Versailles (Parc et chateau de Versailles) description and photos - France: Ile-de-France (Topic)

Versailles (Parc et chateau de Versailles) description and photos - France: Ile-de-France. Detailed information about the attraction. Description, photographs and a map showing the nearest significant objects. The title in English is Parc et chateau de Versailles.

Photo and description

Versailles is the most famous royal residence in the world. Surrounded by a famous park, it is located sixteen kilometers southwest of Paris.

History of Versailles

The first mention of a castle at this place dates back to the 12th century. In 1623, young Louis XIII, who at times needed solitude (he suffered from bouts of agoraphobia, fear of crowds), built a three-story hunting lodge here. By 1632, the king bought all the neighborhoods from the archbishop of Paris de Gondi, the construction of a new castle began, and gardens were laid out.

When the king died, his four-year-old son could not yet take over. Louis XIV first came to Versailles in October 1641, fleeing a smallpox epidemic. Married in 1660 to Maria Theresa, he conceived to establish his new residence here.

By 1668, the first phase of the reconstruction carried out by the architect Louis le Vaux and the king's gardener Andre Le Notre was completed. Versailles has become one of the finest palaces in Europe. But his contemporaries criticized him: the place was chosen on quicksand and bog, there are few rooms. In those years, the king continued to live in the Louvre.

Soon, the apartments of the king and queen, the famous Mirror Gallery, appeared here. In 1678 the great Jules Hardouin-Mansart took over the reconstruction. He changed the facades of the palace, added magnificent wings to it, updated the interiors, introduced solemn staircases into them, and created the Grand Canal. The residence in the style of classicism with baroque elements gained its true splendor.

The Sun King moved to Versailles in 1682. But later he continued to finish building his beloved brainchild. His heir, Louis XV, was born here, at which the Neptune pool, the royal opera house, Hercules' salon full of masterpieces of painting and sculpture, appeared.

In 1770, the future Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette were married in the chapel of Versailles. The huge expenses of the royal couple on the construction, in particular, of the Little Trianon, became one of the reasons for the outrage on the eve of the Revolution. On October 5, 1789, the people invaded the residence and took over the royal family. Leaving, Louis XVI asked the manager: "Try to save my Versailles!" But the works of art were sent to the Louvre, the furniture was sold at auction, the Petit Trianon was turned into a tavern.

Palace Museum

Even Napoleon failed to completely restore the splendor of Versailles. King Louis-Philippe converted it into a museum of the history of France, officially opened in 1837. During the Franco-Prussian War of 1870, the palace suffered humiliation: the headquarters of the Prussian troops was located here. It is no coincidence that peace with defeated Germany in 1919 was signed right here, in the Hall of Mirrors.

Today Versailles is the richest museum. In his art collection - masterpieces by Mignard, Lebrun, Rigaud, Houdon, Renoir, Delacroix, Gerard. The gardens surrounding the palace are a shining example of a classic French regular garden with terraces, fountains and sculptures.

The museum is always full, there are queues for tickets. You need to be careful on excursions: there are dexterous pickpockets in the halls. But the vast areas of the park can be explored while driving around in a rented electric car.

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Topic: Versailles (Parc et chateau de Versailles) description and photos - France: Ile-de-France.