The relatively small and enjoyable Château of Malmaison (April–Oct Mon & Wed–Fri 9.30am–12.30pm & 1.30–5.45pm, Sat & Sun 10am–6.30pm; Nov–March Mon & Wed–Fri 9.30am–12.30pm & 1.30–5.15pm, Sat & Sun 10am–6pm) is set in the beautiful grounds of the Bois-Préau, about 15km west of central Paris.This was the home of the Empress Josephine. During the 1800–1804 Consulate, Napoleon would drive out at weekends, though by all accounts his presence was hardly guaranteed to make the party go with a bang. Twenty minutes was all the time allowed for meals, and when called upon to sing in party games, the great man always gave a rendition of "Malbrouck s'en va-t'en guerre" (Malbrouck Goes to War), out of tune. A slightly odd choice, too, when you remember that it was Malbrouck, the Duke of Marlborough, who had given the French armies a couple of drubbings a hundred years earlier. According to his secretary, Malmaison was "the only place next to the battlefield where he was truly himself". After their divorce, Josephine stayed on here, building up her superb rose garden and occasionally receiving visits from the emperor until her death in 1814. Visitors today can see the official apartments, which perfectly preserve the distinctive First Empire style, as well as Josephine's clothes, china, glass and personal possessions. During the Nazi occupation, the imperial chair in the library was rudely violated by the fat buttocks of Reichsmarschall Goering, dreaming perhaps of promotion or the conquest of Egypt. There are other Napoleonic bits in the nearby Bois-Préau museum, currently closed for renovation with no opening date in sight. To reach Malmaison, take the métro to Grande-Arche-de-la-Défense, then bus #258 to Malmaison-Château. If you don't mind walking, take the RER to Rueil-Malmaison and walk from there, or to make a slightly longer feature of it, follow the GR11 footpath for about two kilometres from the Pont de Chatou along the left bank of the Seine and into the Château park.
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