This articlecontainspromotional content. Please helpimprove it by removingpromotional language and inappropriateexternal links, and by adding encyclopedic text written from aneutral point of view.(July 2022) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

Le Puy du Fou

Le Secret de la Lance
Interactive map of Le Puy du Fou
Location	Les Epesses,Vendée,France
Coordinates	46°53′36″N0°55′55″W / 46.893340°N 0.932068°W /46.893340; -0.932068
Opened	Cinéscénie: 1978 Grand Parc: 1989
Owner	Association du Puy du Fou
Slogan	"L'Histoire n'attend que vous"(History is waiting for you)
Operating season	From April to September
Area	55 hectares (140 acres)
Website	Main site

Le Puy du Fou ([pɥidyfu]) is a historicaltheme park inLes Epesses, in thePays de la Loire region of westernFrance. It receives more than 2 million visitors every year, making it one of the most popular theme parks in France.^[1][2] In 2024, it was the third most visited theme park in France, behindDisneyland Paris andParc Astérix,^[3] with 2.8 million annual visitors.^[4]

The idea of Puy du Fou originated in 1977, whenPhilippe de Villiers, a 27-year-old student, decided to create an original show named "Cinéscénie".^{[citation needed]}

On 13 June 1977, Villiers discovered the ruins of an old Renaissance castle in the village ofLes Epesses, nearCholet, and wrote a story about a (fictitious) local family named Maupillier (the real name of a soldier of Vendée at the time of theconflict between Vendée and the French Republic during theFrench Revolution), detailing the family's history from that period untilWorld War II.^{[citation needed]}

Philippe de Villiers organized an association of 600 members (3,650 today) named "l'Association du Puy du Fou", whose current president is his son, Nicolas de Villiers.^{[citation needed]} When Cinéscénie first started in June 1978, the show did not have great success. But during the first season, it flourished and continued to grow from there. It has since spawned its own micro-industry of actors, prop-makers, and trainers forhorse riding andsword fighting, which both feature in the show. Since 1988, the "Académies Junior" have organized yearly showings of Cinéscénie, such as at the Paris Paname in the "Halle Renaissance" of the Grand Parc in March 2008.^{[citation needed]}

In August 1980, thePresident of the French Republic,Valéry Giscard d’Estaing, visited Puy du Fou and attended the Cinéscénie show.^[5]

In June 1987, the Prime Minister at the time — and future President of France —Jacques Chirac was hosted by Philippe de Villiers at Puy du Fou. He attended the Cinéscénie show alongside former Prime MinisterRaymond Barre and the leader of theNational Front,Jean-Marie Le Pen.^[6][7]

The Grand Parc of the Puy du Fou was opened near the Cinéscénie in 1989, and is today one of the most popular theme parks in France.^{[citation needed]} In 2011, the Grand Parc hosted the team presentations before theTour de France, which was set to begin in theVendée.^[8]

In August 2016, then French Economy MinisterEmmanuel Macron visited Puy du Fou alongside Philippe de Villiers.^[9] Despite their ideological differences, the two men are said to have a close relationship.^[10] In 2020, when Emmanuel Macron was President of the French Republic, he granted preferential treatment to Puy du Fou, pressuring his Prime Minister to authorize the park’s reopening and allowing larger crowds (9,000 people) than the usual limit imposed by COVID restriction rules (5,000 people).^[11][12]

On 13 August 2018, the Grand Parc launched a program where specially trainedrooks fly around the park to pick upcigarette butts and other small pieces oflitter.^[13] Christophe Gaborit, the park's Head ofFalconry, originally trained the birds to participate in the park's falconry show, but later was inspired to teach them how to pick up rubbish left by the park's visitors.^[14] By using a specially created box, inspired by a magician's prop, he taught six of his birds—Boubou, Bamboo, Bill, Black, Bricole, and Baco—to deliver bits of trash to the box and exchange them for food.^[15] The goal of the project is both to teach the park's visitors about the birds and to discourage littering.^[16]

In 2019, the project expanded abroad with the night showEl sueño de Toledo ("The Dream of Toledo") about thehistory of Spain inToledo, Spain. It is the first stage ofPuy du Fou España. In 2021, it expanded into an entire theme park with five shows and four villages.^{[citation needed]}

In 2024, plans were unveiled for a similar park (called Puy du Fou UK) north ofBucknell, nearBicester, from junction 10 of the M40 inOxfordshire.^[17] The plan currently consists of 4 period villages, 6 outdoor shows and 7 indoor shows. The current timeline projects an opening date in 2029.^[18][19]

Puy du Fou is split into 26 main shows, each running for approximately 30–40 minutes:

• Le Secret de la Lance (Secret of the Lance) is set in front of the battlements of a medieval castle. It relates the story of a young shepherdess, Marguerite, who must defend her castle's tower against English knights alone, helped by a lance with supernatural powers.

• Les Vikings (The Vikings) is set in a reconstructed 1000-year-old fortress that is attacked byVikinglongships. The story begins with a marriage in the village, just before the arrival of a Viking longboat. Special effects include the emergence of a longboat from under water.
• Le Signe du Triomphe (The Sign of Triumph) is set in a replica of anamphitheatre that is 115 meters long and 75 meters wide. It recreates the atmosphere ofRoman Gaul at a time of great unrest during the reign ofEmperor Diocletian, and features a traditional parade of people and animals,gladiatorial combat, andchariot racing. The 2011 version originally ended with the attempted execution of Christian prisoners involving lions, tigers, and hyenas. This finale was eventually updated in 2022, and now features the full-scale recreation of anaumachia.
• Le Bal des Oiseaux Fantômes (Dance of the Phantom Birds) is a show set to a mysterious story. Dozens ofbirds of prey surge from the ruins and swoop low over the heads of the visitors. The falcons are placed on the heads of some visitors wearing hats provided by the falconers. Many of the larger birds are released from a balloon floating far overhead. This ends with two hundred birds flying at once above the audience.
• Mousquetaire de Richelieu (Richelieu's Musketeer) featuresmusketeers performing swashbuckling sword fighting and Gypsy girlsFlamenco dancing in water. Horses also perform special trotting/jumping techniques.
• Le Dernier Panache (The Last Panache) follows the destiny of a French naval officer,François de Charette de La Contrie, a hero of the American War of Independence, whose life changed dramatically in 1793, in a last fight for freedom. This show won aTHEA Award for outstanding achievement in 2017.
• Le Mime et l'Étoile (The Mime and the Star) takes guests back to the early years of moviemaking, as they attend the production of a black-and-white film on an enclosed set. A romance soon blossoms between the main actress and a mime.
• Les Noces de Feu (The Fire Wedding) takes place at night (except on Fridays and Saturdays during the summer season for the Cinéscénie), entirely on water and depicts the love story between two musicians.

The above shows are presented in French, but electronic translators are available. Immersive shows, especially those relying on live actors, are only available in French. These include:

• Le Monde Imaginaire de La Fontaine (La Fontaine's Imaginary World) is a garden whereJean de la Fontaine's most famousFables are told through the use of automated animations. It opened in 2012, but was largely updated in 2021 (400 years after La Fontaine's birth) with the addition of lesser-known fables and live actors.
• La Renaissance du Château (Renaissance of the Castle), a tour through the centuries in the historical Puy du Fou Castle. Opened in 2014.
• Les Amoureux de Verdun (The Lovers of Verdun), a recreation of aWorld War Itrench during thewinter of 1916. As guests proceed in the war-torn environment, they listen to the correspondence between a soldier and his wife back home, whom he tries to protect from the horrific realities of war in his letters. Opened in 2015 and won the THEA Award for Outstanding Achievement in 2016, one century after the events it depicts.
• Le Mystère de La Pérouse (The Mystery of La Pérouse), a recreation of the ill-fated maritime expedition led byJean-François de La Pérouse. Guests board La Pérouse's ship,Boussole, and closely follow the story of the Vendean Lieutenant Augustin de Monti. Opened in 2018, it became Europe's Top New Attraction that year.
• Le Premier Royaume (The First Kingdom), a walkthrough retelling the life ofClovis I, the first to unite the Franks into one kingdom. Among many events, this tour variously includes Clovis' war against the remnants of the Roman Empire, the breaking of theVase of Soissons, or the Frankish king's subsequent conversion to the Christian faith. Opened in 2019 and was awarded Live Entertainment of the Year.

Other smaller shows are also available only in French:

• Les Automates Musiciens (The Musician Automatons), a musical show displaying automaton characters in the Bourg Bérard. Opened in 2004.
• Les Grandes Eaux (The Grand Water Show), a musical fountain show orchestrated toJean-Baptiste Lully's music.
• Les Chevaliers de la Table Ronde (The Knights of the Round Table) is a retelling ofArthurian Legend in the form of a magic show. Opened in 2013.
• Le Ballet des Sapeurs (Ballet of the Firefighters) is a pantomime musical show portrayed by child actors of thePuy du Fou Académie. Opened in 2017.
• Le Grand Carillon (The Grand Carillon), a musical acrobatic show on the bell tower of the Chasseloup Village. Opened in 2017.

The main show takes place in the evening on an outdoor stage. It tells the story of 700 years of history in the area. The Cinéscénie is the largest stage in the world, having 1,200 actors, hundreds of horses, and about 800 fireworks per performance.^[2] All of the dialogue is in French, but translation headsets are available in five different languages. All of the actors and actresses, including the children, are volunteers from the local villages. The Cinéscénie is only performed during peak season. It is bookable separately and has a separate entrance.

In 2007, the park opened its first hotel to encourage guests to stay on property for longer periods of time. Over the years, the hotels have grown in number, and now form a resort southeast of the park namedLa Cité Nocturne (The Nocturnal City). There are six themed hotels, each allowing guests to choose a century to sleep in.

• La Villa Gallo-Romaine (The Gallo-Roman Villa) is a hotel designed to evoke aRoman Villa in Gaul. Opened in 2007, it was the first Puy du Fou hotel, and originally offered 100 rooms. In 2025, it doubled its capacity with the addition of a full-scale Gallo-Roman street.
• Le Logis de Lescure (Lescure's Lodgings) is the second hotel in the park, which opened in 2009. Designed as a Vendean house of the late 18th century, its name refers toLouis Marie de Lescure, a famous Vendean opponent to theFrench Revolution. Due to its modest size, it features just four luxury suites.
• Les Îles de Clovis (The Islands of Clovis) opened in 2010. This hotel comprises 50Merovingianstilt houses from the time ofKing Clovis I built above ponds.
• Le Camp du Drap d'Or (The Field of the Cloth of Gold) is a 2014 replica of thesummit meeting of the same name which occurred in 1520 betweenFrancis I of France andHenry VIII of England. Guests stay in one of the 50 royal tents similar to those set up on that occasion.
• La Citadelle (The Citadel) is a hotel themed to a medieval fortress. It opened in 2017 and offers 100 rooms.
• Le Grand Siècle (The Great Century) is a luxury hotel opened in 2020. Themed to the reign ofKing Louis XIV, its eight ostentatious pavilions inspired by the now-destroyedChâteau de Marly offer a total of 96 rooms. It also includes a convention center namedLe Théâtre Molière (The Molière Theater).

Many historians have criticized the Cinescénie's perceived one-sided treatment of theVendée War. For instance,Michel Vovelle, a professor ofFrench Revolution history atPanthéon-Sorbonne University and a communist activist, describes the Puy du Fou as a “spectacularrevision of the French Revolution”, offering a “backward-looking vision of the world and a memory that is far from innocent”. He concludes: “[...] for French people who have too often lost their historical bearings, in search of a memory of any kind, enemies of violence they are right, of change they fear, in search of roots, theidentitarian affirmation of the Vendée as a memory-region, reviewed and corrected by Mr. Philippe de Villiers, provides a convenient landmark, and all in all, one that is considered satisfactory, whether we rejoice in it or deplore it”.^[20]

According to French Revolution historian Guillaume Mazeau, “behind its good-natured atmosphere, the amusement park does not hesitate to exploit French history for political ends” with “a precise project: that of their designer, a certain Philippe de Villiers”. The message is that "theVendéens are a people whom the partisans of theReign of Terror tried to exterminate between 1793 and 1794. “Fortunately, under the Revolution as always, this martyred people has always been able to resist foreign aggression and invasion, preserving its particular genius as well as its eternal identity.”^[21]

Mazeau has also stated: "Le Puy du Fou, which [De Villiers] launched in 1977, is a war machine that feeds the entire historical imagination of European nationalism. And these lies are given an inordinate amount of visibility, because that is what they are. It is a real problem".^[22] As early as the 1980s, historians such as Claude Langlois andJean-Clément Martin had warned of “the danger of such a representation of history” in which “the French Republic was born of a desire for extermination, evengenocide”, as described by historianReynald Secher, who is linked to the “Puy du Fou network”. In their view, “the ‘Vendéens’ were not a people, but individuals of diverse origins, living in 1793 in a region much larger than the present-day département”, and divided by the revolution, with the townsfolk in particular supporting the revolution. Without denying themassacres of civilians during the Vendée War, they dispute the use of the term "genocide", as the say the massacres were not political and were not aimed at eliminating a people, as in theUN's1948 definition of genocide. It was the “subsequent minimization of the massacres, which were too embarrassing for thenational narrative” that "nurtured a process of identity-building, transforming the history of the Vendée into a weapon of war against the Republic. The Puy du Fou is its most successful product".^[21]

Ghislain de Montalembert wrote that Le Puy du Fou was the "greatest attraction park in the world" inLe Figaro.^[23]

• 13 August 2011: Puy du Fou won the silverJupiter at the Internationale des Feux Loto Quebec, the largest international competition ofpyrotechnics, atMontréal.^[24][25]
• 17 March 2012: Puy du Fou received the THEA Classic Award 2012 for "outstanding, breakthrough visitor attractions that have stood the test of time" atLos Angeles.^[26]
• 2013: Puy du Fou was awarded the title "Best European theme park" by the Parksmania Awards in Italy.^[27]
• 2014: it received theApplause Award from theInternational Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions.
• 2017: it received the "Hall of Fame Award" at Orlando in Florida during theInternational Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions Expo.
• 16 March 2024: it received the THEA Award for Best Live Show^[28] for "Le Mime et l'Étoile" from theThemed Entertainment Association (THEA).

• Puy du Fou España

Wikimedia Commons has media related toGrand Parc du Puy du Fou.

• Main site

• 1978 establishments in France
• Amusement parks in France
• Buildings and structures in Vendée
• Tourist attractions in Pays de la Loire
• Tourist attractions in Vendée
• Castles in Pays de la Loire
• Amusement parks opened in 1978

• Pages using gadget WikiMiniAtlas
• CS1 French-language sources (fr)
• Articles with short description
• Short description is different from Wikidata
• Use dmy dates from September 2023
• Articles with a promotional tone from July 2022
• All articles with a promotional tone
• Coordinates on Wikidata
• Pages with French IPA
• All articles with unsourced statements
• Articles with unsourced statements from July 2024
• Articles containing Spanish-language text
• Commons category link is on Wikidata
• Pages using the Kartographer extension