Villa Viardot

Historic site and monument

Villa of neo-palladian style that was built in 1830.

This property, one of the oldest in Bougival, dates back to 1830. The property of Les Fresnes was part of the La Jonchère estate at the beginning of the 19th century when Eugène de Beauharnais lived there. At the time this house must have been built in the neo-classical taste of the period, reminiscent of the Palladian style, with two reception rooms decorated inside with Pompeian style paintings and plasterwork inspired by Antiquity. In the large reception room, the areas above the doors compose a cycle representing the four seasons.
Simplicity, clarity of distribution, beauty of proportions characterize this neo-Palladian villa.

It was bought in 1874 by the Russian writer Ivan Turgenev and Pauline Viardot, the famous opera singer and sister of Maria Malibran, who lived there with her family. In this estate, Pauline Viardot used to entertain the writers and great composers of the time in the “salons” which were very fashionable at the end of the 19th century and which made Les Frênes famous.

During the 1950s, the cinema actress Gaby Morlay (1893-1964) lived there.

The villa reopened its doors during the 2023 Heritage Days and will only be accessible during events approved by the town hall.

General information

1
1
1
1
1
1

Openings

ouvert suivant événement programmé

Fares

Contact details

Villa Viardot
14-16 rue Ivan Tourgueneff
78380 Bougival
Map