| The “Turkish carpets”—decorative gardens of boxwood hedges—of the castle of Vaux-le-Vicomte were designed by the landscape architect Achille Duchêne in the early 20th century. These were additions to the castle buildings and grounds, built in the 17th century. Built by Nicolas Fouquet, minister of finance to King Louis XIV, the castle took five years and approximately 18,000 workers to complete. The garden, set off by several lakes and fountains, is 8,000 feet (2,500 m) long, which required the destruction of two hamlets. Fouquet invited the young Louis XIV to visit in 1661; offended by the splendor of his subject’s abode, the king ordered an investigation of Fouquet and had him arrested. Le Nôtre, the architect of the gardens, was placed in charge of the royal parks and gardens. He designed other gardens in the classic French style for the châteaux of Saint-Germain-en-Laye, Saint-Cloud, and Fontainebleau, but his masterpiece was the gardens of Versailles, the palace of the Sun King himself.
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