Free visit of the park of the Literary House of Victor Hugo

Name: Free visit of the park of the Literary House of Victor Hugo
Start: 2023-09-16T10:30:00+02:00
End: 2023-09-17T18:30:00+02:00
Location: Maison littéraire de Victor Hugo

The Literary House of Victor Hugo is located at the Château des Roches former property of Bertin the elder, director of the Journal des Débats in the 19th century, where he hosted a literary salon whe

16 and 17 September 2023Passed

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The Literary House of Victor Hugo is located at the Château des Roches former property of Bertin the Elder, director of the Journal des Débats in the 19th century, where he hosted a literary salon where the most famous guest was Victor Hugo. He created an English park of 11 hectares bordering the Bièvre, a pond and his island give it a romantic charm. During his first long stay in July 1831, the poet wrote:
Here flowers that last little last for a long time,
Here the soul contemplates, listens, adores, aspires,
And take pity on the world, narrow and fol empire.”
Autumn Leaves, “Bièvre,” 8 July 1831.

About the location

Maison littéraire de Victor Hugo

Château des Roches - 45 rue Vauboyen 91570 Bièvres

Essonne
Île-de-France

The castle of Les Roches was in the nineteenth century the property of Bertin the elder, director of the Journal des Débats. He hosted a literary salon where Chateaubriand, Ingres, Girodet, and Berlioz Liszt mingled. Victor Hugo, a privileged guest, also stayed for a family holiday. Now known as the Literary House of Victor Hugo, the castle houses a prestigious collection of manuscripts, rare original editions, corrected proofs, signed autograph letters, engravings and period photographs. In May 2000, 5 documents were classified as Historical Monuments: the proofs of Contemplations, the Legend of the Centuries and the Miserable, the manuscript of the draft decree of general amnesty of the Communards and finally the last words written by the great writer three days before his death: "To love is to act". The landscaping of the garden and the park has restored a landscape that is always present in the poet’s verses. Writing from the banks of the Rhine to his friends, Victor Hugo says: "Al