Can you visit the interior of the Mansart Pavilion?

No, the pavilion is a private residence and can only be viewed from its facades along the street.

What is the pavilion's connection to François Mansart?

Mansart designed it in 1645 as one of six pavilions of the vast forecourt that Gaston d'Orléans had commissioned from him for the castle of Limours.

Why did the pavilion survive when the castle disappeared?

Its conversion to a private residence in the nineteenth century, though heavily altering it, saved it from the demolition that destroyed the rest of the castle in 1835.

Pavillon « Mansart »

Limours

Access

No visits on recordNo opening hours or ticketing found

Where: Limours

To make a day of it

Open within 20 km

Palace of Versaillesall year round (different hours in high season from 1 April to 31 October and in low season from 1 November to 31 March)18 km
Château de Breteuil (Breteuil Castle)from €19.506 km
Château de Rambouillet (Rambouillet Castle)from €1119 km

Sleep nearby

Pavillon « Mansart » stands in Limours (Essonne), in the Île-de-France region of France. The building is registered as a historic monument. The building is privately owned and no visits are on record.

The Mansart Pavilion in Limours is what remains of the castle whose enlargement Gaston d'Orléans, brother of Louis XIV, entrusted to François Mansart in 1645. Of the vast forecourt the architect designed at that time, only the large north-west corner pavilion has survived through the centuries. After the castle's demolition in the nineteenth century, its conversion to a private residence allowed it to endure, despite successive alterations.

This place also features in The castles of Diane de Poitiers

What to know

The pavilion can only be viewed from the exterior, as a private building listed as a historical monument.
Its architectural style dates from François Mansart's period and bears the mark of the classical Baroque of the mid-seventeenth century.
The building stands on the site where the castle once stood, enriched by prestigious owners: Anne de Pisseleu, Diane de Poitiers, Cardinal Richelieu, and Gaston d'Orléans.
The forecourt Mansart designed in 1645 originally contained six pavilions; no other has survived.

Where this château is

Limours · Essonne · Île-de-France

Map of the area around Pavillon « Mansart »

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This châteauChâteaux within 40 km

Address

19 Rue du Couvent, 91470 Limours

Directions open from wherever you are, by car or public transport.

Get directions View on a map

Heritage status: Registered historic monument (inscrit); Mérimée record PA91000014

Frequently asked

Can you visit the interior of the Mansart Pavilion?: No, the pavilion is a private residence and can only be viewed from its facades along the street.
What is the pavilion's connection to François Mansart?: Mansart designed it in 1645 as one of six pavilions of the vast forecourt that Gaston d'Orléans had commissioned from him for the castle of Limours.
Why did the pavilion survive when the castle disappeared?: Its conversion to a private residence in the nineteenth century, though heavily altering it, saved it from the demolition that destroyed the rest of the castle in 1835.