This richly-illustrated lecture will show how Fontainebleau grew from a modest fortified chateau into a great, sprawling construction with 1,560 rooms decorated in a medley of styles and periods.

The royal residence for 800 years, Fontainebleau is the creation of many kings, beginning with François I, who assembled a group of Italian artists to transform a medieval fortress into a palace decorated in the Renaissance style. His son, Henri II, added a ballroom designed by Philibert Delorme and decorated with frescoes by Italian artists. Henri IV continued to enlarge the chateau, which was his favorite residence after the Louvre. He hired French and Flemish artists to redecorate the interior, which needed to be refreshed after long years of neglect during the religious wars. He extended and embellished the gardens.

The Bourbon kings came to Fontainebleau every fall for the pleasure of the hunt. Napoleon chose to make Fontainebleau an imperial residence. Under Louis-Philippe and Napoleon III restoration work continued. A 400-seat theater was added.

The lecture, presented in English, traces the history of this iconic commune.