The Chateau Louis XIV is a chateau constructed between 2008 and 2011 in the commune of Louveciennes in the Yvelines department in the Ile-de-France region.
Although it is a new construction, the Chateau Louis XIV meets the exact standards and rules of proportions and ornamentation established from Antiquity as they were regularly applied during the 17th century.
The Chateau Louis XIV is a historic construction project initiated by the real-estate development company Cogemad in 2008, with the same techniques and materials that were used in the 17th century. The construction method followed that of the chateaux built in the 17Ith century, on a virgin landscape using mainly the techniques from that period as they were practiced in Yvelines. Located between Versailles and Marly-le-Roi on a 23-hectare (57-acre) walled property, the Chateau Louis XIV is surrounded by moats and has a constructed surface area of 7,000 m2 (75,350 ft2), 5,000 m2 (53,800 ft2) of which are living space.
Inspired by Emad Khashoggi, founder of Cogemad and restorer of the Palais Rose in Vesinet, a classified National Heritage Site, and the Chateau du Verduron located in Marly-le-Roi, the Chateau Louis XIV project, carried out on the property of the former Chateau du Camp in Louveciennes, aimed at the construction of a new monument; one that would boast all the comforts of the 21st century while preserving the aspect, the layout and the materials used in the 17th century.


== History of the property ==
In the late 17th century, the property where the current Chateau Louis XIV was built consisted of several plots of land, chestnut groves and woodland. In the early 18th century, the royal regiment was in charge of participating in a major excavation project in Marly-le-Roi. They thus decided to set up camp in an existing clearing on these very plots of land.
During this period, Louis XIV decided to build a palace in Marly-le-Roi nestled in a lush green setting; a place where he would regularly go to retreat and reside with a rare and privileged few to find the peace and quiet that he so lacked in Versailles.
Later, the highly prestigious Swiss Guards, assigned to ensure the security of the Chateau de Marly, also set up their camp on the property. Also known as the "Royal Regiment Camp" or the "Marly Camp," the camp disappeared in the mid 18th century, and the Chateau de Marly suffered the tribulations of the French Revolution. Rich with symbols and the functions for which they served under the reign of Louis XIV, this land has forever left its mark on the history of France. In 1797, during a settlement, the camp and land that were part of the property were sold to Francoise-Suzanne Guyhon Monthaut who, in turn, sold them to the Vicomte Charles-Gilbert de Morel-Vinde and his wife in 1805.
The Vicomte Charles-Louis Terray de Morel-Vinde, counselor at the royal court in Paris, inherited the property following the death of his grandfather in 1842, and eventually sold it in 1848 to Jean-Pierre Blondi and Adelaide Halguin, who had the first house and outbuildings built on the property.
The camp property became a large farm. Here, a cavalry regiment and several military companies would sometimes set up camp in what was then called "The camp farm" until 1863, when Doctor Duborgia, Mayor of Bougival, purchased and expanded the property.
In 1888, Charles-Emile Clerc, the new property owner following the death of Doctor Duborgia, undertook the demolition of the initial buildings which, over the years, had only undergone a few scarcely noticeable changes. Having acquired several plots of land, Charles-Emile Clerc was able to expand the property, which he transformed into a residential domain that boasted a lovely and grand bourgeois residence surrounded by extensive wooded grounds.
The property remained in the family for over a century. During this time, it underwent a few modifications such as the addition of a stable, a caretaker's house and a number of paths, before eventually being sold to a French couple in 1991. This would then give way to a succession owners... Finally in 2008, Emad Khashoggi decided to undertake an unprecedented project; inspired by 17th-century architecture, it would restore the property's noble heritage: The Chateau Louis XIV.


== Emad Khashoggi's project ==
Emad Khashoggi, a French businessman of Saudi Arabian descent and the head of Cogemad since 1989, discovered the property in 2008. He was fascinated by the domain, its history and its unique location, but found the building on the property to be in very poor condition. He thus had it demolished so that new foundations could be built for the Chateau Louis XIV. Khashoggi was pleased to see craftsmen with traditional skills work in harmony among state-of-the-art technicians. In an interview with Connaissance des Arts, he explained that he wanted to "give rise to a 'new structure,' for which one is able to create sustainable projects that will make their mark in the future as well as in the heritage of a region, a country." For the construction of the Chateau Louis XIV his company, Cogemad, employed an average of 120 workers every day, and included artisans such as: sculptors, mosaic artisans, painters, gilders, iron craftsmen, cabinetmakers, marble masons, landscapers, fibrous plasterers, clockmakers, bronze casting artisans, roofers, carpenters and coppersmiths. This sumptuously decorated residence boasts, among others, two master suites, several guest suites, numerous reception halls, two custom-made artisanal kitchens, a floor designed for recreational activities, an underwater room built in the heart of the moats - the only one of its kind in Europe - a movie theater, a wine cellar, etc. The reception hall on the ground floor has pride of place in the rotunda drawing room, which is crowned with a ceiling painted in trompe-l'oeil. It was inspired by the fresco conceived by Charles Le Brun for the Chateau de Vaux-le-Vicomte, and took master painters several months to create. This, in addition to the Apollo Fountain in the gardens, is one of the centerpieces of the chateau.


== The trades and the artisans ==
Numerous companies certified as Living Heritage Artisans and Companies took part in this project, which enabled them to train new craftsmen. The construction project brought together several age-old trades, which produced the following key works:


=== Stonemasonry ===
860 m3 (30,370 ft3) of massive natural stone divided as follows:
80 m3 (2,800 ft3) of Lanvignes limestone
175 m3 (6,000 ft3) of fine Saint-Maximin limestone
605 m3 (21,300 ft3) of fine Saint-Maximin limestone
They were used to make balusters, sculpted tables, fire pots and capitals for sculpted pilasters.
On display in the chateau's Garden a la francaise is a stone-sculpted reproduction of the Chariot of Apollo from the fountain in Versailles. The smaller-scale copy of this sculpted group, designed for the king's gardens by the artist Jean-Baptiste Tuby, retained the proportions and details of the original. It was then gilded in gold-leaf.


=== Marble ===
The marble was crafted in various styles: delicate marquetry for the floors, mosaics for the garden level, book matched in the bathrooms, sculpted for the monumental statue of Louis XIV and molded for the Grand Siecle-style fireplaces.
List of marbles used and their place of origin:
Black Saint-Laurent: Herault - France
Yellow Sienna: Tuscany - Italy
Antique Green: Aosta Valley - Italy
Cherry Red: Belgium
Collemandina Marble: Tuscany - Italy
Salome Marble: Turkey
Red Levante Marble: Liguria - Italy
Macauba Quarzite: Brazil
Pink Alpinina : Portugal
Moonstone: Brazil
Pink onyx: Iran
Rouge de France: Herault - France
Calacatta Topazio : Tuscany - Italy
Bamboo Green: Brazil


=== Cabinetmaking and joinery ===
Many 17th-century decorations sculpted in wood embellish the interior. One of the centerpieces is found on the monumental entrance door sculpted entirely by hand in oak in high relief, and projects out by 17 cm (6.6 in). It depicts the Sun God on horse-back as a Roman Emperor crowned by Victory. This work was inspired by a model from the War Room at the Chateau de Versailles.


=== Clock-making ===
For the facade of the chateau, Emad Khashoggi commissioned clock-makers to create a genuine monumental bronze and enamel clock identical to the one on the facade of the Chateau de Versailles.


=== Painting and decor ===
Several of the ceilings in the reception halls and master suites depict themes that were dear to Louis XIV, and which are also often seen in Versailles. For instance, the imposing painted ceiling of the cupola in the main drawing room was influenced by an Allegoire de l'Aurore project that was conceived by Charles Le Brun for the Chateau de Vaux-le-Vicomte, but which never came to fruition.


=== Bronze casting ===
Works include the creation of 17th-century lamps and decorative hardware inspired by numerous archives from the History of Fance, notably from the 17th century under the reign of Louis XIV.


=== Iron-working ===
Works include numerous handmade curved banisters and balustrades reproduced from17th-century spirals and motifs. These assemblages are always created using tenons, mortises or pegs, without the slightest trace of welding, according to the finest French tradition.


=== Framework ===
A traditional frame was constructed for the dome, which was assembled the old-fashioned way using a system of tenons and mortises.


=== Roofing ===
In keeping with age-old techniques, the roofers hand-crafted the slate roof from Angers. The roof also boasts fire pots sculpted in stone and gilded metal spikes on the roof's ridge beam.


=== The gardens ===

The Chateau Louis XIV, nestled in an authentic lush green setting, is consistent with the standards of the 17th century, and its parks and gardens are no exception. In line with Andre Le Notre's theories for the Chateau de Versailles and the Chateau de Vaux-le-Vicomte, the grounds pay tribute to the French-style gardens. It boasts flower beds and embroidered box hedges, plays on perspective, topiary yew trees clipped into small pyramids, a tree-lined labyrinth, a small farmhouse with goats, a vegetable garden, stables and even an English-style garden on the lower level, all in keeping with the natural outlines of the property where the chateau is located.


== References ==
^ [1]
^ Chateau Louis XIV, un mini Versailles a cote de Paris, Capital, juin 2015
^ Connaissance des arts
^ [2]
^ Louveciennes mon village, Jacques et Monique Lay, 1997, (ISBN 2-9503913-0-3).
^ Le chateau du Camp, sur le blog de la Tribune de Louveciennes
^ Il construit de nouveaux chateaux de Versailles, Entreprendre, numero 288 - mars 2015, pp. 90 et 91
^ Ancien chateau Le Camp a Louveciennes (Yvelines), octobre 2009, Etude historique et documentaire commandee au Groupe de Recherche Art Histoire Architecture et Litterature par l'agence Bortolussi, architecte en chef des Monuments historiques.
^ Un nouveau chateau Louis XIV edifie non loin de Versailles, sur le site de l'Express
^ A Louveciennes, un palais des savoir faire, Connaissance des Arts, special issue Les metiers d'art en France 2012 - March 2012, pp. 99 a 100
^ Retour vers le futur a Louveciennes..., Pierre Actual, issue 898 - October 2011, pp. 47 to 54


=== External links ===
Official web site