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Origin and history

Stors Castle, located in L'Isle-Adam in Val-d'Oise, has its origins in the 11th century with a domain mentioned in 1093. A chapel was built there in the 12th century, followed by a castle in the 14th century, inhabited by Jean de Saint-Benoit in 1435. In the 16th century, it became a seigneurial hotel rebuilt by the Duval family, close to Francis I and Henry III. The chapel was enlarged in 1624 by Madeleine de L'Aubespine, whose heart was buried there.

The present building, built at the beginning of the 18th century on the foundations of the old castle, is attributed without proof to Jean Aubert or Germain Boffrand. In 1746, the Prince of Conti acquired 150,000 pounds and transformed him into a residence for his favourites, with the help of architect Pierre Contant d'Ivry. The estate then extends to L-Isle-Adam and Mériel, including a vegetable garden on the present town of Butry-sur-Oise.

Confiscated during the Revolution, the castle was bought in 1798 by Isaac Ardant, who installed furniture in Louveciennes and a botanical garden. In the 19th century, it passed into the hands of the Duke of Valmy, then the merchant Casimir Cheuvreux, which expanded the estate to 150 hectares. In 1893, the Lannes de Montebello received members of the Romanov family. Partially destroyed in 1944, looted in the 1980s, it was saved in 1999 by the Capdevielle, then bought in 2019 by a Qatari princess for an identical restoration.

The estate comprises several remarkable elements: the remains of the 18th-18th century castle (south wing, perron, staircase), 19th century commons, a double terrace attributed to Contant d'Ivry, and a 12th century chapel rebuilt in the 16th and 18th centuries. The chapel, damaged in 1944, was restored thanks to a patronage. Nearby, the Stors mill, transformed into a gentilhommière in the 19th century, and the house of smugglers (17th century) complete the whole.

Filed at the Additional Inventory of Historic Monuments in 2001 for its terraces, kiosks and basin, the castle also served as the setting for the film Les Aristos (2006). Its gardens, inspired by 18th-century Parisian agencies, and its landscaped park, formerly decorated with missing factories, bear witness to its past prestige. Today, its restoration aims to restore its pre-World War II state.

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