Versaille

On my gilded goodness - welcome to the Château de Versailles. 

This was a day trip (only 45 minutes by train outside of Paris) and well worth it for our first trip. Nothing puts the excesses of all the Louies leading up to the French Revolution into perspective quite like this place...

Front gate. Quaint - don't you think?

"All for the Glory of France"

(Somehow I doubt the country's glory was all Louis had in mind.

Just a little line...

(You can see how it easily accommodated 5000 nobles gathered here at any given time.) 

While we wait, let's do the Historical Overview:

Versailles was built by King Louix XIV (14th) who called himself the Sun King because "he gave life and warmth to all he touched" - he likened himself Apollo - and you can see that throughout the grounds. He was was an absolute monarch - he used state funds (approximately half the GNP of France for a year at the time) to build Versailles and famously said "L'etat, c'est moi!" = The state, that's me! But he was was also said to be very approachable and liked by even the commoners.

Louis the 14th created the first truly centralized state - he moved from the Louve Palace in Paris (partly because he liked the outdoors) but partly because he could "invited" France's nobles to live with him there and could thus have a tighter reign on policy. 

Two other kings lived there. Louis 15th (the 14th great-grandson - because the 14th reigned for 72 years) - ruled a lot like the 14th but supposedly without the flair and France's power abroad started waning. Then came Louis 16th who was not the strong monarch France needed to shore up the monarchy - he was meek and supposedly a bookworm - he married Austrian Marie-Antoinette - and they further retreated into Versailles...until the Revolution. 

Okay, back to the tour. We've made it through the line and now we're in the group-selfie area - this little group was from TX A&M - of course. ;)

Selfie for us.

More gilded doors.

Here we go!

Ah...our man Louis! (Bust by Benini - our man from Itally!)

Okay - this is the chapel and probably the craziest room in the house to me. The balcony we're looking out on is on the 2nd floor facing the alter down below. Louis would have his court people down below facing him while he faced the alter - essentially so they could worship him while they watched him worship. Sun King.

And his bedroom - we learned that wake-up, bedtime and meals were all public rituals - people watched and supposedly dukes and barrons would fight over who got to hold the candle while he dressed. Also, people slept sitting up in those days - because lying down flat was for the dead.

Queen's bedchamber - 2 queens died here, 19 princes were born here - decorated in the style of Marie Antoinette (the last queen here). The fabric on the bed and walls were changed with the seasons - that's a lot of work!

See that little door in the left photo - you can see the cut-out ever so faintly? That was for the King to slip in and out of in the night should he need to. Most of the ladies' rooms had them (adultery was not only acceptable but even fashionable in the court in those days).

Another room that was pretty impressive was the War Room where Louis' victories over Germany, Holland, and Spain are documented on the ceiling in stucco, paint, marble and of course more gilding. 

Okay, on to the most impressive room inside the main chateau. The Hall of Mirrors:

Apparently mirrors were a real luxury at the time so the shear number and size of these mirrors was astounding. Lots of parties in this big hall. Also, when the Prussians (whatever happened to them?) defeated the French in 1871 Otto von Bismarck declared the establishment of the German Empire in this room. And in 1919 Germany and the Allies signed the Treaty of Versailles (ending WWI, and some say starting WWII) right here.

If these mirrors could talk...

So many more rooms - Apollo, Mars, Diana, Mercury, Venus - all meant to demonstrate that Louis was one of the gods - and a huge room called the Coronation Room (how did I not get a photo? probably toooo many people) with a giant copy (by the original artist) of the famous painting hanging in the Louve showing Napoleon crowning himself Emperor. He made himself look a lot like Louis in the piece - nice throwback. Down with the Revolution. 

Okay, quick break to introduce you to this sweet boy and his sweet momma. I can't find the tiny slip of paper where we wrote down their info. They were directly behind us in line to get in and she (in a heavy accent but perfect English) was having him read the brochure on Versailles (printed in his native Russian) to English. Come to find out she's an English teacher and her sweet 10-year old wanted to buy a selfie-stick and she said he could have one if he would translate a certain number of words. We thought he was doing awesome! I mean, who knows the word for architect in another language? She thought he could do better and kept lovingly popping him on the head with her brochure when he repeatedly interchanged numbers. They invited us to stay with them if we're ever in Russia and we did the same if they're ever in Texas. Guess I need to find that little piece of paper...

 

Okay, onto the grounds. Ya'll - this place goes on FOREVER.

The backside.

Funky mirrors they had set up so you could see all over in weird perspectives. Not sure Louis would approve.

See me in red?

Throngs of people.

Royal Drive looking out.

Latona Basin - this fountain tells the story of the birth of Apollo and his sister Diana.

Apollo Basin: a centerpiece for sure - depicting the sun god Louis 14 starting his journey "across the sky." There are currently 300 of the 1500 original fountains on the property. Most were only turned on when you walked by (he had someone walk and turn them on just before him if he was giving a tour, which he liked to personally do often) but this one stayed on all the time so you could see it from the palace.

Let's go for a little rest in the bosquet (little wood) next to the Grand Canal...

But on our way, these happy little green snowmen - all unique - lining the paths.

Okay, this is nice. The Grand Canal - cross shaped, a mile long down the longest side. Louis imported true gondoliers with their boats from Venice.
Now it boats pricey boats you can rent and snacks - we were grateful for the snacks.

The Colonnade - Louis' prefab Roman ruin. Favorite picnic spot of the nobles, because Louis liked to have string quartets here.

The most interesting aspect of Versailles and the crazy personalities associated with it is this: Louis built this huge, over-the-top incredible place, brought all of his people there and as proof that mo money, mo problems had to go out into the grounds and build a smaller palace to escape to when he needed some peace and quiet from the politics, strict etiquette and scrutiny of court life. 

This is the Grand Trianon. 

Cozy, right?

 But that wasn't cozy enough or removed enough so Louis the 15th (at the urging of his mistress) built the Petite Trianon. When #16 became King he gave it to his bride - who according to historians was much less like the "Let them eat cake" caricature we know and more of a quiet girl (and a stranger to France) who was never quite comfortable with the fast, sophisticated crowd at Versailles.

L15 loved bottany so the orchards/gardens in this part of the grounds are awesome.

You do NOT want to get lost in these parts...

And off in the distance the Temple of Love (yep, that's Cupid in the middle).

 (Note, that thing is huge - I'm way off.)

 Lastly, this little place (I'm in the center courtyard) - The Domain de Marie-Antoinette. She had it built - its even smaller than the Petite Trianon and more removed. She would wear normal clothes here and even pretend to be a servant.

Isn't that incredible? Amidst all the wealth and excess and people taking care of every possible thing she could want, what she really wanted was normal, more intimate, more real. I just found that fascinating and pretty telling of the human heart. 

Okay, I was "done" on our tour several hours ago...Kyle (surprisingly?) has more stamina on these things. My eyes start to glaze over and I stop taking pictures (which is very telling). So...it was time to catch the train home.

Bonjour Versailles! May your tourists be as many as your gold-painted accouterments!