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Vaux-le-Vicomte and the Brie Region Bike Tour
« Thread Started on May 10, 2011, 3:02pm »

A bike tour in Paris is great but a bike tour day trip from Paris to go biking in the French countryside is a good choice too. I like doing bike tours in Paris as much as I like doing bike tours as day trips from Paris to go biking in the French countryside. We'll start the day by biking in Paris on our way to the train station. Our first destination is the pleasant small city of Melun. While it's not the same as biking in Paris its geographic characteristics remind the visitor of Paris as the city is bisected by the Seine river and features a prominent island between the two riverbanks. Archaeological work has revealed the presence of a moderately sized Gallo-Roman settlement and some of the vestiges are displayed publicly or in the local museums. It was of some importance in medieval times and under Phillip the Fair it was the second seat of royal power, although it had been a seat of royal power since the Capetian dynasty. Like most other cities of this era it was also fortified by ramparts whose construction dates to the late 12th century. Also similar to Paris there were 3 important fortified areas, one on each riverbank and the third being the fortified island. Some portions of the ramparts still remain but other monuments, such as the château and some abbeys, no longer remain. There are still traces of medieval times in the form of 2 gothic churches, ruins of an abbey and the street layout in the old downtown. Its importance from the middle ages and onward was due to its function as a supplier of flour to Paris. It was also home to Nicolas Foquet during the construction of the nearby château Vaux-le-Vicomte and was briefly residence to Paul Cézanne, who painted a few well known works during his stay here. The interesting part of the city is still the old downtown so let's ride around there and have a look at things.

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Re: Biking Melun to Vaux-le-Vicomte to Mormant
« Reply #1 on May 10, 2011, 3:25pm »

Well that's the only urbanized area we are going to visit today since the rest of the ride will take us through the nearby rural, agricultural countryside and its numerous quaint, unknown centuries old villages. Once you exit the Melun city limits there is no doubt your are leaving civilization behind.

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After a few minutes we arrive in the first anonymous town of Maincy. We'll take a little ride around town and then I'll tell you what I know about Maincy.

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Here we see some typical ''maisons briardes'' (houses of the Brie region).

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This reminds me that I need to tell you that we are in the Brie region, from whence is derived the name of the famous cheese. I should also back up and tell you that there are several varieties of Brie cheese with one being Brie of Melun, which as you might guess takes its name from the small city we just left.

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The store on the left in the next photo is one of the three or four commercial establishments in town. When you get out into the countryside a town with three or four stores is a veritable metropolis.

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« Last Edit: May 10, 2011, 5:40pm by French Mystique Tours »

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Re: Biking Melun to Vaux-le-Vicomte to Mormant
« Reply #2 on May 10, 2011, 5:42pm »

Now that we've seen a few photos let's have a little history lesson. While there is evidence of prehistoric and Gallo-Roman settlement throughout the region, like most towns near Melun the town of Maincy really enters written history in early medieval times, as the 12th-13th century church in the center of town bears witness. At this time the town was known for the stone quarries in its environs. It is most closely linked with the history of the nearby château of Vaux-le-Vicomte as Nicolas Fouquet acquired the domain in 1641 in order to facilitate construction of the château. Fouquet was for a time the superintendent of finance under Louis XIV. We'll learn a bit more about Foquet and Vaux-le-Vicomte shortly but I had to interject here as the towns history is so linked to Fouquet as to make it necessary for a brief explanation. Fouquet converted a former residence of the religious order of the Carmelites into a tapestry manufacturing facility directed by Charles LeBrun, the famous artist first employed by Fouquet and then later by Louis XIV. After the downfall of Fouquet the production of tapestry was transferred to the famous Gobelins facility in Paris. The famous architect Le Vau was responsible for renovation works to the aforementioned medieval church. Lets's keep looking around and if I have anything to say I'll let you know.

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Here we see a street called La Ruelle du Ru (The Little Street of the Brook). For the sake of being technical, ru in French is specifically a brook that is less than a meter wide. Perhaps a better English translation might be rivulet. But enough quibbling over semantics. The brook fed the small river below the village where the primary mills of the town were located.

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Here we see the old village church. The tower you see was not just built to house the bells but was also a defensive look-out.

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Re: Biking Melun to Vaux-le-Vicomte to Mormant
« Reply #3 on May 10, 2011, 5:51pm »

Here we see one of the two or three old lavoirs (wash houses) which still remain.

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Here is Le Moulin de la Chambre, one of four mills in Maincy.

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I was finishing up my visit and getting ready to leave Maincy when I saw this sign, indicating a historic monument.

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I can't tell you how many times I've seen one of these signs and then head off in the direction to which it points only to discover no further signage indicating how to find the noted attraction. Such was the case with this sign so I just moved on. Only later did I discover that the Pont de Maincy was a little bridge immortalized in a painting by Paul Cézanne which now hangs in the Musée d'Orsay. So I have no picture of what it probably the town's most famous attraction. Doh!!! I promise to show it to you, however, if you come riding with me.

Now it was time to move on to the most famous attraction on this ride, the Château de Vaux-le-Vicomte. Here is my approach.

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If you've heard of Vaux-le-Vicomte before then bear with me for a few minutes while I explain a bit about it to those who have never heard of it. There are entire books written about Vaux-le-Vicomte and its ill fated owner Niclolas Fouquet so I'm going to be as brief as possible to give a general overview of why Vaux-le-Vicomte is so important and worth visiting.

Vaux-le-Vicomte was one of the most important châteaux built in the 17th century and was the inspiration for Louis XIV's much more famous (and visited) château at Versailles, as well as many other châteaux. Its fame was due to its architectural design and the layout of the gardens both of which would later come to define what was known as the Louis XIV style. At the time it was built it was the most elaborate and grand château in France. While this fact alone would make it famous what magnifies its importance is the personal tale of the owner, Nicolas Fouquet, whose spectacular downfall from a position of wealth and power to life imprisonment makes its telling worthy of comparison to a Greek tragedy.

Nicolas Fouquet was the superintendent of finances under Louis XIV and had his famous château constructed from 1656 to 1661. At Vaux-le-Vicomte the architect Louis LeVau, the landsape architect André le Nôtre and the painter/decorator Charles Le Brun worked together on a large scale project for the first time. Fouquet was a lover and patron of the arts and a lover of beauty and pleasure in every form. He showered many of the noted artists of the day with gifts, commissions and encouragement and thereby attracted other distinguished individuals, patrons and persons of the court.

On August 17, 1661 Louis XIV wished to visit the château to check on its progress as he had heard many wonderful reports about it from those in the court. Fouquet was not without ambition as he was seeking to inherit the position of First Minister from the previous First Minister Cardinal Mazarin, who had recently died. To win over the king Fouquet planned a spectacular festival in the kings honor that would become known as the party of the century. However Fouquet's underling, Jean-Baptiste Colbert, had his own ambitions and had been whispering negative things in the kings ear about Fouquet, including charges of embezzlement and that he was at the head of an anti-royalist plot. The king had his own reasons for wanting to get rid of Fouquet (I won't get into all the details) and was actually going to Vaux-le-Vicomte with the intention of arresting him.

At the party there was much celebration, pomp and grand display of all manner and Molière even performed a play. All of this was followed by a dazzling fireworks display to finish off the night. Fouquet was at the pinnacle of his glory, and on the precipice of his downfall. The king wanted to arrest Fouquet right then and there but was talked out of this by the queen, who advised him to retain his composure in front of the guests since this was a party in his honor. Since Louis had one of the biggest egos in history and Vaux-le-Vicomte was more opulent and luxurious than any of his residences he must also have been boiling with jealousy. A few weeks later Fouquet was arrested on trumped up charges and after a lengthy three year trial was imprisoned for the remainder of his life, which lasted until 1680. Voltaire later commented of the party, ''On 17 August, at six in the evening Fouquet was the King of France: at two in the morning he was nobody." Louis then went on to employ Le Vau, Le Brun and le Nôtre in the construction of his even grander (some, including myself, would say less tasteful) château at Versailles.

There's obviously much more depth and texture to this story than I am providing here but this is a report about biking, not châteaux, so if you want to learn more about Vaux-le-Vicomte here is the link to the official website:

http://www.vaux-le-vicomte.com/en/index.php

I didn't visit the château today so all I have to show you is a few pictures I took from outside the front gate, and since the sun was shining directly into the camera lens they're not even great pictures but it's all I've got.

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I left Vaux-le-Vicomte behind and headed on to the next town of Moisenay.

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If there was anything of great historical importance I could tell you about Moisenay I certainly would. But there isn't. Its two ''tourist attractions'' are the park by the little river with an old mill building, a bridge made of stone and the bell tower of the 12th to 13th century church, which is the only one in the Seine-et-Marne department made entirely of stone. I saw the church but I didn't visit the mill and bridge. Perhaps we'll take a little detour to visit them next time. Nonetheless, it's the kind of quaint little rural village I like to ride through so I did. And you will too. So let's see it.

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Re: Biking Melun to Vaux-le-Vicomte to Mormant
« Reply #4 on May 10, 2011, 5:57pm »

That was all I had to see in Moisenay so I left the village to continue the journey.

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The next village I approached was Blandy-les-Tours. Approaching Blandy the town appears on the horizon as though from a dream of medieval times. A true medieval fortress, with towers and turrets, perched on a distant hill and surrounded by rolling green fields and lazily grazing cattle.

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Re: Biking Melun to Vaux-le-Vicomte to Mormant
« Reply #5 on May 10, 2011, 5:59pm »

The medieval castle in Blandy principally dates from the 13th and 14th centuries with later periods of alteration, destruction and eventual renovation of what was able to be preserved. It fits ones image of a medieval castle with high walls and towers and a now dry moat which surrounds it.

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Re: Biking Melun to Vaux-le-Vicomte to Mormant
« Reply #6 on May 10, 2011, 6:07pm »

For eons before the appearance of the Maytag man this is what the cutting edge of laundry technology looked like.

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I walked up to the castle entrance to get a peek inside. It is open to the public and for a small admission you can explore the castle. Guided tours are available. The day I was here there happened to be a car show inside the castle walls featuring expensive sports cars.

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If modern expensive sports cars weren't your thing there was also a performance of a traditional style one man band accompanied by acrobats, including a male pole dancer!

As I was walking away from the covered entry of the castle a pigeon in the rafters above decided to heed the call of nature and let loose with what in medieval times would have been considered a precious gift of fertilizer. Today we know this ancient gift as bird turd and luckily it just missed me. But it didn't miss making a direct hit on the top of the head of the guy behind me. I only mention this because it's funny and it's funny because it didn't happen to me. Sorry, I don't have a photo (what was I gonna say ''Hey mister, before you wipe that off do you mind if I get a photo? Just hold still and try to look embarrassed and disgusted. I want to capture you in the moment. I promise, I won't show this to anybody.'').

Having enjoyed the various forms of entertainment at the castle, I went to visit the church.

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Little did I know there would be more entertainment here. See all those sign boards in the previous photo? They were full of cartoons that seemed to be making jokes about religion. Not poking fun at religion, just sort of having a good time with it.

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For non-French speakers, the religious woman knocking on the guys door is saying ''Jesus is coming back'' and the man watching soccer on TV is saying ''Couldn't he wait until the end of the match?''

Time to leave Blandy and head back into the countryside.

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The next attraction on the agenda is the Château d'Aunoy. You know you are approaching a château in France whenever you see a lengthy stone wall surrounding a large expanse of land.

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Prior to the existence of the present château there was a medieval castle here until 1750 when it was destroyed by fire. The subsequent château was rebuilt by Jean-Baptiste Chabert who chose to create the first English style gardens in France to surround his château. Upon the death of the château owner in 1837 it was pillaged by bandits who stole its furniture to sell off for profits.

Fortunately they did not destroy the premises. The château passed through several owners until 1980 when it was purchased by the Tapiau family who own it to this day. The château is presently available for rent for receptions and various events and private visits for groups can be arranged for visits of the gardens.

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Re: Biking Melun to Vaux-le-Vicomte to Mormant
« Reply #7 on May 10, 2011, 6:10pm »

And on through the countryside to the nearby village of Champeaux.

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Remember all the sports cars I saw at the castle? Well, the show must have ended and they were now free to do what they do best, and that's driving really fast.

Next up is Champeaux.

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The town website for Champeaux has one fairly lengthy page detailing the history of the village as far back as the early 7th century. I'm not going to bore you with the minutia since it's fairly banal stuff that wouldn't terribly fascinate you. But it's still impressive to see how even the tiniest villages in France have such extensive histories.

Inside the church in Champeaux I noticed the same cartoon boards I had seen in the church in Blandy. I figured out what was happening and that is that a cartoonist was exhibiting his works in various churches throughout the region. Here's an explanation of the exhibit.

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It says: ''Today we are the poorest country in Europe when it comes to religious culture. Let's accept to start over from scratch and get back to what is essential. This is the goal of this modest exhibition, which is brightened by the humor of Piem (the cartoonist). This exhibition can be interactive. You will find all the necessary indications to reach a correspondant''.

Okay, that last sentence sounds a little strange because I can't figure out a good translation so I just did it word by word.

A few cartoons.

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The above says ''Jesus of Nazareth shares all our pain.''

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Jesus asks for 1 bread and 1 fish and the woman asks for how many people.

And a couple final photos of Champeaux.

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Next town, Saint Méry.

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Re: Biking Melun to Vaux-le-Vicomte to Mormant
« Reply #8 on May 10, 2011, 6:19pm »

Well, that was certainly just a charming little village. Time to leave Saint Méry.

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Here are some leafy green plants I can't identify.

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Approaching Bombon.

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Of course, there is always a church.

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Off to the next town, called Bréau.

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There's not much to see in Bréau since the street I just showed you is one of only three or four streets in the entire village. It did have an abandoned, run down château and a pretty little chapel though.

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Re: Biking Melun to Vaux-le-Vicomte to Mormant
« Reply #9 on May 10, 2011, 6:20pm »

The next town I enter is La Chapelle Gauthier.

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The church in the above photo dates to the 13th century and the château in the following photo dates to 1618 and is presently the town hall, although it appears to be under renovation at present. Both these buildings are classified as national monuments.

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As you can see I am entering Saint-Ouen-en-Brie.

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Re: Biking Melun to Vaux-le-Vicomte to Mormant
« Reply #10 on May 10, 2011, 6:22pm »

The countryside just outside town.

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Here is the approach to the next village of Lady.

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Re: Biking Melun to Vaux-le-Vicomte to Mormant
« Reply #11 on May 10, 2011, 6:24pm »

There is one final place to visit before our journey ends and that is a medieval fortified farm known as the Fief des Epoisses.

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And up close.

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When I got home I googled the name to see what this place was all about. Here's what their website told me:

Its name comes from the old French word “espesse” which means “thickness”, a dense forest. One can easily imagine the Fief, at the time, with its tower and crenels dominating the dense thickets, completely surrounded by a vast forest. Its origins go back very far ; it was cited for the first time in 1285, in the Partition Charter of the Viscount de Melun, between the two brothers Adam and Jean ; Jean’s share included the rent and income for the Epoisses.

Learning that this place was once surrounded by a dense forest gives one the indication as to just how much tree cutting has occurred in this region over the last 800 years. Today it is being used as a business conference center.

Time for a little rest under a nice shady tree.

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Back to the road.

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Perhaps you've committed some sort of felony offense and need a place to lay low for a while. This Gîte Rural is in the middle of nowhere and I'm pretty sure no one would ever think of looking for you here.

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More open road.

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And here are a couple of photos of Mormant where the journey ends and we take the train back to Paris.

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Our bike tour day trip from Pairs to go biking in the French countryside is now over so that is all there is to show you today. Hope you enjoyed the ride. We'll head back to do some biking in Paris, sort of a mini bike tour in Paris, on our way to return the bikes before we part company.

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