King's ChamberI've cribbed Louis XIV's schedule from the Versailles website (with annotations from yours truly) for your enjoyment.
7:30-8 am: Wake up, wash, dress, and breakfast. All under the watchful eyes of his courtiers and attendants. Louis had close to a hundred attendants (no doubt a specialist team of attendants alone was needed for the king's elaborate wigs).
10 am: Lead a procession of courtiers down the Hall of Mirrors to attend Mass in the royal chapel.
11 am: Council of State/Finance/Domestic Affairs/Religious Affairs, depending on the day of the week. There was also a building progress meeting (Versailles was a work in constant progress. Four building campaigns, spanning close to half a century.)
1 pm: Private meal/receiving select courtiers.
2 pm: Free time - promenade (!?) in the gardens or a hunt in the palace grounds.
6 pm: Homework time - reading and signing of important documents and/or decrees.
10 pm: Grand Public Supper. Anyone (properly attired, of course) was welcome to gawk at the king and his family as they supped. After supper, it was family/close confidants time.
11:30 pm: As with the waking ceremony in the morning, there's one for retiring for the night as well.
The Royal Bed
Not the original, of course. For the restoration, France had to send a team of specialists to Russia to examine 18th-century French silks purchased by Paul I (son of Catherine the Great). Seven years and hundreds of kilograms of gold and silver later, voila! The rich French silk brocade of that time period, recreated.
Council Cabinet
I'm assuming the lone chair is for the king?
The view of the golden gates and the lovely marble courtyard.
Frankly, I can't recall which room this is. For now, it shall have to remain Mystery Bedchamber I.
Diana of Versailles (A copy)
I wrote about her, the original, in a previous post. Still looking good!
I wrote about her, the original, in a previous post. Still looking good!
The Peace Room
Unlike in the Mars salon, the cherub in this room holds an olive branch of peace in his hand. France was finally at peace with the rest of Europe.
Here is Louis XIV offering peace to Lady Europe.
The red thingamajig in the corner? One of the contemporary art pieces on exhibit. It looks like a giant pom hanging from the ceiling. I wish someone would tell me what it is supposed to be/mean.
I want these. They would make such cool bookends.
Although labelled as the Queen's Bedchamber (and many queens have resided in it), it's really Marie Antoinette's Bedchamber. I know it, you know it, and the tired-looking museum guard knows it too.
By far the most popular room in the entire palace, scores of people crowding for a better view of Marie Antoinette's bed. Not unlike in the olden days when courtiers leaned against the gold railing all fighting for a better view as the Queen of France (including Marie Antoinette) gave birth.
A marble bust of Marie Antoinette (left).
I did notice that a large percentage of Japanese visitors. Turns out, there was a highly-popular manga series called The Rose of Versailles in the 70's. You can read all about it on wikipedia: here. I'm sure Versailles appreciates the free publicity. Draw a series and they will come.
The lady must have had a lot of jewelry! Because that thing is taller than my wardrobe. The adjacent (normally camouflaged) door leads to the queen's private apartment, which I found out could only be accessed on the museum-guided tours. Gahhhhhhh!!!!! I have only myself to blame. This is exactly what happens when you don't have enough time to thoroughly research. You end up missing out on really cool stuff like a museum-guided tour of the King and Queen's private chambers. As such, I also missed out on Louis XV's desk. It's an amazing piece of furniture. Beautiful craftsmanship? Check. Secret compartments? Check. Fireproof? Check. Shock-resistant? Check. And with a turn of a single key, the king could shut and lock every single drawer. What's not to love?
The silk wallpaper and hangings in the room were seasonal. Marie Antoinette would use this set for the summertime and another for winter.
The gold railing, which separated the queen from the gawkers during the royal childbirth. Hmm... I wonder if there was a black-market (i.e. scalped tickets) for these events... One for the next royal childbirth, s'il vous plait!
It is doubtful that the Queen slept in this room on most nights. She likely slept in a more private bed chamber elsewhere. The chamber was more ceremonial than functional.
The view from the queen's bedchamber.
The Nobles' Room
Where the queen received ladies of court.
Antechamber for Grand Couvert
Where the public meals for the king and queen were held. Notice how only the royal family have chairs. Everyone else would have sat on stools or, if they were of lower social ranking, stood.
In case you didn't notice, the giant lobster on the velvet stool is part of the contemporary art exhibition.
The Guards' Room
Like many other European royalty, Louis XIV and Marie Antoinette employed Swiss Guards, who were well-known for their discipline and steadiness in combat. Out of the nine hundred palace guards, some six hundred of the guards were massacred during the revolution. Many who surrendered were brutally killed by the crowds or left to die in prison. A monument was later set up in Switzerland to commemorate the guards' bravery. The monument, called the Lion of Lucern, features a dying lion lying on top of a shield with the french fleur-de-lis. The lion is carved into the face of a cliff and the names of the guards are inscribed below. The entire monument is more than six meters in height.
Mark Twain described it as, "the most mournful and moving piece of stone in the world."
Finally, a contemporary piece that makes sense!
The Princes' Staircase
Dauphin's ApartmentA much quieter section of the chateau, this was where the dauphins and dauphines of France lived. Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette both lived here for a time.
The library.
Beautiful molding, a little too feminine perhaps, but that was the taste back then I suppose.
If you need a break from the throng of tourists and their camera flashes, the Dauphin's apartment is the place. Although you may find certain rooms slightly sparse-looking.
This was one of the most interesting items I found in Versailles. It's a globe (duh!) but what's so wonderful about it is that it doesn't only display the typical continental outlines and country borders. When the outer shell is opened, the inner globe shows the geographical terrains. And when you sneak a peak at the inside of the outer shell, you will see a map of celestial sky.So. Cool.
The Dauphin's Bedchamber
Gardens of Versailles
The Versailles grounds encompass a humongous area of land.
You only have to look on Google Map to see just how huge the grounds are, especially compared with the chateau. The Grand Canal, alone, stretches for more than 1.5 km!!! It's unimaginable that all this was once marshland. Every tree was transplanted to make the luscious forests you see today. What an incredible undertaking.
Latona FountainLatona, Roman name of Leto, is the mother of Apollo and Artemis. She was treated with malice by the peasants of Lycia (now southern Turkey) and pleaded Zeus for help. Zeus turned all who mocked Latona into frogs, which surrounds the fountain.
The Grand CanalGondoliers, along with their gondola, were actually imported from Venice for the amusement of the courtiers. During nighttime boat rides, they would also serenade the ladies of court with Italian ballads.
Given the expanse of the grounds and gardens, we headed straight for the Grand Trianon and the Domain of Marie Antoinette. The gardens will have to wait for another time. Did you know that access to the gardens is completely free save for the days with Fountain or Garden shows?
It would be incredible nice to picnic in the gardens of Versailles.
That's some geometric-looking shrubs.
Apollo Fountain with the Grand Canal in the background.
On Pyrois, on Aeos, on Aethon, and Phlegon! (What? No Rudolph?)
For some reason, these trees remind me of Narnia. Wherefore art thou, Aslan?
I love the globe too! I'm sure there's some kind of app which will do the same thing but the globe is way more awesome.
ReplyDeleteHoepfully you'll go back one day and see all the stuff you missed!