Le Jardin du Luxembourg
Rive Gauche, Paris
The scoop…
Le Magnifique Jardin du Luxembourg
6th arrondissement, Paris, France
True confession, this is my absolute favorite place to be in Paris. It is where for a few golden moments all is well in the world. It is where you can suspend the raw realities of your current day while you immerse yourself in this historic and beautiful setting. This is where children, parents and grandparents gather together to sail little wooden boats in the octagonal pond, to stroll, and to playfully chase their toddlers. This is where you go to picnic on the perfectly manicured green grass on sunny days. This is where you go to languish for hours with a cherished book and where curious new lovers go to wile away the day tenderly touching and whispering and living in the moment. This is where multi-generations of us are lounging in chairs watching and listening to the ebb and flow of humanity. This is where old and new friends meet to talk of their current challenges of family, work, health, life and love. This is the first and last place I go when in Paris. This is one of the most beloved gardens in Paris, rich in history, design, beauty and culture. I love being immersed within these gardens and have the Italian born Queen Marie de Medici of France to thank for this. It all began with her.
Queen Marie hailed from the famous de Medici family of Florence and was the second wife and widow of King Henry IV. Shortly after his death in 1610 she became Regent of France for her young son, King Louis XIII, and it was at this time of transition she decided to build a new royal residence. It went like this, in 1612 she bought a parcel of land on the very desirable Left Bank of Paris belonging to the Duke of Luxembourg. The property contained the Hôtel du Luxembourg, known today as the Petit Luxembourg Palace, and it is here where the Palais de Luxembourg and its Jardin du Luxembourg were constructed. They were both commissioned by Queen Marie and designed to replicate her beloved childhood home and Medici family residence, the grand Palazzo Pitti and the Boboli Gardens of Florence. This was the birth of the beloved Luxembourg Palace and Luxembourg Gardens that Parisiens and visitors continue to enjoy today in the 21st century.
Luxembourg Palace has gone through many lifetimes, and has been witness to many adventures. Initially passed down through the monarchy over many years, it became a museum, and then was briefly converted into a prison and execution ground during the French Revolution and then went on to become the home of the French Sénat. Following that it was the residence of Napoleon I and his First Consul for a short time. It went on to house the legislature, was headquarters of the Luftwaffe and the site of German anti-craft battery during the German occupation of Paris in WWll. Following the end of the war it went on to be the site of the Paris Peace Conference and in 1946 it once again it became the seat of the French Sénat and remains permanently so today.
Luxembourg Gardens were initially designed in 1612 by Tommaso Francini as the Palace was being built. Then in 1630 when additional land was purchased to enlarge the gardens the design work was continued by Jacques Boyceau of the Tuileries and Versailles Gardens. Notably, he was a key figure in establishing the French formal garden style known as “jardin à la française”, which emphasized symmetry, order, and classical proportions. The Luxembourg Gardens holds a legacy not only steeped in royalty, but one of great diversity as well.
Located in the heart of the Left Bank, on the south side of Paris, in the 6th arrondissement, Luxembourg Gardens remain the city’s most beloved green space. It covers an area of approximately 62 acres and within these vast boundaries there are over 3,000 trees, and 100 statues commemorating composers, artists, royalty, heroes and villains. Luxembourg Gardens are blanketed with tree lined walkways, green manicured lawns and many colorful flower beds that produce blooms in every season. There are sculptures, fountains and terraces with balustrades laid out in geometric shapes in front of the Palace aligning with the octagonal Grand Basin pool where children can sail little wooden boats, that are rented on its banks. Present day Luxembourg Gardens hosts open-air concerts, contain cafés, food venues, tennis courts, pétanque courts, children’s playgrounds, miniature pony rides, a basketball court, a gallery of changing photos and changing art exhibits that hang along the outside perimeter fence to greet and embrace all as they enter.
Chers jardins du Luxembourg, merci mille fois pour tout!
