In 1661, Fouquet invited the young French king, Louis XIV, to a party at his magnificent chateau on the outskirts of Paris, Vaux le Vicomte. Fouquet proudly displayed his grounds (dotted with more ...

Nicolas Fouquet, superintendent of finance for Louis XIV, created in the 1650s a library second only to Cardinal Mazarin's in its size, scope, and scholarly content. Inherited from his father in 1640 ...

There’s something a tad uncomfortable about sensing that power is the primary message in a garden, but at Château de Vaux-le-Vicomte, a mere 30 miles from Paris, it’s difficult to shake that sensation ...

When King Louis XIV was looking for a senior adviser, he tested the leading candidate, Nicholas Fouquet, not for his knowledge but for his honesty. France’s new ruler asked Fouquet to give him an ...

Baroque has been called debased and deformed, false and exaggerated. It has also been called Europe’s last great universal style. It flowered amid the extravagances of 17th century Italy, given its ...

MODERN times began in France with the death of Mazarin. Spain, Austria, and Italy no longer led the world in politics, literature, and refinement. The grande nation, delivered from Ligue and Fronde, ...

A book recently reviewed in these pages by my colleague Jonathan Yardley (Book World, July 31) gave much of the credit for the development of French style to King Louis XIV. In La Belle France: A ...