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Napoleon Bonaparte lived at the Château de Malmaison (Avenue du Château de Malmaison, Rueil-Malmaison, ☎ 01 41 29 05 55, www.chateau-malmaison.fr) with his first wife, Joséphine, from 1800-1809. It’s been restored to look as it did during the Consulate, when Malmaison was the seat of the French Government. In the years before the Empire, Napoleon made many important decisions in Malmaison’s library and its tent-like council chamber, including the creation of the Civil Code, the basis for France’s current laws. After divorcing in 1809, Joséphine continued to live in Malmaison, attending to her rose gardens until her death in the upstairs bedroom on May 29, 1814. It went through many owners, including Napoléon III, until falling into ruin after the Franco-Prussian War of 1870. A wealthy philanthropist, Daniel Osiris Iffla, bought Malmaison and donated it to the state, which opened it as a museum in 1906. It’s a beautifully restored house, with painted ceilings, luxurious fabric wall coverings, and many fine works of art such as one of the three copies by David of the painting “Napoléon Crossing the Alps.” The smaller pavilions in the gardens are not always open, including the Pavillon des Voitures, which houses Napoléon’s landau captured by the Prussians during the battle at Waterloo (they later graciously donated it to the museum). When visiting, ask for the English descriptions at the entry to the Château (or better yet, stop into the gift shop on the left before entering the Château if you want a full photo guide in English, €8.50). If you walk through the large open park to the left of the parking lot, you’ll see Joséphine’s second mansion, the Château du Bois Préau, closed indefinitely for renovations. Open weekdays except Tuesday 10am to noon and 1:30 to 4:30pm (5pm in summer), weekends 10am to 5pm (5:30pm in summer). Entry €4.50, €3 for visitors 18-25 and everyone on Sunday, free for kids under 18. Museum Pass accepted. To get there on public transportation, take Line 1 to Grande Arche de la Défense, switch to Bus 258 and get off at “Le Château.” To get there by car follow the RN13 7.5 miles northwest of Paris.
