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When in beginning of 20th century, Fernand HALPHEN, a French
compositor winner of several musical awards, bought these
woods, he was completely amazed by the charm of the area.
The forest, the small lakes, the countryside, the proximity
of Chantilly, biggest horse training centre of Europe, the
magnificent castle of the Condées Family, Senlis
with its cathedrale and its medieval city center, all have
rise his attention toward the small village of La Chapelle
en Serval.
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In
1908, he decided to build his hunting mansion in one of the
highest point of the Chantilly forest, from where he had an
exceptionl view to the countryside. The legend says it was
to offer a view to his wife that she should admire from her
window when she was waking up in the morning.
He therefore turned to the architect SERGENT, who built the
Trianon Palace. But finally the Norman style did not impress
him enough to encourage the construction.
One of his students, Miss ZAMBELLI, dancer in the Opera of
Paris, has recommended him to contact the famous designer,
Guillaume TRONCHET.
In 1909, TRONCHET has introduced his plan to the compositor,
according to which the Château included a theatre, a
small but exact copy of the Opera comique of Paris where Mr.
HALPHEN's first Opera was presented.
This project, which dedicated the exterior of the mansion
to the hunting tradition, and the interior to the music was
realised and the Château was built from 1907 to 1911.
Mr. HALPHEN finally died during the first World War.
During the second World War, the Château was completely
robbed out, all the Louis XI and Louis XVI furniture except
the fire place and most of the paintings were lost.
In 1989, The hunting mansion and 5 hectares of the land were
bought from Mr. HALPHEN (the grandson of the compositor) in
order to build a hotel.
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