Wedding ceremony at
Chateau de Vallery
A customized wedding ceremony
A cultural diversity
At the origin of reception
A wedding ceremony at the chateau de Vallery is formal, magical, unmissable… Because Vallery hosts the majority of wedding receptions over 2, 3 or more days. This wedding organization in France encourages you to welcome your guests for the whole or most of your stay. Appreciating the setting and enjoying your guests can only be done in an optimal way in time and space. Civil weddings are often planned well in advance, a few days or even a few weeks before the wedding (see retroplanning of the reception). The big day at the chateau is often centred on the wedding ceremony. It is the essential complement to the festivities, with no time limits and in total freedom. Each ceremony has its rightful place depending on its location and season. In fact, outdoor spaces will be the preferred choice in summer or mid-season. The large halls or the church will host mid-season or winter weddings (at a lower cost with a special offer for a wedding at the chateau in winter).
Places of all celebrations
Whether religious, ecumenical or symbolic, the ceremonies remain the heart and soul of the D-day... This is a solemn ceremony to mark the union of a couple. Atheist brides and grooms sometimes request the oratory skills of a celebrant in the Rose Garden. Also, the edge of the forest can provide an opportunity to commune with nature in a bucolic wedding procession. Thus, many places on the estate are perfectly suited for a wedding ceremony and romantic vows. The Salle des Tentures can be transformed into a synagogue. The Oriental Pavilion is ideal for henna ceremonies and Muslim weddings. Protestants can use the Rose Garden or the village church, just like Catholics. Also, the 7 trunks Sycamore tree behind the Renaissance part or the big chestnut tree in the grounds, shelter in their shades chuppah and ordered chairs. The fabulous team of this French venue and your wedding planner will of course be able to help you.
Church of Vallery
Since 1612
The church of Saint Thomas of Canterbury is located on the edge of the chateau forest. The mausoleum of Henri II de Condé (1588-1646) was erected here at the request of his son, the Grand Condé, by Gilles Guérin, an illustrious 17th century sculptor.
Henry II’s Mausoleum
The caryatids represent the four cardinal virtues: Prudence (mirror and snake), Temperance (horse bridle and clock balance), Strength (club, animal skin and a shield with a lion, a boar and a three-headed cerberus) and Justice (sword and scales). The Princesses and Princes of Condé are buried in this church built between 1612 and 1614. The Grand Condé, "this hero born for war, the most illustrious of his race", also wished to rest here. Until 1905, the date of the separation of Church and State, this place was used as the chateau’s chapel.
Today, for a wedding ceremony
The church has a sound system. It is under the authority of the town hall and the diocese and offers seating for 250 people. In order to plan your wedding ceremony there, it is therefore necessary to make a request to the parish of Chéroy.
Ideally located
1h from Paris, in Vallery, from the chateau grounds, you take the small path known as the "church path". It runs alongside the Renaissance chateau, its moat and the Music Room and ends at a dedicated gate. So the procession takes the small street of "Général de la Ferrière" for a few meters. Then it is the church square: the guests settle down and wait for the groom to be joined by the bride on the arm of her father. The floral decoration will have been carefully set up in the morning. Only a carriage or a vintage car will remain available for the bride and groom in the small church square.
- Practical information for our bride and groom to be -
Please, get in touch with Patrick Labois (patrick.labois@wanadoo.fr), deacon in the parish, in charge of wedding planning for agreement on the date.
The celebration must be confirmed 2 weeks before the D-day with Marc Teyssonneyre +33(0)3.86.97.53.68 who is the church warden and will open the doors before the ceremony.
For the peace of your ceremony, please print on your wedding invitation: "Please park at the Chateau. Parking is not available at the church".
Your floral designer will use only string (no tacks, no staples in the church) and will have to remove all decorations after the ceremony. Flowers should be watered before being displayed on the altar carpet.
Do not throw rice inside the church. Paper confetti is not allowed inside or outside.
Thank you for your understanding
Grande Galerie
Wedding ceremony in the château
The bride and groom will take great pleasure in bringing their guests together for a wedding in this French venue, pronouncing their vows beneath the imposing vaulted ceiling of the Grande Galerie, constructed between1548 and 1560. The alcoves and candelabras are swathed in roses, lilies and ivy. An Érard piano from 1923 on the dais has witnessed ceremonies by pastors, rabbis, priests and other celebrants. In addition, the underfloor heating in the gallery is advantageous for a winter or mid-season wedding ceremony. The Grande Galerie is ideally situated between the central square and the seven-trunk Sycamore. Also in the Renaissance part, the Salle des Tentures, which overlaps it, allows for a "vin d’honneur" to be held after the wedding vows. Unless the toast takes place outside, particularly under the Arbour or around the belvedere. This added flexibility may lead you to choose this chateau as the venue for your wedding.
Cults and receptions
1h from Paris, erected since the Renaissance, the Grande Galerie remains the untouched backdrop for Madame de Lafayette’s novel "La Princesse de Clèves". The sound system in this Renaissance jewel is in harmony with that in the grounds. Spotlights concealed in the vaulted ceiling promise beautiful staging. More than 300 chairs can be arranged in two rows for your romantic vows. Like all the other large halls, The Pierre Lescot Grande Galerie is included in the hire of the estate for festivities. And it also can be the setting for the wedding ceremony. Vallery offers all the right suggestions for a wedding as a journey and getting married in its chateau! From the day before (on weekdays) to the day after (3pm), including the religious marriage celebration, of course.
Salle des Tentures
Aceremonial tent for your...ceremony
Under its 400m2 of trompe-l'oeil, your wedding ceremony will find its place in the chateau itself. Overlooking the yew tree park, this room is ideal for secular services and all religious confessions, particularly Jewish celebrations with a houppa or a canopy of flowers to the north of the room.
Appropriate equipment
The seating is provided by the chateau team and this Salle des Tentures, like the other three rooms on the estate, is fully equipped with sound. The equipment is integrated and particularly discreet, which favours contemplation and sobriety. Up to 220 seated guests can attend the ceremony.
Oriental Pavilion
Between unusual and sacred
A wedding ceremony at the chateau also take place at the Oriental Pavilion and its Riad, which opens its doors to Henna and Oriental weddings. Later on, you can also embrace the delights of Marrakech by organising a brunch and a méchoui. A perfect change of scenery, from the scent of jasmine to the finely chiselled scintillating trays, lulled by the exceptional sound system of the Oriental Pavilion. Your wedding at the chateau de Vallery will explore a world of light and shadow, East and West, far from the hustle and bustle of the big cities and yet so close for so romantic vows. Indeed, our forest of legends lies to the south of the Ile-de-France region and marks the beginning of Burgundy, just 1h from Paris!
Stunning location and views
The Oriental Pavilion is located as an extension of the swimming pool, also known as the "grand bassin", bordered by its two bamboo arbours. It is also the "folly" of the chateau: the former commons of the Princes de Condé, which is now the Oriental Pavilion... One walks between the rose garden and the orchard to discover the Oriental Pavilion behind its heavy oak doors. On the first floor of this exotic room, 3 bedrooms: Sahara and Levant as well as the large duplex Loft. From here, you can discover the whole estate: first of all the swimming pool, but also the central park with Renaissance and medieval chateaus. A breathtaking landscape in the evening when the light of the projectors mixes with that of the torches.
Romantic vows in a Rose Garden
Rabbin, pasteur, celebrant...
In a clearing within the Rose Garden we occasionally set up a chuppah of flowers for romantic wedding vows. The rabbi takes care of the finishing touches for a Jewish wedding ceremony. For other marriages, a pastor, celebrant or even the witnesses preside in this garden of flowers under the Burgundy sky. From the Bacchus mouth flows a living water that cascades into a small pool. This then overflows into an old and narrow canal that runs through the entire rose garden to flow into the water lily pond.
Wedding ceremony in garden and ponds
Music seems to rise up out of the flowerbeds and flow from waterfalls and fountains, filling the air. The Rose Garden, now used for weddings, stands on the very spot where this French chateau’s old tithe barn used to be and has inherited its walls; they are now covered in luxuriant greenery and blooms. In the heart of the summer nights, the perfume of the roses rises up to the large pool jealously guarded by two sculpted sphinxes facing each other, resting on the parapet above the rose garden.
big chestnut tree
In the heart of the reception
Halfway between the medieval postern and the rose garden, another option for your ceremony, the Big Chestnut tree slightly overlooks the Yew Park and the Renaissance chateau. You should take advantage of its thousands of white flowers to organise your spring wedding ceremony there! It will cover its flowerbed with red leaves in autumn. In short, all seasons are suitable for wedding ceremonies under the Big Chestnut Tree.
Setting up the ceremony
Again, chairs can be provided by the chateau for up to 200 people. The organizers will be free to install specific equipment such as a flower canopy and houppa for Jewish ceremonies or podiums for secular services. On the other hand, an experienced service provider can supply sound for your outdoor ceremony as well as the halls, as part of a complete sound and light package for your entire wedding.
The 7-trunk Sycamore
Between Earth and the Gods
It is said that in this domain of Vallery, the trees have a symbolic power somewhere between the Earth and the Gods! In the forest, the old oak tree planted in 1621 has fallen. It will have reigned for 4 centuries! Part of its trunk and its roots are now used as a monumental buffet. These will enhance the edge of the "Clairière des Muses", just above a sculpted Buddha which dominates the park. A little further down in the grounds and before your reception, a sycamore tree with 7 trunks can be used for your wedding ceremony and romantic vows. Hidden by the chateau, out of sight, it will surprise your guests with its rustic, solemn and bucolic appearance. In the shade of this tree, which is three hundred years old and imposing in its majesty, it is time for meditation.
Huge trees for great causes
A flowering chuppah can easily be hung from one of the strong branches of the sycamore tree. The light effects are exceptional, as is the optional outdoor sound system. This majestic and impressive tree is one of the rare opportunities to enjoy the Renaissance chateau facade from the sunset. A spiritual escape for your reception in this half-chateau, half-forest estate only 1h from Paris. High trees shelter the wedding corteges at the chateau; the great chestnut tree, which is said to be the largest and oldest on the estate, without ever having been able to prove it, constitutes the epicenter of the venue. At 33 meters tall, it rivals other giants and also urges you to entrust it with your share of the sacred.