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Plan of the main floor ( c. 1837, with north to the right), showing the Hall of Mirrors in red, the Hall of Battles in green, the Royal Chapel in yellow, and the Royal Opera in blue. The Palace of Versailles is a visual history of French architecture from the 1630s to the 1780s.
- Louis XIV
Louis XIV (Louis-Dieudonné; 5 September 1638 – 1 September...
- History of The Palace of Versailles
The main construction of Versailles took place in four...
- Public Establishment of The Palace, Museum and National Estate of Versailles
The Public Establishment of the Palace, Museum and National...
- Hall of Mirrors
Hall of Mirrors, Palace of Versailles. The Hall of Mirrors...
- Marie-Antoinette
Marie Antoinette (/ ˌ æ n t w ə ˈ n ɛ t, ˌ ɒ̃ t-/; French:...
- Petit Trianon
Aerial view of the gardens of the Petit Trianon. The Petit...
- Louis XIV
- Overview
- The palace
Palace of Versailles, former French royal residence and centre of government, now a national landmark. It is located in the city of Versailles, Yvelines département, Île-de-France région, northern France, 10 miles (16 km) west-southwest of Paris. As the centre of the French court, Versailles was one of the grandest theatres of European absolutism.
The original residence was primarily a hunting lodge and private retreat for Louis XIII (reigned 1610–43) and his family. In 1624 the king entrusted Jacques Lemercier with the construction of a château on the site. Its walls are preserved today as the exterior facade overlooking the Marble Court.
Under the guidance of Louis XIV (reigned 1643–1715), the residence was transformed (1661–1710) into an immense and extravagant complex surrounded by stylized French and English gardens. Every detail of its construction was intended to glorify the king. The additions were designed by such renowned architects as Jules Hardouin-Mansart, Robert de Cotte, and Louis Le Vau. Charles Le Brun oversaw the interior decoration. Landscape artist André Le Nôtre created symmetrical French gardens that included ornate fountains with “magically” still water, expressing the power of humanity—and, specifically, the king—over nature.
To the east of the palace is the Place d’Armes, a wide plaza that in the 21st century served mainly as a parking lot to accommodate the thousands of tourists who visited Versailles each day. In the centre of the Place d’Armes, facing the Avenue de Paris, is a bronze equestrian statue of Louis XIV. Originally located at the apex of the Court of Honour, the statue was relocated to the Place d’Armes in 2009 after an extensive restoration. To the west is the Gate of Honour, a gilded iron gate and stone balustrade that marks the main entrance to the palace complex. Beyond that lies the broad expanse of the Court of Honour, bounded on the north and south by the Ministers’ Wings, outbuildings constructed in the 1680s to house the king’s secretaries of state.
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The Royal Gate, an elaborate gold leaf gate, separates the Court of Honour from the Royal Court at the location where the Louis XIV statue once stood. Unveiled in 2008, the Royal Gate partially re-creates a gate that was designed by Hardouin-Mansart in the 1680s and was destroyed during the French Revolution. Some art historians criticized the Royal Gate as a modern interpretation of the original rather than a true restoration, but it served an undeniably valuable role in directing visitor traffic. Flanking the Royal Court to the south is the Dufour Pavilion, while the Gabriel Pavilion lies to the north. Both areas were extensively remodeled in the 21st century to serve as visitor reception centres. Beyond the Royal Court is the Marble Court, so named for the distinctive black and white marble tiles that adorn the terrace floor. Dozens of marble busts, depicting Roman deities and emperors, adorn the facades overlooking the court, and the central buildings of the palace complex rise around it.
- The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
The Palace of Versailles (built c.1624-98), a magnificent example of French Baroque architecture, is the most famous royal chateau in France.
The Palace of Versailles is a landscape architecture(it has gardens), which becomes an important artistic expression in the Baroque. Also, its interiors are richly designed to combine all the arts and produce a dramatically unified effect.
- Was this palace ever damaged in a war or had artwork stolen? It seems like it would be hard to prote...During Louis VI's reign, commoners were facing starvation and the economy was failing. They were frustrated at the king for living in such luxury w...
- Under the Hall of Mirrors, it says "the other wall is covered with 357 mirrors that catch the rising...Perhaps the author meant setting. Thanks for paying attention.
- The essay said he spent 5,000,000 on buttons, but 5 million what? dollars? francs? Euros? What would...The original article, at https://smarthistory.org/chateau-de-versailles/ uses the US$ at its value in 2015 as the standard. How 2015 dollars compar...
- In the first paragraph under 'classical restraint', the similarity between the facade of Versailles ...I think that ancient Greek architecture was interpreted differently in the later American context. Athens, in particular, is famous as an ancient d...
- Did this building modernize running water?I read in a book ( _The Human Oddessey_ Volume 2 by K12 Inc) that the outdoor fountains of Versailles alone used more water than the city of Paris....
Palace of Versailles - French Royalty, Baroque Architecture, Grandeur: Until Louis XIV’s time, the town of Versailles comprised but a few houses to the south of the present Place d’Armes. However, land was given to the lords of the court, and new buildings sprang up, chiefly in the north quarter.
Jul 9, 2019 · Spanning some 240 feet, King Louis XIV’s elegant ballroom adorned with colossal arched mirrors, gilded statues, and dazzling chandeliers takes spectators waltzing through a masterclass of...
The Palace of Versailles was the principal residence of the French kings from the time of Louis XIV to Louis XVI. Embellished by several generations of architects, sculptors, decorators and landscape architects, it provided Europe with a model of the ideal royal residence for over a century.
