Picardy - Historic Region of France

This Roman theatre built at the end of the 1st century AD is now all that is visible to the public from what was a medium sized Roman town that covered at least 130 hectares. Although not particularly well preserved, much of the basic structure is still evident. Set on the side of a hill in rolling agricultural land now under cultivation,  this small theatre, with a diameter of 81 m, was constructed into the side of the hill. Some reinforcing architectural elements have been exposed. Besides two sets of steps leading of the rectangular stage, there is also a small shrine, at the centre of the semi-circle arc.

Passed down through marriage and inheritance, the Rambures estate has been in the same family since the 11th century, although the castle was completed after the 100 Year’s War in the 15th century. Built largely of brick, the square castle with four towers lies within a dry moat. Lord Rambures is mentioned in William Shakespeare’s play Henry V. The castle is set in a romantic park with an 18th century chapel, an English style park with a historic collection of roses.

From 1569 to 1573 this cathedral was the highest human construction in the world. The choir is still the highest Gothic choir in the world. Construction of the church began in 1225, but it remains incomplete: the choir and transept are complete, with the nave never built. The 10th century Romanesque cathedral still stands where the nave should have been. Inside the church are 15th and 17th century tapestries, but it is for the 13th, 14th and 16th century stained glass windows that the cathedral is particularly admired.

Charles V had the first castle built here, which was nearly complete on his death in 1380. It was a favourite summer retreat with a number of succeeding kings of France. But the Neoclassical castle we see today owes much to Louis XV who liked to hunt in the adjacent forest. His grandson, Louis XVI, had new wings added. Following the French revolution the furniture and art was sold, and the castle became the home of a military academy until Napoleon I chose to live here. Napoleon had the castle substantially refurbished, some of the décor and furnishings can still be seen today. Open to the public are the grandest imperial apartments of the First Empire. The palace also houses the National Car Museum.

What is today one of France’s finest Renaissance castles was built on the site of an 11th century fortress that had command of the road between Senlis and Paris. Through eight centuries of tumultuous history, Chantilly Castle passed between a number owners, and modifications, before it became an exceptional art museum, the Musée Condé. Besides the art galleries, visitors can explore the private suites, lavishly decorated in 18th century décor. In the grounds visitors can stroll through the French formal garden and visit the stables – the largest princely stable in Europe, now home to the Museum of the Horse.

The castle of Pierrefonds was built in rapid time, ten years, and completed in 1397 for Louis d’Orléans, son of King Charles V. During the reign of Louis XIII the castle was besieged and reduced to a ruin, later being referred to as the ‘romantic ruin’. Under Napoleon’s III orders, the French architect Viollet-le-Duc started to restore the ruins in the second half or the 19th century. But much of what we see at Pierrefonds today, both inside and out, is Viollet-le-Duc’s reinterpretation of Renaissance and Middle Ages architecture of France. Nonetheless, there is still much to see of the original castle fort, whether by self-guided tour or a guided tour.

Designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens, the Thiepval Memorial to the Missing of the Somme has been described as “the greatest executed British work of monumental architecture of the twentieth century”. Construction began in 1928. Four years and 10 million bricks later it was completed at the cost of £117,000, which is the equivalent today of around £10 million. The result is not just a memorial to all those that fought and died on the Somme, but one that acknowledges the British and French alliance during the battle, and perhaps most importantly, it commemorates over 72,000 British and South African soldiers that have no known grave.

The town of Villers-Bretonneux was captured by the Germans on 23 April 1918. A number of Australian Divisions recaptured the town follows several days of conflict. The cemetery just outside the town has 2,000 graves, 779 of these are named Australian soldiers. Adjacent to the cemetery is the Australian National Memorial, which remembers all the Australian servicemen who died during the First World War in both France and Belgium – particularly those without an identified grave. Officially, and as of 2023, there 10,729 named Australian servicemen on the memorial. Both the Memorial tower and the military cemetery were designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens.