The World of André Le NôtreThe gardens of Versaillesalong with the name of their chief creator, Andr Le Ntre (1613 1700)have become synonymous with the French style of "formal" garden. This style in its turn would succumb to another "national" mode, the English school of naturalistic and picturesque landscapes. But as Thierry Mariage makes clear, the garden style that Le Ntre brought to perfection need not be seen in opposition to the later "English" one. Rather, he claims,