is a delightfully situated town commanding beautiful views across a great loop of the Seine towards Paris. The famous terrace by the side of the park and above the river has a wonderful prospect towards the east, wherein the capital appears on a bright, sunny day as one of the most beautiful cities in the world.
The château, built of red brick and stone, belongs to the thirteenth, fourteenth, and sixteenth centuries, and has only just been subjected to an excess of restoration, leaving the exterior with the freshness of a new building. The earliest portion of the château is the chapel, a beautiful example of the style prevalent in the reign of St. Louis (IX.). This was spared when, in 1539, François I. ordered the famous Pierre Chambiges to rebuild the medieval castle. Henri II. continued the work, but the form of the letter D in the plan probably has no connection with his beloved Diana de Poitiers, as the plans were prepared several years earlier.
SECTION XXVI
ST. GERMAIN-EN-LAYE TO GISORS,
37½ MILES
(60 KILOMETRES)
DISTANCES ALONG THE ROUTE
| Kil. | Miles. | |
| St. Germain to Conflans-Ste. Honorine | 11 | 7 |
| Conflans to Pontoise | 8 | 5 |
| Pontoise to Marines | 14 | 8¾ |
| Marines to Chaumont-en-Vexin | 18 | 11¼ |
| Chaumont-en-Vexin to Trie-Château | 5 | 3 |
| Trie-Château to Gisors | 4 | 2½ |
NOTES FOR DRIVERS
Pontoise to Bouconvilliers.—On this section of the road there are several stretches of paving, and at the cross-roads just beyond Lierville (a village just off the road on the left) it is best to go to the right through Chaumont-en-Vexin, to avoid the paved road that goes direct to Gisors.
Gisors.—On entering there is a bad caniveau.
PLACES OF INTEREST ON THE ROUTE
This portion of the route goes through part of Vexin, a county of ancient France.