Palace of FontainebleauChâteau de Fontainebleau

On the edge of the Forest of Fontainebleau, Château de Fontainebleau evolved from a medieval hunting lodge into one of France’s most continuous seats of rule. François I refashioned it in the 1520s–40s as a Renaissance court, bringing Italianate fresco and stucco that shaped the School of Fontainebleau and a new language of royal display. Later kings expanded its courts and apartments, and in 1814 Napoleon turned the Horseshoe Staircase into the setting of his farewell. More palace than fortress, it records changing ideals of power in stone, paint, and ritual.