The 19th c iron gate | ©Denys / CC-BYA mother for her kids
On the façade, we read a motto… It says Natis mater, ″a mother for her children″… echoing the fact the castle was raised by famous Veuve Clicquot, in order to gather all her family!
For the widow's grand-daughter wedding in 1848, architect Arveuf completely re-raised the current neo-renaissance castle, between 1843 and 1848.
What about the inner decoration? We read this in Le roman des châteaux de France, (part 1) by Juliette Benzoni:
″Everything was as cold as in Versailles apartments. We were like lost: in the huge dining-room, the chimney was a pedestal for a life-size statue of Diana.″
Upper crust with champagne
The widow made sumptuous parties, here, hosted her daughter with her husband, count de Chevigné.
Besides, her daughter and grand-daughter's wedding attracted all the period upper crust!
And the hostess left nothing to chance:
″By a conceivable despotism, madame Clicquot only admitted champagnes on her table. I am the State! said Louis XIV. Madame Clicquot said: I am the wine!″ (Charles Monselet in the book Mes souvenirs littéraires)