"Courances" éd. Flammarion Learn more...

Recent historical research has come to challenge many of the accepted ideas about the creation of Courances, especially concerning André Le Nôtre's contribution to this seventeenth-century garden. This, and the supposed exclusive restoration by the Duchênes in the early twentieth century, have been revealed to have no historical basis..

1-Les Nappes, 2-« La Dame de Courances » by  Beaubrun, 3- Courances  1872, 4- Le Fer à Cheval,  5- La Baigneuse.
A more in-depth analysis of historical documents has brought to light a series of facts that explain the preserved beauty of a park which, at the start of this, the twenty-first century, reveals itself as a highly successful synthesis of French garden history. Indeed, what is most striking is the permanence and longevity-more than five centuries-of the main formal layout created in the second half of the sixteenth century. And yet, each generation, each successive owner, has remained attentive to the specific characteristics of the property: the lack of relief, the profusion of water and the high density of woodland. Each has left their mark, reflecting the changing tastes in garden design, without ever disrupting the overall harmony..