The Palace of Versailles and King Louis XIV

Today, the Palace of Versailles and its gardens are some of the most elaborate and extravagant pieces of French art.

Originally, Versailles belonged to Albert de Gondi. Gondi would invite King Louis XIII to Versailles for hunting trips. The King went hunting in Versailles’ forests many times and truly enjoyed the location. At this time he asked that a hunting lodge be built on the land. In 1632 he became the owner of Versailles and started construction on additions to the chateau. His successor Louis XIV continued to expand the chateau and it became one of the largest palaces in the world. The expansion was done in four main building campaigns and it achieved much of its current appearance through the third campaign.

The Palace of Versailles was originally built as a hunting lodge, but it was not expanded into the extravagant palace it is today for the same reason. When King Louis XIV began to expand the palace he did it for two main reasons.

The first reason was a result of a traumatic experience from his childhood. As an adult, he was afraid that there would be another attempted takeover. In 1682, King Louis XIV officially moved the royal court to Versailles. This meant that state affairs and other royal events took place. It was truly the center of political life during King Louis XIV’s reign. Moving the royal court from Paris to Versailles allowed for isolation and made it easier for treasonous actions to be discovered and dealt with.

The second reason that both the palace and the gardens were created so excessively was to impress the guests by showing power and wealth. The palace was built to be massive and over the top. The gardens were extremely expansive and had incredible features. For example, the water features used so much water that not all of the fountains could be turned on at once. There was a man who would run ahead of the King and his guests to turn on the water features while the King walked by and then turn them off when he was past. Everything about the palace and the garden was over the top and that was the whole idea.

The Palace of Versailles was and still is one of the most incredible palaces in the world and the gardens are an absolutely breathtaking work of art. Regardless of the reasons for it being built, it is something that can truly be enjoyed and admired by people all over the world.

For more information, check out these links:

http://en.chateauversailles.fr/the-palace-

http://en.chateauversailles.fr/history/versailles-during-the-centuries/living-at-the-court/a-day-in-the-life-of-louis-xiv

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palace_of_Versailles

Photo Sources:

Versailles Garden. N.d. Photograph. France TourismWeb. 20 Mar 2014. <http://www.francetourism.com.au/versailles-palace-guided-tours>.

The Palace of Versailles. N.d. Photograph. Versailles Palace TourWeb. 20 Mar 2014. <http://www.versailles-visit.com/palace-of-versailles.html>.

Palace of Versailles. 2007. Photograph. HamhovHotov Picture GalleryWeb. 20 Mar 2014. <http://www.hamovhotov.com/picturegallery/?level=picture&id=567>.

Palace at Versailles. N.d. Photograph. West Fargo PackersWeb. 20 Mar 2014. <http://worldhistoryprojectbs.wikispaces.com/Crisis & Absolutism in Europe>.