CASTLES RUEIL-MALMAISON

Château de Malmaison is an 18th-century château located 15 kilometres west of Paris in Rueil-Malmaison, renowned as the residence of Napoleon I and Joséphine de Beauharnais. Purchased and enlarged by Joséphine in 1799, the castle served as the French imperial headquarters alongside the Tuileries from 1800 to 1802. Napoleon stayed at the residence between military campaigns and briefly after his 1815 defeat, while the grounds featured a celebrated rose garden housing all known rose varieties of the period. Now a national museum, the beautifully restored château showcases well-preserved interiors, extensive Empire-style furniture collections, and personal belongings of the imperial couple. The summer pavilion has been restored to its 1814 condition, and the rose garden remains a notable attraction for botany enthusiasts, making this estate a significant site for understanding Napoleonic history and heritage.

Château de la Petite Malmaison is a classified historic monument near Paris, located just 300 metres from the larger Château de Malmaison and originally associated with Empress Josephine's daily life. The refined estate encompasses nearly 3 hectares of parkland featuring rare and century-old trees, situated conveniently less than 11 kilometres from Paris. Today, the château functions as a multifaceted cultural venue hosting concerts, guided tours, and a summer festival featuring weekly performances from mid-July through August. The salons are available for private and corporate events including weddings and exhibitions. The property preserves timeless atmosphere and historical significance while remaining accessible to individual visitors year-round and welcoming groups by appointment.

Château de Bois-Préau stands in Rueil-Malmaison, Hauts-de-Seine, situated within a 17-hectare English-style park. Originating in the Middle Ages under the abbey of Saint-Denis, the estate was developed between 1697 and 1700 by printers Frédéric Léonard and his son, who built the house surrounded by gardens and water features. Josephine Bonaparte acquired it in 1810, establishing part of her library and natural history cabinet before commissioning landscape architect Louis-Martin Berthault to redesign the gardens. In 1926, American patron Edward Tuck donated Bois-Préau to the French state as a museum annex to Château de Malmaison. Today, it houses a national museum dedicated to Napoleon, featuring exhibitions about his captivity and the Napoleonic era, recently enhanced with reconstructed rooms and expanded collections.