Palaces to visit France

The Paris courthouse occupies four hectares on the island of the City. Every day, there are judges, prosecutors, lawyers, gendarmes, police officers and defendants, not forgetting the public attending the trials, as well as tourists wishing to visit Sainte-Chapelle and concierge. These last two sites are part of the remains of the Palais-Royal, which found itself there from the th to the th century. It is also because of the presence on the ground of the King that courts of justice have settled in an area which has subsequently ceased to be amended and matched: monumental grid of the Palace Boulevard (in the 36 th century), buildings side of Harlay and seat of the judicial police at, Quai des Goldsmiths (th). Nevertheless, these premises were too narrow and a major project was born: that of the Judicial City of Paris in the 17 th arrondissement. The work was completed in July 2017.

It was housed in the episcopal palace in 1801, and was rebuilt in 1646 in a Roman style: prominent balconies, bossed pilasters, enormous ledges... It contains admirable decors painted by Romanelli in the 17th century. Place du Palais, known as "Sextier", was bordered to the West by the convent of the Ursulines whose prayers were sometimes disturbed by turmoil of the daily life. Mgr Buti wrote a letter to the pope Innocent XII on 23 August 1694, complaining that young people play ball on the place - so that the nuns and the pupils could hear the licentious, obscene and sacrileges words of the players, but also see them playing fully stripped of their clothing. So, the vice-legate prohibited the ball game, on penalty of a fine of 100 crowns.

This hotel is the most luxurious and best preserved witness of the baroque residences of the nobility and bourgeoisie. Property of the Comtes Lascaris-Vintimille, it was built at the end of the sixteenth century by Jean-Paul Lascaris de Castellar, great master of the order of the Knights of Malta with the help of his nephew Jean-Baptiste. In Genois style, this building is built around two inner courtyards. A very beautiful staircase, real well of light, gives access to the first floor where the weapons of the Lascaris are proudly trashed: a bicephal eagle adorned with a cross of Malta. Original paintings date from the seventeenth century while baroque elements were added in the eighteenth century. The apartments are decorated with vaulted vaults and the ceilings are decorated with frescoes with mythological subjects, including a magnificent Phaéton Fall. During your visit, do not miss the furniture of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, the Flemish tapestries, the apothicecerie founded in 1738 of roquaille style, the complete collection of vases, violes and chevettes as well as the regional collections of art and popular traditions. In 1942, the City of Nice bought the building: fully restored and classified as Historic Monument in 1946, the Lascaris Palace became the Musée de la Musique de Nice and the second of France by the importance of its collection, which gathered around 500 old European pieces from the saqueboute of Schnitzer (1581) to Grafton saxophone (1960). This collection also features many instruments manufactured before 1800: Baroque guitars, luths, violes and Denner's scarcity flute.

This jewel of Grenoble's heritage - currently undergoing renovation and redevelopment - was for more than five centuries the seat of justice. Built in 1453, the Old Palace of the Parliament offers behind its imposing facade decorated with coats of arms and animals old parts of Gothic style, including the entrance door with the vaulted corridor and the chapel. The entrance is decorated with satirical subjects. Woodwork by Paul Jude.

Built in the early th century, this Royal Palace is designed to welcome the governors and princes of Savoy during their stay in Nice. Philibert, Duke of Savoy, is financing the construction of the building. After Nice was connected to France in 1860, the building changed its vocation and housed the Alpes-Maritimes Prefecture. Recently, the offices moved to the new administrative centre east of Nice, the palace became the residence of the president of the general onseil and the prefect of the Alpes-Maritimes. The neo-classical façade, designed by Sabatier, was completed in 1869. The interior decoration is entrusted to Jules Chéret, famous international painter. From the beginning of the 1860 th century until, this palace is the place of sumptuous receptions, to which the nice nice and foreign society is invited. It is also here that the County of Nice was officially given to France and that the Emperor Napoleon III and the Empress Eugénie received the city's keys.

Nicknamed "Palace of the Prefecture" or "Palace of the Sardinian Kings", it is the residence of the Prefect of the Alpes-Maritimes and the President of the General Council. Classified as a historical monument, this royal palace was built in the early 17th century to house the crowned heads of the House of Savoy. During the Belle Epoque, the guest book of the prefecture continued to grow with the arrival of Napoleon III, Tsar Alexander II, Sadi Carnot, Leopold II and even Clemenceau.

The archbishops of Bourges are located on the south side of the cathedral from the th century. In the th century Bishop Phélypeaux de La Vrillière decided to make it a great palace. From the ambitious project led by the architect Pierre Bullet, only the south wing and the garden are made. To see this imposing building, the pavilion of La Vrillière, one can only imagine the prosperity of the archdiocese at that time. Inside, the rotating staircase hanging on the arch is adorned with statues and bas-reliefs representing the four evangelists. Following the separation of the Church and the State, this palace was ceded free of charge to the city of Bourges in 1909, which installed its municipal services and the library the following year. Since the construction of the new town hall (adjacent) in 1992, the old archiepiscopal palace still houses some municipal services, the Municipal Council Hall, the hall of honour, the weddings hall and the Best Workers'Museum in France.

In the Old Nice, the name of the palaces was given to the special hotels in which the Nice bourgeoisie and bourgeoisie resided. Residence of the counts Lascaris-Ventimiglia (Guillaume-Pierre de Ventimiglia married in 1261 Eudoxie, daughter of Theodore II Lascaris, Earl of Nice), this palace was built at the end of the th century by Jean-Paul Lascaris, grand master of the order of the Knights of Malta and his nephew Jean-Baptiste. Lascaris Palace remains the property of this family until the Revolution. Then sold as a national property, it passes into the hands of several successive owners who allow it to deteriorate. After the First World War, the palace left behind is divided into apartments. Acquired by the city of Nice in 1942, it is classified as a historic monument. It is completely restored from 1962. This palace, in Genoese style, develops around two inner courtyards. The monumental staircase gives access to the noble floor.

The vault of the entrance hall displays the arms of the Lascaris (a two-legged eagle with a cross of Malta reminiscent of the membership of several members of that family in this order). The original paintings date back to the th century, and baroque elements were added to the th century. The apparat are decorated with frescos with frescos. A mural is decorated with caryatids and atlanteans with all beauty. The ceilings are decorated with frescoes with mythological subjects, including a superb Fall of Phaéton. th and th century furniture, Flemish tapestries.

On the ground floor is a pharmacie-style pharmacy. Here you can admire a complete collection of vases, flasks and prawns. On the third floor, regional art collections and popular traditions: pottery, breeding, weaving… The Lascaris Palace will soon become the Music Museum of Nice. A collection of ancient instruments will take place on the floors of the museum.

The Palais de la Méditerranée, one of the jewels of luxury luxury of the 1930 s, was opened on January 10, 1929 by the American billionaires Franck and Florence Gould. Due to the nice architects Charles and Marcel Dalmas, the palace was characterized by its vast hall of white marble, its monumental staircase of twenty meters wide, its huge chandeliers, its stained glass windows and its precious wood… Demolished in April 1978 (except for the facade, closed), the palace celebrated its renaissance in December 2003. The casino reopened its doors last spring.

It was built on the location of the Duke of Berry Palace at the beginning of the th century, when the court of appeal came to Riom. Degeorge raised a fairly austere building in neoclassical style, with a courtyard lined with arcades. The double-ramp inside staircase depends on its dimensions.