By Patricia Woeber
Today Versailles is as impressive as it was in the 17th century when Louis XlV, the Sun King (1638-1715), decided to build a remarkable palace. Interiors are ornate with lots of gold everywhere — on statues, furniture and banisters, picture frames and carved decorative ornamentations, while outside magnificent formal gardens and the vast park are still great attractions.
Although Versailles is usually associated with Louis XIV and XVI, other monarchs also played their part in its history. In 1589, Henry IV found it ideal as a hunting lodge, as did Louis XIII in 1624.
After 1661, dramatic transformations began when Louis XIV repeatedly enlarged the structure into a palatial building designed in the true classical style with balance, order and harmony. The axis of the chateau determined the plan of the town of Versailles. This design foreshadowed the creation of modern capitals such as Washington, D.C.; Canberra, Australia; and Brasilia, Brazil.
To give you a sense of the property's size, it covered more than 20,000 acres; today it's 2,038 acres, which is still vast.
This chateau, which was under construction for 30 years, became Louis XIV's pet project. He was determined to impress. For the building he hired architect Louis Le Vau. For the designs of gardens and the park Andre La Notre, the landscape designer, took on the 40-year task.
The ornate interior amazes. The halls, bedrooms, ballroom and in particular the 240-foot-long Hall of Mirrors is drama personified, displaying 357 mirrors, gold statues and huge crystal chandeliers.
Versailles blazed into epic history in 1682, when Louis XIV chose the chateau for his permanent residence, moving the court and government here — a successful way to keep them under his control. During his reign, 2,000 to 5,000 nobles (including their servants) lived in the chateau. To have one's lodging here showed the greatest success and status. The aristocrats fondly called Versailles "ce pays-ci" (this country).
In the gardens, the famous fountains, based on myths and legends as befitted the Sun King, are still functioning: Apollo's lake and pools, Neptune's 22 lead vases sporting aquatic figures and the circular marble Pyramid Fountain. In the Mirror Pool charming cupid statues frolic despite the presence of dragons.
In Louis XIV's time, the fountains functioned with 1,500 jets. Maintaining a sufficient volume of water, however, caused an unexpected deprivation for the people of the area. Water was siphoned from the surrounding private ponds, lakes and marshes, but these contained fish — a vital food. Today there are 300 jets.
The main avenue, Tapis Vert, leads to the Grand Canal, where Louis enjoyed floating in a gondola that had been carried over the Alps from Venice. The park exhibits marble and bronze statues, vases and urns, all to evoke Roman antiquity and symbolize the solar myth in keeping with Louis XIV's self-image.
Marie Antoinette (1755-1793), ill-fated queen of Louis XVI, adored her Hamlet, picturesque farmhouses in the park. She and her best friends dressed as peasants to relax in the meadows and amuse themselves watching the farm animals — a relief from the rituals of the court, where they were obliged to live in a sophisticated style with a formal etiquette that determined everything. For example, the noblewomen walked with tiny sliding footsteps, an affectation not practiced by the Parisian aristocracy.
Two other structures in the park are worth visiting: The Grand Trianon, an exquisite small palace of marble, jasper and porphyry, and the Petit Trianon, one of the first neoclassical buildings in France.
In 1793, during the French Revolution, Louis XVI was beheaded and the palace was heavily damaged and looted, as it was the symbol of the privileged class. King Louis-Philippe (1830-1848) came to the rescue of Versailles. He used his fortune to renovate it and opened it to the public as a museum.
During the 17th and 18th centuries, shrubs including myrtle, tuberoses, jasmine and gardenia for Versailles were imported from all parts of the French Empire, including foreign lands. The greenhouses once contained 2 million bedding pots.
Nowadays in front of the chateau the formal French-style flowerbeds still bloom; the park contains 230 kinds of trees, mostly chestnut, beech, cedar and oak, and some 12,000 shrubs, such as magnolias. The superb kitchen garden is hidden behind a wall. And don't forget the Orangerie.
In addition, several beautiful chateaux are open for the appreciation of France's influential art and architecture. Similar to Versailles, they make a perfect day's outing. They contain museums and collections, and their gardens and parks are ideal for walks. In fact, all these homes contain fascinating stories of royal romance and revenge. They include Fontainebleau, Compiegne, Chantilly and Vaux-le-Vicomte — which actually inspired Louis XIV to build Versailles. Even that is a dramatic story as his jealousy caused him to scheme to build the greatest palace of all.
WHEN YOU GO
Air France flies to Paris: www.airfrance.com. Getting to the chateaux from Paris is easy by SNCF railway, metro or bus. Plan to go midweek when it's less crowded than weekends and national holidays. All the chateaux are within 30 to 50 miles from Paris.
Chateau de Versailles: www.chateauversailles
Chateau de Fontainebleau: www.musee-chateau-fontainebleau
Chateau de Compiegne: www.palaisdecompiegne.fr
Chateau de Chantilly: www.domainedechantilly.com/en
Chateau de Vaux-le-Vicomte: www.vaux-le-vicomte.com/en
Nowadays, Versailles' park (open from sunrise to sunset) is ideal for walking, jogging or cycling along the avenues and paths.
In Versailles town, the deluxe Trianon Palace Hotel is only a few yards from the chateau's gate: www.trianonpalace.fr/en.
During summer the extravagance of Louis XIV's court returns to the palace with fireworks and other spectacles: www.chateauversailles-spectacles.fr/en/versailles-festival-orangerie-nights-professionals and www.chateauversailles-spectacles.fr/en/spectacles/2016/louis-xiv-fire-king.
French Government Tourist Office: www.us.france.fr
Patricia Woeber is a freelance writer. To read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.
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