The Kennedy family were very fond of France, and used to spend the summer on the French Riviera in the 1930s, when Joseph Patrick Kennedy served as US Ambassador to the United Kingdom, between 1938 and 1940. The architectural gem – nestled between Mougins and Valbonne, 10 minutes from Cannes – where it is said that future US president John Fitzgerald Kennedy learned to swim is on sale at Sotheby’s for 31.5 million euros.
Known as «Domaine de Beaumont», the property – the purest archetype of the Provençal villa – built in 1920 and designed by Jacques Couelle, occupies almost 18 hectares and is made up of several buildings.
The main body of the building has an area of 1160 square meters and in addition to the services it has at least 9 bedrooms, a sumptuous marble entrance with a staircase, a formal dining room, a room dedicated to breakfast, a large living area and a games. Then there is also a house for domestic workers, a cellar where to keep vintage Dom Perignon, a 20-metre covered and heated swimming pool covered in marble, waterfalls and ornamental pools, olive trees, flower beds and a tennis court .
Outside there is also a large pool with water lilies, framed by an English lawn with elegantly pruned box and cypress trees. Perched on a wooded hillside, the property has a lot of land which can partly be converted into stables. A pleasant porch with a row of round arches and a long dining table connects the outdoor area with the house, ideal for meeting up for lunch with the family.
Inside, the finishes are very super-curated. The decor is classic with period fireplaces and an imposing red marble staircase and wrought iron handrail. The villa has, on the ground floor, a “master suite” and three bedrooms with dressing room and kitchen for breakfast. Upstairs, there are five bedrooms and another kitchen designed to accommodate guests.
It’s not the first Kennedy property to go on the market for a staggering sum. On the American island of Martha’s Vineyard, in Massachusetts, Jackie Kennedy’s home-shelter was put up for sale in 2019 for the modest sum of 65 million dollars (61.3 million euros). Two years later, it was the turn of his house in Washington, sold for 10 million dollars (9.5 million euros). Here Jackie spent a year of her life after the murder of her husband on November 22, 1963. Not far from this building, still in the chic district of Georgetown, is the 430 square meter house where John Fitzgerald Kennedy had moved in 1946, then newly elected to the House of Representatives, it was sold for 4.2 million dollars (3.9 million euros) in 2020. Decades later, the Kennedy dynasty continues to exert an irresistible charm and demand for their villa in French Riviera is the confirmation.