French Chateau, once owned by Rothschild Family, selling for over $400 million

A castle outside Paris once owned by a member of the Rothschild family and, later, the King of Morocco is being shopped around quietly for a staggering 425 million euros ($452 million). 

That nine-figure price tag makes Chateau d’Armainvilliers, some 30 miles east of the Eiffel Tower, one of the world’s most expensive homes, according to Ignace Meuwissen, a luxury real estate advisor and co-founder of Whisper Auctions, which specializes in off-market luxury real estate transactions. He is handling the sale of the castle, Mansion Global reports. 

Chateau d’Armainvilliers, which sits on close to 2,500 acres, has a long history, beginning as a medieval stronghold in the 1100s and was later partially destroyed during the French Revolution, according to a brief history of the building on the Rothschild Archive. Notable ownership has included the noble Rochefoucauld Doudeauville family and Edmond de Rothschild, who replaced the castle and bought up additional acreage.

Much of the sprawling home’s current exterior was created during the Rothschilds’ ownership, including “its steeply-pitched roofs and timbering in the upper storeys, bears some resemblance to the English cottage style,” according to the family’s archives. 

The Rothschilds sold Chateau d’Armainvilliers to King Hassan II of Morocco in the 1980s, according to Meuwissen. 

The last time it changed hands was in 2008, when, following the death of King Hassan II in 1999, his son assumed ownership of the estate and sold it for 200 million euros, Meuwissen said. 

“The property was purchased by an owner from the Middle East but has never been utilized,” Meuwissen said over email. Mansion Global couldn’t identify the owner.

The 100-room chateau boasts three floors with three elevators, five salons, 17 themed bedroom suites and state-of-the-art kitchen facilities. There’s a plethora of amenities across the estate, such as a hairdressing salon, a hammam, a private car park, stables for 50 horses, housing for staff members and 36 various parkland buildings. The chateau still retains much of the Moroccan-themed interior stylings, images show.