Timeline

Key figures

Origin and history

The castle of Merville, located in Haute-Garonne in the Occitanie region, is an exceptional testimony of architecture and 18th century gardens. Built in pink bricks from 1743 by Marquis Henri-Auguste de Chalvet-Rochemonteix, a man of the Enlightenment, it embodies the fascist of the aristocratic residences of the time. Its park, designed according to the plans of André Le Nôtre, extends over 40 hectares and houses the largest box maze in Europe, a plant curiosity of 6 km driveways.

The Marquis de Chalvet, the great senechal of Toulouse, supervises himself the plans entrusted to the Toulouse architect Maduron, with works spreading over fifteen years. When he died in 1772, the castle was echoed by his son André-Antoine, who, despite his imprisonment under the Terror, preserved the estate and its original furniture. The interiors, like the Chinese Salon decorated with panels painted by Gilles Pin in 1754, reflect the enthusiasm for Chinese and rock art, while the 16th century Flemish tapestries add a historical touch.

The park, conceived as an extension of the salons, offers a perspective of 600 meters towards a niche of greenery, mixing landscape art and philosophy of the Lights. The labyrinth, which has been open to the public since 2005, attracts 45,000 visitors every year, while the castle, classified as a Historic Monument, remains a preserved example of the alliance between architecture, nature and art of living in the Enlightenment century.

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