Thursday June 6th & Friday June 7th, 2019 - Inside the Palace of Versailles

What is an unfortunate blogger to do when they have spent a day and half wandering the halls and chambers of a 700 room palace and has to choose which small aspect of it to share. Obviously it's similar to the task of a tour designer to figure out which of those 700 rooms and 67 staircases are worth opening to the public.  

As I wandered, I was curious to imagine how it would feel to both those inside and outside the palace to peer through these golden railings. In some cases it seemed that life inside was a form of imprisonment. To those outside, I'm sure they would look with a mixture of wonder, envy and, in the end, resentment.

I wanted to experience the Hall of Mirrors with the fewest people around as possible, so I arrived at the golden gates shortly after 8:15 am, for the opening at 9 am. I was thrilled to be first in the 'regular' entry line, but was dismayed to discover that those who had purchased the timed entry tickets got to go ahead of me. Spurred on by this challenge, I raced through all the halls, staircases and chambers leading to the great hall. I loved the way the different colors of each chamber showed up as one looked down the hallway, but could not imagine what it must have been like to live such a public life, where there really appeared to be no way to close off the room for oneself, without blocking the hallway.

Voila! I made it in time to appreciate the splendor of the great space before it filled with bodies. It truly was magnificent!

I even had someone take my photo to prove I was really there! As you see from the reflection in the mirror, the Hall of Mirrors faces the gardens in the direction of the Grand Canal, so I could picture the King Louis's and their courts sitting in this huge space and relishing in the view. In it's day, this must have been like Disney - drawing visitors with the privilege to access it - so the kings could impress them with the glory and power that France had to offer.

Here's another view of the mirrors.

I also found myself entranced by the chandeliers........

.......and here's a close up! These are not the original chandeliers. They were removed after the revolution. We were told these replacements were made in the same place as the originals.

In addition to all the mirrors, crystal and gilt, just about every surface was painted by splendid murals. It is all so 'busy. it would require weeks to 'take it all in'. There are tour guides and experts  who can explain the symbolism of the art work, but I just enjoyed looking at it.

 I was not successful at capturing images of the King and Queen's bedrooms - crowded and not deep enough for me to get positioned to capture it properly. I can tell you that this is the view from the royal's window. The King who built on the hunting lodge to create this amazing structure was King Louis the 14th. He truly believed he was God personified, which to him meant that he represented France in every element of his being. As a result he felt that he had to live a totally public life - even to the extent that his courtiers began their day in his bedroom to assist in dressing him! Sharing in all these mundane tasks was an honor, and maintaining contact with his people throughout the day with ritual and protocol was probably the 17th Century form of tweeting, to stay in touch with 'his people'!

I fell in love with the queen's guard room, shown here. A remarkable variety of marble was used and I thought it quite beautiful. In the past there would have been pallets and partitions to house the soldiers.

There were numerous busts similar to this one. There was no plaque identifying them, but I was really taken by the combination of different stone used in their creation - the dark brown making up the face, the agate-like brown that makes the drape, the white pleated frill at the neck and the white flower on the left shoulder.

Succeeding generations of Kings were not so keen on the public life, so they added private quarters which allowed them to carry out their life and work behind doors. This is one of the dining rooms the family used. We were informed that it is highly probable that Benjamin Franklin dined here on many occasions with Louis 16th. 

Our guide added that one of the factors contributing to the French Revolution were the financial deficits that resulted from supporting the Americans' struggle for independence from Britain. The Declaration of Independence was signed near the Palace in 1783 and there is still a street named here to commemorate that event.

This lovely cherub was part of a fireplace in the King's private chambers. The fundamental integrity of Versailles was, remarkably, left intact after the Revolution, and pieces like this were left un-damaged. However, the furnishings and decorations were removed, along with any symbols representing the king. Many of them were taken out of the country, and rich benefactors or the government have to buy back whatever they can. The palace maintained such a good inventory that each piece was marked in a special way and its location was recorded. When they are returned, they are placed back in their original position.

This piece, from Louis the 15th's private quarters, was brought back only recently. The government/Versailles representative took three million Euros to the auction, but it was only due to a private benefactor making up the difference with another seven million Euros, that it was returned to it's original spot in one of the King's private salons.

While the royalty were eating well in those difficult times, the public was not. Bread was scarce and expensive, so one morning in October 1789, a mob of mostly working women from Paris walked the 14 plus miles to Versailles (according to Google, that would have taken a little more than four hours). Armed with pitchforks, knives and muskets, which they stole from the city armory, they stormed the palace. Strangely, there were few guards here to protect the queen (Marie Antoinette) and after seeking shelter in the king's apartments, she turned herself over to the populace, who's anger was focused on her She was taken back to Paris with her husband and as you know, things did not turn out well for her.

Following the revolution, France ended up with Napolean Bonaparte. The palace has rooms and rooms designated to depicting military victories. This bust is not a Napolean, but the hall he was in  - along with many other busts (as you can see along the sides of the room) - was all about wars.

I really enjoyed watching this family being serious about their tourism. I don't think they were just resting - it really seemed they were taking in the image before them in a very thoughtful manner.

Here's what they were looking at. Pretty terrible stuff, if you ask me. It bears contemplating!

In all the statuary, there were many men, so I appreciated seeing this woman in a hallway. I think France needed her prayers, just as much of the world does now. I hope she's still praying.

My sympathy for Marie Antoinette grew when I visited the little Hamlet she had built for herself. Both she and her husband had places of their own about a mile from the Palace - called the Trianons. His was the big one, her's the little one. Within the estate Marie Antoinette had a replica of an English village built around an artificial lake She used this as a retreat for herself and the women of her court. It was very charming.

This house, one of the littlest, was called 'The Boudoir' and according to Wikipedia it was nicknamed 'the little house of the Queen'. It seems that Marie Antoinette would hang out here by herself, or with a few friends. I found it quite ironic that this woman, who was hated for her lavish tastes, sought solitude in such a 'low' and simple setting. From today's perspective, it seems that her spending was modest compared to her peers or betters at court. Also ironically, I read that she created a simple white dress that ended up being the uniform of the revolutionary women. I ended up feeling pity for this soul who had left her home in Austria, walked into a court that had already established incredibly luxurious standards, had a husband who didn't want to have sex with her and became a target for people's frustrations. Like them, she did not have control.

While on the subject of women, I was interested in visiting the rooms of the women at court. (Unfortunately on the day I visited, I had left my camera on the wrong settings and while this photo is grainy, some others were completely unusable.) This is the salon of Mademoiselle Victoire, which I found remarkably plain after the painted, mirrored and gilt splendors upstairs Madame Victoire was no slouch in the order of thing, either, being the fifth daughter of King Louis the 15th. It seems the ladies didn't get quite the same stuff as the men. 

I was fortunate that, on my last day, a few of the fountains were working. This was the Neptune Fountain, not far from the palace. It was very graceful and  was a pleasing way to end.

I  leave the last word to this sign which I found on my wanderings upon arrival. Notice that someone has written 'LE CANCER' under the place name. No doubt, like many in my home town of Fernandina Beach in Florida, the locals feels that their home is being destroyed by the crowds that come to see the history and loveliness that they live in. Perhaps it reflects the feeling of the French two-and-a-half centuries ago, but this is a contemporary sign and there are many, many tourists trekking through each day. I for one was glad to have experienced this place and its beauty for myself. I hope you have also enjoyed a teeny peek at it! At least you didn't disturb the locals!