OUD _facing_ 236
THE CASCADES AT SAINT CLOUD _facing_ 240
COUR DE MARBRE, VERSAILLES _facing_ 264
THE POTAGER DU ROY, VERSAILLES _facing_ 270
THE BASSIN DE LATONE, VERSAILLES _facing_ 272
THE FOUNTAIN OF NEPTUNE, VERSAILLES _facing_ 274
PETIT TRIANON _facing_ 276
LAITERIE DE LA REINE, PETIT TRIANON 277
SAINT GERMAIN (Diagram) 280
THE VALLEY OF THE SEINE, FROM THE TERRACE AT SAINT
GERMAIN _facing_ 288
FAUTEUIL OF MME. DE MAINTENON 297
CHATEAU DE MAINTENON _facing_ 300
AQUEDUCT OF LOUIS XIV AT MAINTENON _facing_ 306
CHATEAU DE RAMBOUILLET (Diagram) 309
LAITERIE DE LA REINE, RAMBOUILLET _facing_ 312
CHATEAU DE RAMBOUILLET _facing_ 316
CHANTILLY (Diagram) 325
STATUE OF LE NOTRE, CHANTILLY _facing_ 326
CHATEAU DE CHANTILLY _facing_ 336
COMPIEGNE (Diagram) 343
NAPOLEON'S BEDCHAMBER, COMPIEGNE _facing_ 352
COURS DE COMPIEGNE _facing_ 356

Royal Palaces and Parks of France

CHAPTER I

INTRODUCTORY

The modern traveller sees something beyond mere facts. Historical
material as identified with the life of some great architectural glory
is something more than a mere repetition of chronologies; the sidelights
and the co-related incidents, though indeed many of them may be but
hearsay, are quite as interesting, quite as necessary, in fact, for the
proper appreciation of a famous palace or chateau as long columns of
dates, or an evolved genealogical tree which attempts to make plain that
which could be better left unexplained. The glamour of history would be
considerably dimmed if everything was explained, and a very seamy block
of marble may be chiselled into a very acceptable statue if the workman