(French for "The Castle of the Beauty in the Sleeping Forest", but known more roughly in English as "Sleeping Beauty Castle") is the fairy tale castle at the centre of Disneyland Park and a continuation of

Sleeping Beauty Castle Sleeping Beauty Castle is a fairy tale castle at the center of Disneyland and formerly at Hong Kong Disneyland. It is based on the late 19th century Neuschwanstein Castle in Bavaria, Germany.Imagineers (1998). Walt Disney Imagineering: A Behind t ...

first seen at

Disneyland Disneyland is a amusement park, theme park at the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California. It was the first theme park opened by the Walt Disney Company and the only one designed and constructed under the direct supervision of Walt Disney, ...

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

. The Castle features two attractions: a lower dungeon area in the base featuring an

audio-animatronic Audio-Animatronics (also known simply as AAs) are a form of Mechatronics, mechatronic animatronics puppetry created by Walt Disney Imagineering and Trademark, trademarked by The Walt Disney Company for use in designed shows and attractions at Disn ...

dragon, La Tanière du Dragon ("The Lair of the Dragon"), and an upper concrete balcony walkthrough area with Sleeping Beauty–themed stained glass windows and

tapestries Tapestry is a form of textile art which was traditionally woven by hand on a loom. Normally it is used to create images rather than patterns. Tapestry is relatively fragile, and difficult to make, so most historical pieces are intended to han ...

, ''La Galerie de la Belle au Bois Dormant'' ("Sleeping Beauty Gallery"). There are also several shops selling glass figures, ornaments, and gifts.

Development

Since

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

is home to the castles that inspired the structures at Disney's first three parks, Imagineers reconsidered what kind of edifice would stand at the hub of its first European theme park. Many different concepts were then created and considered, ranging from slightly modified versions of Disney's existing castles to radically new structures to stand instead in the Castle's place (for example a Discoveryland-like tower). The team eventually settled on Imagineer Tom Morris' approach to the established Disney castle. Inspirations cited by Imagineering include illustrations from the

book of hours A book is a structured presentation of recorded information, primarily verbal and graphical, through a medium. Originally physical, electronic books and audiobooks are now existent. Physical books are objects that contain printed material, ...

and the

Mont Saint-Michel Mont-Saint-Michel (; Norman: ''Mont Saint Miché''; ) is a tidal island and mainland commune in Normandy, France. The island lies approximately off France's north-western coast, at the mouth of the Couesnon River near Avranches and is i ...

monastery in

Normandy Normandy (; or ) is a geographical and cultural region in northwestern Europe, roughly coextensive with the historical Duchy of Normandy. Normandy comprises Normandy (administrative region), mainland Normandy (a part of France) and insular N ...

. As

Charles Perrault Charles Perrault ( , , ; 12 January 162816 May 1703) was a French author and member of the Académie Française. He laid the foundations for a new literary genre, the fairy tale, with his works derived from earlier folk tales, published in his ...

had not detailed the castle in his 1697 fairy tale, Imagineering had few restrictions regarding its physical appearance. However, Walt Disney's own 1959 film ''

Sleeping Beauty "Sleeping Beauty" (, or ''The Beauty Sleeping in the Wood''; , or ''Little Briar Rose''), also titled in English as ''The Sleeping Beauty in the Woods'', is a fairy tale about a princess curse, cursed by an evil fairy to suspended animation in fi ...

'' provided the inspiration for, among other things, the Castle's surrounding square trees. The realisation of the stained glass windows in London, which are visible in Sleeping Beauty's Gallery, was overseen by Peter Chapman, who had previously worked on the restoration of

Notre Dame de Paris Notre-Dame de Paris ( ; meaning "Cathedral of Our Lady of Paris"), often referred to simply as Notre-Dame, is a Medieval architecture, medieval Catholic cathedral on the Île de la Cité (an island in the River Seine), in the 4th arrondissemen ...

. Completed in 1992, for the park's 12 April opening, ''Le Château de la Belle au Bois Dormant'' stands tall.

Overview

The castle is home to a dragon, which, at from head to tail, was the largest Audio-Animatronics figure yet built when the park opened in 1992. The walkthrough attraction consists of a dimly lit cavern with the large dragon dozing silently. Occasionally it will 'wake up', puffing smoke, growling, flapping its wings and lunging its head. The building also contains , a gallery of displays which illustrate the story of Sleeping Beauty in

stained glass window Stained glass refers to coloured glass as a material or art and architectural works created from it. Although it is traditionally made in flat panels and used as windows, the creations of modern stained glass artists also include three-dimensio ...

s and figures. , a shop selling

Christmas Christmas is an annual festival commemorating Nativity of Jesus, the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a Religion, religious and Culture, cultural celebration among billions of people Observance of Christmas by coun ...

ornaments year-round, and , a shop specialising in handmade glass figures, are located on ground floor.

History

The castle has received several overlays throughout the years.

1st Anniversary (1993)

The first occurred during the park's first anniversary celebration in 1993, when the castle was dressed up as a cake complete with strawberries, icing and candles. This overlay was removed after the celebration ended. The cake overlay concept was later copied by

Walt Disney World The Walt Disney World Resort is an destination resort, entertainment resort complex located about southwest of Orlando, Florida, United States. Opened on October 1, 1971, the resort is operated by Disney Experiences, a division of the Wa ...

Cinderella Castle Cinderella Castle is a fairy tale castle at the center of two Disney Experiences, Disney theme parks: the Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World, and Tokyo Disneyland at the Tokyo Disney Resort. Based on Cinderella (Disney character), Cinderella's f ...

in 1996 for the 25th Anniversary of the resort.

5th Anniversary (1997)

During the fifth anniversary of Disneyland Paris in 1997, the castle was decorated in carnival masks, jester hats, frills and bells to promote the animated film '' The Hunchback of Notre Dame''. This overlay lasted until the beginning of 1998.

10th Anniversary and the opening of Disney Adventure World (2002)

During the tenth anniversary of Disneyland Paris in 2002, the front of the castle was fitted with a golden scroll displaying a large 10. The celebration began with the opening of Disney Adventure World (formerly known as Walt Disney Studios) next door. The scroll and other anniversary material in the park were removed in 2003.

15th Anniversary and Mickeys Magical Party (2007-2009)

In 2007, the castle received another overlay, celebrating the park's fifteenth anniversary. It featured golden Disney characters displayed on the turrets and spires, each holding a candle, and Tinkerbell on the highest spire. The candles were illuminated each night during a special 'Candlebration' ceremony which took place on a raised temporary stage at Central Plaza, in front of the Castle. A huge illuminated gold plaque featuring a large '15' was hung on the front of the castle. This echoed the overlay from the tenth anniversary in 2002. The fifteenth anniversary and the 'Candlebration' ceremony ended on 7 March 2009. The fifteenth anniversary overlay quickly followed on 4 April 2009 by Mickey's Magical Party, a "theme year" celebration held at the park. The castle was again overlaid, this time with a Mickey and Friends plaque over the main window, and the spire heads were changed from being characters to being 3 circles "of ribbon" representing Mickey Mouse. A more permanent Central Plaza stage was built outside the castle to host the "It's dance time... with Mickey and Friends" show. The overlay was removed in 2010

20th/30th Anniversary repainting (2011, 2021)

The castle was repainted in a new colour-scheme, restored and fitted with multicolored LED lighting during 2011 and again in 2021. For the Disney Dreams nighttime spectacular show its moat was fitted with water fountains, the upper window was replaced by a door that slides down to reveal a LED lighted star, 2 lasers were also placed in the hills the caste lies in. Central Plaza stage was removed in order to increase the viewing area. 2 projectors were placed on top of shops in Main Street, U.S.A to cover the full castle with

projection mapping Projection mapping, similar to video mapping and spatial augmented reality, is a video projection, projection technique used to turn objects, often irregularly shaped, into display surfaces for video projection. The objects may be complex industr ...

, which replaced the old ones which were used since 2005 for Wishes.

Popular culture

*In ''

Epic Mickey ''Epic Mickey'' is a 2010 platform game developed by Junction Point Studios and published by Disney Interactive Studios for the Wii. It was released in November 2010 in North America and PAL territories. The game focuses on Mickey Mouse, who a ...

'' the castle was adapted into the game's starting and finishing level, Dark Beauty Castle. This version contained elements of the various Disney castles and even had statues resembling Disney characters. *In '' Epic Mickey 2: The Power of Two'', the castle was also adapted into the game's starting level, the Dark Beauty Castle starts to collapse from an earthquake.

References

External links

Photos Magiques – Le Château de la Belle au Bois Dormant

La Galerie de la Belle au Bois Dormant

La Tanière du Dragon
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DLRP Magic – Le Château de la Belle au Bois Dormant

La Galerie de la Belle au Bois Dormant

La Tanière du Dragon

EuroSouvenirland – The Castle Throughout the Years

DLRP Synopsis – Le Château de la Belle au Bois Dormant
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chateau De La Belle Au Bois Dormant, Le Amusement rides introduced in 1992 Walt Disney Parks and Resorts attractions Walt Disney Parks and Resorts icons Disneyland Park (Paris) Sleeping Beauty (1959 film) Fantasyland Audio-Animatronic attractions Châteaux in Seine-et-Marne Amusement parks opened in 1992 1992 establishments in France