Les Grandes Écuries de Chantilly, 1719-2019

Aurore Bayle-Loudet, Les Grandes Écuries de Chantilly, 1719-2019, Fondation pour la sauvegarde et le développement du Domaine de Chantilly / éditions Faton, August 2019, 112 p., 80 ill., 27 × 24 cm, €29 (ISBN: 978-287844-261-8).

Abstract

Three centuries after work to construct them began in 1719, the Chantilly stables remain the largest royal stables in Europe and are a prime example of the architecture of the Louis XV period. With the strong classical accents of its facade and its majestic rococo decor, “l’écurie, ridiculement belle, [est] plus superbe qu’aucun château, avec sa belle pelouse”, as the Duke of Croÿ once wrote.

Commissioned by Prince Louis-Henri de Bourbon-Condé, the Grandes Écuries were the work of Jean Aubert and took over 20 years to build, starting in 1719. This book looks back at the journey of the Prince de Condé, who asserted his power through this magnificent commission, in an attempt to better understand the construction and design of this majestic outbuilding, an analysis of the building’s forms, decor, usage and operation offering a comprehensive overview of its history. Last but not least, an examination of the changes the Grandes Écuries underwent during the 19^th century allows us to examine the posterity and memory of this unique monument.

This book, published to mark the 300^th anniversary of the beginning of work to construct the Grandes Écuries, retraces the history of a jewel of French architectural heritage, supported by various archival documents.

Author Aurore Bayle-Loudet is responsible for the collections held at the Musée du Cheval at the Domaine de Chantilly.

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