Neha Patil (Editor)

Square des Francine

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Town or city
  
Versailles

Renovated
  
Spring 2016

Country
  
France

Phone
  
+33 1 30 97 82 30

Square des Francine

Status
  
renovated and transformed

Type
  
Public park with a fountain

Construction started
  
under Louis XIV of France

Address
  
2 Rue Edouard Charton, 78000 Versailles, France

Hours
  
Open today · 8:30AM–9PMThursday8:30AM–9PMFriday8:30AM–9PMSaturday8:30AM–9PMSunday8:30AM–9PMMonday8:30AM–9PMTuesday8:30AM–9PMWednesday8:30AM–9PMSuggest an edit

Similar
  
Palace of Versailles, Tennis Court Oath, Chapels of Versailles, Gardens of Versailles, Grand Trianon

David lafore ezechiel pailhes square des francine musique du film bancs publics


Square des Francine is a public park created from a former horse-watering-pool, situated at the edge of the Avenue de Sceaux in Versailles, France. In 2016 the pool was transformed into a geometrical shrubbery park with a play zone for children around a fountain.

Contents

"The Francine" are the French family who contributed to establish the hydraulic system in the garden of the Palace of Versailles during 17th and 18th centuries. This project to newly create a fountain at this site is an indirect hommage to the family.

History

The origin of the Square des Francine has been a vague field of the royal domain, dominated by the reservoirs situated just behind. The reservoirs and its surroundings became "Jardin des Etangs Gobert "(park of Gobert reservoirs) in 2014.

In 1808, a modification by Jean-Prospèr Marital, architect, has been done for:

- a horse-watering-pool with pediluvium by 32m of diameter surrounding by a stone wall and the paved ground for receiving the horses

- a wall built for hiding the drying rack from the Palace of Versailles

In 1934, the field around the horse-watering-pool has been registered in Monuments historiques (national heritage site in France) as "Abreuvoir Louis XIV" (Horse-watering-pool originally from Louis XIV).

During the World War II, this place has been demolished except the semicircular wall we can see today.

Between1955 and 1957, the city of Versailles developed here a public park with a pond of 80m2 surrounded by 4 wings of playing zone and the ring formed walking place around the wings.

Between 2012 and 2014, as one of the projects of the development of Versailles Chantiers area, the semicircular wall was renovated. The other part has been also modified successively and the Square des Francine was opened to the public in 2016.

Structure of the Square des Francine

  • a semicircular paved wall at the edge of South-East
  • Inside of the wall, the shrubbery is geometrically planted, and some benches are placed
  • the pond has been removed and replaced by a dry fountain
  • The North-West side is a playing zone for children
  • An emblem of Versailles city at the center of the wall. A plate dedicated to the mayor of the city at the period of modification (1808) es hanged just below the emblem.

    • Movie filmed at Square des Francine

  • Park Benches (France, 2009)

    • The project of the development of Versailles Chantiers area (2012-2019)

    The city of Versailles develop the building of the SNCF train station of Versailles Chantiers and its area for:

  • The Jardin des Etangs Gobert (2014)
  • The Square des Francine (2016)
  • The extended part of the SNCF station of Versailles Chantiers (2016)
  • Two new buildings for offices, apartments, shops and services (2019)
  • A bus station and a car parking (2019)
  • A new head office of Nature et Découverte (2019)

    • References

    Square des Francine Wikipedia
    (Text) CC BY-SA