The Fontainebleau forest, located just south of Paris, was a favorite hunting ground for the royal family, and the chateau here began life as a royal hunting lodge. Because of this, a small town was formed to accommodate everything the Court would need. The Chateau in Fountainebleau has been lived in, as a country house, by all French rulers since the Middle Ages. The Palace offers visits to the state departments and the Museum of Napoleon. It was here that he bade farewell to his Old Guard on the eve of his departure for exile to Elba in 1814 - though this was to prove short lived - the subject of a famous painting. There is also the Museum of Military Arts and History which is the home of many valuable military pieces. The forest and area also gave its name to a school of painters - the Fontainbleau School - who were inspired by the wild, rocky and sandy savagery of the forest in the 19th century.

Written by  katie_f.

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