated with Saint-Cloud, was Napoleon. On September 1, 1785, during his first visit to Saint-Cloud, Louis XVI signed Napoleon's lieutenant patent.The young lieutenant became the most promising general in the Republic. The coup d'état of 18 Brumaire in 1799 to overthrow the Directory and recognize Napoleon as the first consul is also associated with Saint-Cloud. It was like this ... From Paris, the meetings of both chambers of government - the Council of Elders and the Council of Five Hundred - were prudently moved away from the Parisian mob, ready to support any indignation. After Napoleon's unsuccessful speech about the need for a change of power in front of the deputies of both chambers, the troops, unquestioningly obeying the beloved general, seeing their upset idol, with bayonets at the ready, cleared the greenhouse of the deputies under the loud order of Murat "Get everyone out of here!" True, in the morning they had to catch the same deputies in the park and escort them back in order to gain a quorum to vote for the election of Napoleon as first consul.
In July 1800, the First Consul accepted the offer of the residents of the town of Saint-Cloud to make the palace his residence. The interiors of the palace were renovated, swimming pools, waterfalls and all water pipes and drainpipes that had fallen into disrepair over 10 years of revolutionary desolation were put in order. At the highest point of the park, on a terrace called "La Lantern", a replica of the Athenian monument of Lysicrates in terracotta was erected. The monument, crowned with a bronze tripod, was erected on a pedestal 18 m high, and the light of this lantern testified to the presence of Napoleon in Saint-Cloud.
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The highest point of the park still enjoys special public attention. A long, gentle climb leads to the terrace, where a beautiful view of the Seine and Paris opens up from the cliff. Going upstairs, you pass by the Palace Terrace and the driveway leading to it. From here you can see everything at a glance.
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This part of the park is especially interesting from a botanical point of view. A wide variety of shrubs grow here - holly, magonia, hydrangea, cotoneaster.
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The paths covered with fine gravel lead us from one man-made landscape to another, surprising with a variety of forms and autumn colors.
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Completing work on the restoration of the residence of Saint-Cloud in 1803, Napoleon ordered the construction of a watering hole, an indoor riding school and a theater.
On May 18, 1804, in the Apollo Hall of the Saint-Cloud Palace, Napoleon was proclaimed emperor. Here Napoleon moved the celebration of all family celebrations: the baptism of his nephews, the enthronement of Holland's younger brother Louis, the civil wedding ceremony with Marie Louise, the baptism of Napoleon's son, the King of Rome. From here Bonaparte went to fight in Russia, leaving his wife and son in Saint-Cloud. In the spring of 1814, after the defeat of Napoleonic troops, the allies - the Russian and German emperors and the Prussian king - visited the palace.
Under Louis XVIII in Saint-Cloud (1814-1824), an English landscape park for the children of the Trocadero was laid out and a two-story pavilion was built. Here, landscape designers skillfully combined plants of different types, forming picturesque landscapes. In the English park, many conifers form amazing contrasting combinations with the shape of the crowns and the shades of the needles.
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Napoleon III (1852-1870) also used Saint-Cloud as an imperial summer residence. In 1862 the dilapidated Greenhouse was demolished. In July 1870 Napoleon III signed a declaration of war with Prussia in Saint-Cloud. The war is lost, the Prussians are on the outskirts of Paris. The heights of Saint-Cloud, from which the entire city can be clearly seen, are occupied by Prussian artillery shelling the city. French artillery returned fire from the heights of Mont Valerien, setting fire to the palace with a shell that hit the emperor's bedroom. The Prussians did not put out the fire, and the palace turned into ashes. One joy is that Empress Eugenia ordered in advance to take out the furniture from the palace. This furniture was later furnished with palaces and museums that were empty after the revolution - Versailles, Trianon, Louvre and a number of others. The walls stood until 1891, when the decision was made to demolish.
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Now the area of the park has been reduced to 460 hectares in connection with the construction of a railway from Paris to Versailles. Park Saint-Cloud is distinguished by a wide variety of trees and shrubs, here you will find plane trees, poplars, maples, beeches, firs, yews, holly, jasmine, barberry, hydrangeas and many others.
France is famous for its bicycle races, and it all started again in Saint-Cloud. On May 31, 1868, the first cycling competition took place here: all bicycle owners competed in the speed of passing a distance of 2 km. Distances, conditions, speeds, trails and bicycles have changed since then, but cycling has consistently remained the most popular sport in France.
Since 2003, the park has hosted a three-day Rock on the Seine festival every year at the end of August. This year, on four stages, guests of the festival could hear more than 60 of the most popular performers of rock, hip-hop, electronic and pop music.
If you want to relax in nature from the hustle and bustle of the tourist race, or, conversely, to become a guest of a rock festival, in any case, come to Saint-Cloud. He will give you rest and good mood at any time of the year, as he generously gave it to me in October. All that remains is to shake the welcomingly outstretched pine legs goodbye and go down to the Seine and noisy Paris.
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