The castle of Pomponne is located in the eponymous town of Pomponne, in Seine-et-Marne, 8 km northeast of Torcy.
It was built from 1666 on plans designed by François Mansart then his nephew and successor Jules Hardouin-Mansart in place of an earlier building belonging to the lord of the place, Nicolas de Hacqueville. Without an heir, his brother-in-law Robert Arnauld d'Andilly having retired to Port-Royal, it was one of the latter's sons, Simon dit Simon de Pomponne, ambassador to Sweden, who ordered the plans for the new castle..
A beautiful building in the neo-classical style, the château is surrounded by gardens designed by Le Nôtre. Already degraded even before the Revolution, it was restored in the 19th century thanks to its new owners.
In May and June 1918, it was within the framework of the estate that important talks took place between the authorities of the government led by Georges Clemenceau and the general staff to plan the ultimate strategies leading to victory.
In 1945, the castle became the property of the Ministry of the Interior. Heavily redesigned, it now houses a Republican security company.
The park, for its part, has preserved a beautiful set of waterfalls and a body of water, testimonies of work carried out in the 19th century intended to restore the site to its original "classical" splendor. We notice a sculpted group located on the waterfall representing allegorically the Marne and the Seine. A sculpture in the shape of frogs has also been preserved.
Listed in the Inventory, the castle with its park is only occasionally accessible to the public, especially during Heritage Days in September. Alternatively, the estate can mark out a walk in this town with an otherwise rich heritage (Romanesque church, other castles, etc.). Information on +33 1 60 07 78 22.
