This book is the first to reveal the recent restorations and current furnishings in France's three presidential residences, from the famous Élysée Palace to two lesser-known centers of government - La Lanterne in Versailles and the Fort of Brégançon on the Riviera. Places of reception and retreat, machines of government and maintainers of secrets, sites of ceremony, solitude, and action, these « theaters » of history great and small are the successors to Versailles's Hall of Mirrors - they reflect a certain history of France. They are the places where the peerless skills of artisans working for the National Furniture Depository perpetuate France's grand tradition of decorative arts.

This book reveals the fascinating history of three French presidential residences as well as their recent restorations and current furnishings : the Élysée Palace in Paris, the pavilion of La Lanterne in Versailles, and the Fort of Brégançon on the Riviera.

All three residences harbor outstanding examples of French heritage. They are the scene not just of politics but also of the way French savoir faire is expressed and displayed. For visitors from all over the world, they are showcases of a constantly evolving « French style » that dates back to the eighteenth century.

Author Adrien Goetz, a member of the Institut de France, and photographer Amboise Tézenas were granted the privilege of getting to the heart of these historic premises, the better to observe, comprehend, and ultimately explain the various layers of a complex past that reflects the richness of France. The text is illustrated by a specially commissioned photography accompanied by archival images.