Château Vaux le Vicomte
77950 Maincy, France
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Synopsis:

Vaux-le-Vicomte was built for Nicolas Fouquet, the Superintendent of the King's Finances. The buildings were designed by the architect Louis Le Vau, while the gardens were the first major design of André Le Nôtre. It is clear from the subtle visual tricks throughout the estate that Le Vau and Le Nôtre collaborated heavily on all aspects of the design to create a unified whole. On August 17, 1661, Fouquet held a large party, intending to honor Louis XIV, who was in attendance with much of his court. Held largely in the gardens, the extravagant party estate and party both awed and embarrassed Louis, whose own estates paled in comparison to Vaux-le-Vicomte. Less than a month later, Fouquet was arrested, charged with misusing royal funds to build Vaux-le-Vicomte, and imprisoned for the remainder of his life. A more happy ending awaited Le Nôtre and Le Vau, who were commissioned by the king to build a new estate which would forever overshadow Vaux-le-Vicomte: the Palace of Versailles.