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Versailles Versailles

Versailles, city in France, southwestern suburb of Paris. It was first mentioned in 1075. In 1682-1789 it was the main residence of the French kings. Dvortsovo- park ensemble Versailles grew out of the hunting castle of Louis XIII (1624, rebuilt in 1631-34, architect F. Leroy), converted in several construction periods (1661-68, architect L. Levo; 1670-74, architect F. d ​​"Orbet; 1678- 89, architect J. Hardouin-Mansart) to a vast palace dominating over the surroundings (facade length 576.2 m) with magnificent decoration of ceremonial and residential interiors and a park. royal palaces Saint Cloud and Co. They also formed the basis of the plan for the city of Verona, where the nobility settled. The connection point of these roads in the courtyard of honor (courtyard of honor) is marked equestrian statue Louis XIV... The middle road on the other side of the palace is continued by a spectacular main alley with the basins of Latona and Apollo and with the Grand Canal (length 1520 m), which forms the axis of symmetry of a clear network of straight alleys of a huge regular park with geometrically correctly trimmed trees (1660s, architect A. Le Nôtre), with elegant pavilions, fountains, decorative sculpture (F. Girardon, A. Kuazevox, etc.). The facade of the palace, facing Paris, is formed by: the Marble Courtyard (1662, architect Levo), the Court of Princes (right wing, later called "Gabriel's wing", 1734-74; royal chapel - 1689-1710, architect Hardouin-Mansart; left - " wing of Dufour ", 1814-29) and the Courtyard of Ministers, flanked by the wings of ministerial buildings and a cast-iron lattice (1671-81, architect Hardouin-Mansart). The facade of the palace from the side of the park is made up of the central (from 1668, architect Levo, completed by the architect Ardouin-Mansart), the southern (1682) and northern (1685, both by the architect Arduin-Mansart) buildings; Opera theatre at the end of the northern building (1748-70, architect J. A. Gabriel, sculptor O. Pazhu). The interior decoration of the palace was carried out in the 17th-18th centuries. (architect Hardouin-Mansart, Levo, painting by Charles Lebrun, etc.). To the north of the Grand Canal - the palaces Grand Trianon (1670-72, architect d "Orbe, according to the plans of the architect Levo, 1687, architect Arduin-Mansart) and the Small Trianon (1762-64, architect Gabriel), which adjoins landscape park(1774, A. Richard) with the Belvedere (1777), the Temple of Love (1778), the Maly Theater (1780, all - architect R. Meek) and the "village" of Marie Antoinette (1783-86, architect Meek, artist J. Robert) ... In 1830 the ensembles of Versailles were transformed into National Museum Versailles and Trianons.


Literature: M. V. Alpatov, Architecture of the Versailles ensemble, M., 1940; Benoist L., Histoire de Versaille, P., 1973.

(Source: "Popular Art Encyclopedia." Edited by V. Polevoy; Moscow: Publishing House Soviet encyclopedia", 1986.)

Versailles

(versailles), palace and park ensemble of the 17th – 18th centuries. near Paris. In the years 1682-1789. - the main residence of the French kings. Louis XIII built a hunting castle here (1624; architect F. Leroy) and laid out a park. His son Louis XIV planned to create his country residence in Versailles; at the same time he wished to preserve his father's castle, adding new buildings to it (architects L. Levo, 1661-68; F. d'Orbet, 1670-74; J. Hardouin-Mansart, 1678-89). The central part of the palace is U-shaped. In the depths, behind two ceremonial courtyards, one can see the facade of the old castle. To the left and to the right, like the wings of a giant bird, the lateral bodies are spread out. Facades are designed in style classicism; their composition and decor are distinguished by simplicity and conciseness. The main facade of the three-story palace faces the road to Paris. The second front floor (mezzanine) is the highest. A balustrade runs along the flat roof that completes the walls of the façade. In the following centuries, the palace was partially rebuilt. The rooms of War and Peace and the famous Mirror Gallery (designed by Charles Lebrun) have survived from the interiors of the times of Louis XIV. Tall mirrors on one wall match the windows on the opposite. This visually expands the space of the hall. The interiors are decorated with marble cladding, gilding, luxurious crystal chandeliers and carved furniture; walls and plafonds decorated with picturesque compositions. The decoration is sustained in the so-called. "Big style", combining elements baroque and classicism. Some of the interiors of the times of Louis XV, created in the style of rococo.


The huge Versailles Park (1660s; architect A. Le Nôtre), created during the reign of Louis XIV, is a classic example of a French, or regular, park. Its territory is divided into regular geometric shapes by bosquettes (shrubs, cut in the form of smooth walls), lawns and giant water mirrors of pools, enclosed in perfectly square, round or hexagonal frames. The central planning axis of the ensemble is its semantic core. It passes strictly through the central part of the palace, where the chambers of Louis XIV were located. On the one hand, the road to Paris continues, on the other, the main alley of the park. On the central axis is the fountain "The Chariot of Apollo" - the god who personified Louis XIV, "the sun king". The park, the facades of the palace, located to the left and right of the axis, are built according to the laws of symmetry. The garden is decorated with a greenhouse, flower beds, fountains and sculptures.


The Versailles Park also includes the Grand Trianon (1678-88; architects J. Hardouin-Mansart, R. de Cott) and the Little Trianon (1762-64; architect J. A. Gabriel). The latter was built under Louis XVI for Queen Marie Antoinette in the early classicism style of the 18th century. Next to it is a charming landscape park (1774; architect A. Richard) with a lake and a decorative village with a mill and a dairy farm (1782-86; architect R. Meek). The ensemble of Versailles, the brilliant festivals held there, and the style of court life of the French kings had a tremendous influence on European culture and architecture of the 17th and 18th centuries.

(Source: "Art. Modern Illustrated Encyclopedia." Edited by Prof. AP Gorkin; Moscow: Rosmen; 2007.)


Synonyms:

See what "Versailles" is in other dictionaries:

    Versailles- Versailles. Castle. VERSAILLES (Versailles), a city in France, a suburb of Paris. About 100 thousand inhabitants. In 1682 1789 the residence of the French kings. Tourism. Mechanical engineering. The largest palace and park ensemble in the style of French classicism of the 17th - 18th centuries. Illustrated Encyclopedic Dictionary

    Versailles, a city in France, southwest. suburb of Paris, adm. c. dep. Yveline. Grew up near the hunting castle founded by Louis XIV in 1661, but the name was mentioned already in 1074: apud Versalias near Versailles, present-day. Versailles. Name… … Geographical encyclopedia

    versailles- I, M. Versaille. Palace residence fr. kings near Paris. A role model for modern monarchs in Europe. It was considered as the center of sophistication, subtle and flattering diplomacy, etc. by the Paraphrase of Versailles, at least in relation to ... ... Historical Dictionary of Russian Gallicisms

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Located 20 km south-west of Paris, the royal town of Versailles, better known as the Palace of Versailles, is a huge palace built by Louis XIV and now one of the most visited tourist places in France.

The idea of ​​building a new castle came from the king because of the envy he felt when he saw the castle of his Minister of Finance in Vaux-le-Vicomte. As a result, the king made a firm decision that his palace should certainly surpass the minister's palace in luxury. He hired the same team of craftsmen that built Vaux-le-Vicomte, the architect Louis Levaux, the painter Charles Lebrun and the landscape architect André Le Nôtre, and ordered them to build something that would be a hundred times larger than the palace of Vaux-le-Vicomte. The Palace of Versailles became the apotheosis of indulging the whims of the French monarchs, and although you may not quite like the environment in which the extravagant and self-loving “Sun King” wished to live, the historical significance of this palace is enormous, the stories associated with it are truly fascinating, and the park around the palace is simply charming.


Regular park Palace of Versailles- one of the largest and most significant in Europe. It consists of many terraces that decrease with distance from the palace. Flowerbeds, lawns, a greenhouse, swimming pools, fountains, as well as numerous sculptures are a continuation of the palace architecture. There are also several small palace-like structures in the Versailles park.


The Versailles palace and park ensemble is distinguished by a unique integrity of design and harmony between architectural forms and a redesigned landscape. Since the end of the 17th century, Versailles has been a model for the ceremonial country residences of European monarchs and aristocracy. In 1979, the Palace of Versailles and the park were included in the list of the world cultural heritage UNESCO.

The history of the Palace of Versailles begins in 1623 with a very modest hunting castle, like a feudal one, built at the request of Louis XIII from brick, stone and slate roofing on the territory purchased from Jean de Soisy, whose family owned the land since the 14th century. The hunting castle was located in the place where the marble courtyard is now. Its dimensions were 24 by 6 meters. In 1632, the territory was expanded by purchasing the Versailles estate from the archbishop of Paris from the Gondi family, and a two-year restructuring was undertaken.

From 1661, Louis XIV began to expand the palace in order to use it as his permanent residence, since after the Fronde uprising, living in the Louvre began to seem unsafe to him. The architects André Le Nôtre and Charles Lebrun renovated and expanded the palace in the Baroque and Classicist styles. The entire facade of the palace from the side of the garden is occupied by a large Mirror Gallery, which makes an amazing impression with its paintings, mirrors and columns. In addition to it, the Battle Gallery, the palace chapel and the palace theater are also worth mentioning.


A city gradually emerged around the palace, in which artisans settled, supplying the royal court. Louis XV and Louis XVI also lived in the Palace of Versailles. During this time, the population Versailles and the adjacent city reached 100 thousand people, however, it quickly declined after the king was forced to move to Paris. On May 5, 1789, representatives of the nobility, clergy and bourgeoisie gathered in the Palace of Versailles. After the king, who was legally given the right to convene and dissolve such events, closed the meeting for political reasons, the deputies from the bourgeoisie declared themselves the National Assembly and retired to the Ball House. After 1789, it was possible to maintain the Palace of Versailles only with difficulty. Since the time of Louis Philippe, many rooms and premises have begun to be restored, and the palace itself has become an outstanding national history museum, which exhibited busts, portraits, paintings of battles and other works of art of predominantly historical value.


The Palace of Versailles was of great importance in German-French history. After the defeat of France in the Franco-Prussian War, from October 5, 1870 to March 13, 1871, it was the seat of the main headquarters of the German army. January 18, 1871 Mirror gallery was proclaimed the German Empire, and its Kaiser - Wilhelm I. This place was deliberately chosen to humiliate the French. The peace treaty with France was signed on February 26, also in Versailles. In March, the evacuated French government moved the capital from Bordeaux to Versailles, and only in 1879 again to Paris.


At the end of the First World War, a preliminary truce was concluded at the Palace of Versailles, as well as the Treaty of Versailles, which the defeated German Empire was forced to sign. This time, historical site was handpicked by the French to humiliate the Germans. The harsh conditions of the Versailles Treaty (including huge indemnity payments and admission of sole guilt) were a big burden on the young Weimar Republic. Because of this, it is widely believed that the aftermath of the Treaty of Versailles was the basis for the future rise of Nazism in Germany.


After World War II, the Palace of Versailles became the site of German-French reconciliation. This is evidenced by the celebrations of the 40th anniversary of the signing of the Elysee Treaty, held in 2003.


Many palaces in Europe were built under the undoubted influence of Versailles. These include the castles of Sanssouci in Potsdam, Schönbrunn in Vienna, Large palaces in Peterhof and Gatchina, as well as other palaces in Germany, Austria and Italy.


Since 2003 Palace of Versailles became the object of one of the projects under the patronage of Jacques Chirac - a large-scale plan for the restoration of the palace, comparable only to Mitterrand's project to renovate the Louvre. The project, with a total budget of 400 million euros, is designed for a period of 20 years, during which the facade and the interior of the Opera will be renovated, the original layout of the gardens will be restored, and the three-meter gilded King's Lattice will be returned to the inner Marble Courtyard. In addition, after the restoration, tourists will be able to visit for free those parts of the castle, which today can only be accessed from organized excursion... However, over the next few years, the work will be limited only to the most urgent tasks: so that the roof does not leak, that there is no short circuit in the electrical wiring and that interruptions in the central heating system do not allow the palace to fly into the air, because at one time they did not even dare to afford such a thing. revolutionaries.



Palace of Versailles(Versaille Palace) near Paris, the very grandiose Versailles - the magnificent residence of the kings of France, the great collective creation of the best French architects and landscape artists. Created by Louis XIV with the clear goal of overshadowing everything built in Europe until then, and indeed overshadowing.

  • Versailles - a monument to the "Sun King", visual visualization of the idea: the monarch is the center of the universe

The hunting lodge of Versailles, which became a huge palace, became a role model throughout Europe. It remains the benchmark today. The grandeur of the idea and the elegance of its implementation in practice cannot leave anyone indifferent!

  • Royal Palace of Caserta, built for the Italian branch of the Bourbons
  • Russian Upper and Lower Gardens in Peterhof, Bolshoi Catherine Palace in Tsarskoe Selo
  • La Granja de San Ildefonso in Spain near Segovia
  • Herrenchiemsee in Germany
  • many archbishop's, ducal's and private residences

to one degree or another borrowed the ideas implemented in the creation of the Versailles Palace and Park!

However, he himself did not materialize out of thin air. It is believed that the idea of ​​building a new residence came from Louis XIV after a visit to the castle of Vaux-le-Vicomte. Built near Paris by the royal treasurer Nicolas Fouquet and a wealth of decoration that eclipsed all that existed in France before him!

Palace of Versailles in numbers

The total length of the garden façade is more than half a kilometer (670 meters). The palace has over 700 rooms, 1,252 fireplaces and 67 staircases. The Palace of Versailles looks at the world through 2,153 windows.

The total area of ​​the building is over 67,000 square meters. And the whole complex with a park stretches for 8 km2. Isn't it a self-sufficient country?

To this day, the palace apartments amaze with the luxury of decoration. Particularly distinguished: the Mirror Gallery, a hall 73 meters long, 10.5 meters wide and 12.5 meters high, the King's Apartments, whose windows overlook the inner Marble Courtyard, Large and Small Royal Apartments.

The amount spent on the construction and decoration of the Palace of Versailles in the era of Louis XIV alone amounted to 26 million livres!

Royal apartments

The royal bedroom was located in the central part of the palace on the second floor and overlooked the Marble Courtyard. In front of the bedroom was the famous and often referred to in historical literature room "Oi de Boeuf" (l'Oeil de boeuf, "Bull's eye"), named after the oval skylight.

  • King's large suite, Grand appartement du Roi (dark blue)
  • Private quarters of the king, Appartement du roi (medium blue)
  • Small apartments of the king, Petit appartement du roi (light blue)
  • Queen's large suite, Grand appartement de la reine (yellow)
  • Small apartment of the Queen, Petit appartement de la reine (red)

In the Palace of Versailles, for the first time, a suite system of halls was implemented on a grand scale. If in the previous residences of French kings, personal chambers were made out in an intimate, intimate manner, then here the life of the monarch is on display.

Personal quarters: bedroom, study, reception rooms - all together were supposed to create an unforgettable impression of the incredible wealth of France.

  • Louis XIV occupied rooms overlooking the Marble Courtyard in the central part of the palace. The royal bedroom was located on the axis of symmetry, it was here that the "Sun King" died on September 1, 1715 at the age of 72)

Under Louis XV and XVI, the bedroom was used for the traditional ceremonial lever ("getting up") and coucher ("going to sleep"). To the left of the bedroom is the "Ouil de Boeuf", and to the right is the once located office of the king, from where he ruled France. Under Louis XV, the premises were expanded and turned into the Hall of Councils.

History of creation

A small hunting lodge in the ancient village of Versailles, located just 15 kilometers west of Paris, dates back to the reign of Louis XIII, the father of Louis XIV, who ruled so long and so brilliantly, in 1624.

In 1632-1638, the castle in Versailles, designed by the architect Philibert de Roy, was turned into a small U-shaped palace. Note that during the subsequent numerous reconstructions of the building, this part of it became the center of the composition, around which the wings were gradually growing.

The era of Louis XIV

In 1661, after the death of Cardinal Mazarin, who ruled France as the first minister virtually alone, King Louis XIV redefined the role of Versailles. In the head of the monarch, who has finally received real power, the idea of ​​turning a small palace into a grandiose residence is born, and its location outside of Paris, the capital of France, is not at all accidental.

  • The king seems to be opposing himself to the heart of the nation, to itself big city, declaring that it is he who will now be the center of the universe for the French. However, the official transformation of Versailles into the center of gravity of France is postponed a little: only in 1682 the courtyard finally moved here

Large-scale construction at Versailles begins in 1669. It was then that the architect Louis Leveaux significantly enlarged the former, rather modest building by lengthening the side wings that now frame the so-called Marble and Royal Courtyards.

The next period in the construction of the Palace of Versailles begins after the Peace of Nijmegen, in 1678 and is led by another outstanding architect, Jules Hardouin Mansart (Leveaux died in 1670).

Under Mansar, the building received the most significant increment: the northern and southern wing-wings appeared, the famous Big, later called Zerkalnaya gallery in the central part of the building was created, ministerial buildings were completed, framing the third courtyard of the complex, the Ministerial.

At the same time, the eminent landscape architect, André Le Nôtre, creates a regular park, while the decorator Charles Brune directs the interior decoration.

The next stage of construction, the last in the reign of Louis XIV, begins at the turn of the century, in 1699 and ends in 1710. As a result, a number of interior interiors are rebuilt and the most beautiful Royal Chapel, begun by Mansart and finished by Robert de Cotte, appears.

It is impossible not to mention the construction of a separate palace in the park for the King's favorite, the Marquise de Montespan: the Grand Trianon (Le Grand Trianon, Trianon in French means pavilion).

  • Subsequently, during the First Empire, it was turned into one of his official residences by the first emperor of France, Napoleon Bonaparte.

After the death of the old king (in 1714), the court moved to Paris, and delegations of foreign states settled in Versailles. In 1717, the Russian Tsar Peter I also visited here, who later embodied much of what he saw in country residence Peterhof near St. Petersburg.

Louis XV and XVI

The French court returned to Versailles in 1722 after the death of the regent, Philippe Orleans. The alterations to the vast palace at this time were generally insignificant, and mainly related to its interiors.

In the vast palace garden for the favorite of Louis XV, Madame de Pompadour, the Les Petit Trianon (1762-1768) is being built. In 1763-1770, the composition of the Grand Palace of Versailles was logically completed by the Opera building designed by Jacques Anges Gabriel (flanking the northern facade).

During the reign of Louis XVI, the Small Trianon, presented by him to his wife, Marie Antoinette, turns into an exquisite pearl of an elegant and short-lived architectural style rococo.

After the Revolution

During the French Revolution, the Palace of Versailles lost most of its interior decoration, but the buildings remained standing. After the restoration of the monarchy, in 1837, King Louis-Philippe by decree turned the former residence into a national museum.

Subsequently, the palace twice (in 1871 and 1940) saw German troops (in 1871, in the Mirror Gallery of Versailles, Wilhelm I was proclaimed emperor of Germany). Here in 1919 the Treaty of Versailles was signed, which ended the First World War.

Opening hours and ticket prices

The palace is open to the public every day of the week, except monday... 9 am to 6.30 pm from May to September and 9 am to 5.30 pm from October to April.

A ticket to the Palace of Versailles, both Trianons, park (2018) will cost 20 €. 25 € is a ticket for 2 days.

Visitors under the age of 18, regardless of citizenship, and citizens of the European Union under 26 years old are admitted free of charge.

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    The word "Versailles" from a proper name has long turned into a household name and has become a symbol of brilliance, luxury and impeccable taste. The Palace of Versailles today is one of the most visited attractions in France. And this is quite understandable - after all, there are imitations of this masterpiece of the era of absolutism in the world, but no equal to it was created.

    Louis XIV wanted to do a miracle; ordered - and in the middle of the wild, sandy desert, the Tempean valleys and the palace appeared, which in Europe has no such magnificence.

    Nikolay Karamzin

    Symbol of the French monarchy

    Interestingly, the reason for the creation of the palace was the usual human envy. Having once seen the palace of Vaux-le-Vicomte, which belonged to the then finance minister Fouquet, Louis XIV could no longer sleep well: he called the same team of architects that created the palace of the minister, and set the difficult task - to do “the same thing, but 100 times it is better". The monarch's wish was fulfilled: the architect Louis Leveaux began construction in 1661, and 21 years later Versailles became the official royal residence - an unprecedentedly short construction time for a grandiose building with an area of ​​more than 6 hectares, consisting of 3,500 rooms! When creating the palace and its decor, the latest technologies of that time were used: for example, Italian masters were invited to decorate the famous Mirror Hall, who at that time alone owned the technique of amalgamation. For large-scale construction work, masons were ordered from Flanders, along with their secrets - the professional reputation of the Flemings in those years was the best in the world.

    Although the project is striking in scale, during the construction of the palace they tried to observe austerity: for all the splendor of the decoration, not a single toilet was provided in the building, and half of the fireplaces were pure decoration.

    Gravedigger of the French monarchy

    If the French were building the Palace of Versailles today, the construction would cost them a quarter trillion euros (the Americans launched 15 spaceships to the moon for half the amount). Add to this the costs of expanding and rebuilding the palace, maintaining a crowd of thousands of courtiers and lackeys, grandiose spending on balls and celebrations - and it becomes clear how heavy a burden the palace was on the economy. While Versailles grew prettier, France became impoverished, and less than a century after the "Sun King" his kingdom fell, and armed sans-culottes ruled the halls of the palace.

    Versailles palace today

    Although Versailles became one of the reasons for the death of monarchical France, today it paradoxically saves France: thanks to the multimillion-dollar flow of tourists, Versailles became a donor of the national economy - and so significant that the Republic allocated 400 million EUR for its reconstruction. More than 1000 rooms of the palace are currently open to the public, including the world famous Hall of Mirrors, the Great and Small Royal Apartments, the Battle Hall and the Royal Opera.

    Practical information

    The easiest way to get to Versailles from Paris is to take the RER line C (any city pass with zones 1-4 will work). Also from Eiffel tower there are special buses.

    Opening hours: the palace is open to the public from April to October, all days except Monday. Ticket offices are open from 9:00 to 17:50, the ticket price for an adult is 20 EUR. Prices on the page are for March 2019.

    Chateau de Versailles or Versailles Palace is recognized as the largest historical museum in the world.

    The palace is included in the UNESCO World Cultural Heritage List. Most of them are open to tourists.

    Before construction architectural masterpiece, Versailles was considered a village. Today Versailles is a suburb of Paris, where tourists from different countries... In 1623, Louis XIII built a hunting lodge in the village of Versailles. The castle was intended for recreation. A small building in the form of a hunting castle became the basis for the construction of the most expensive and extravagant building in the world.

    The construction of the palace was started by Louis XIV in 1661. The king's actions caused some controversy among the starving people, ministers, but no one dared to openly express their discontent. The best architects of that time, Louis Le Vau and Jules Hardouin, took part in the construction. The gardens were erected according to the project of André Le Notre. Charles Lebrun took care of the interior and park sculptures. A huge area of ​​14,970 hectares was cleared for construction, erection of gardens, paths, fountains.


    There are 1400 fountains throughout the palace, as well as 400 stunning sculptures. More than 36,000 workers took part in the construction. After the completion of the construction, the Château de Versailles could accommodate up to 5,000 people. However, despite the amount Money, which is more than 250 billion euros (by modern standards), the palace has some drawbacks. It was possible to live in it only in summer, during the winter period of time it was impossible to live in it, because there was no heating, most of fireplaces were not subject to use.

    The construction of the Palace of Versailles was finally completed by the end of the life of Louis XIV. It was the seat of the royal family from 1682 to 1789.

    The grandeur of the Palace of Versailles shows how powerful and wealthy the monarch was. The king's apartments were located in the center of the palace, which symbolized the absolute power of the monarch. The Sun King was convinced that God himself had chosen him to be the ruler of France.


    It should be noted that Peter the Great, as a guest, had the opportunity to stay at the Palace of Versailles in 1717. The splendor of the buildings and gardens delighted Peter I. Upon his return to Russia, Peter the Great adopted some of the ideas that were applied in the construction of the Peterhof Palace.

    During the war, a significant part of the buildings was damaged. But, despite the precarious financial situation in the kingdom, Louis XVI allocated part of the funds to restore the palace and gardens. In 1760, most of the damage was repaired.

    After the fall of the monarchy, the Palace of Versailles fell into the hands of the new government. As a result, in 1792, some of the furniture and other luxury items were sold, and the works of art were transferred to a museum, namely the Louvre.

    Among architectural structures the palace complex is distinguished by the Small and Big Trianon.

    The Grand Trianon was built in 1687 by order of Louis XIV. Now the Grand Trianon is used by the President of France to receive important guests.



    The Little Trianon was built between 1762 and 1768. The mistress of Louis XV, Madame de Pompadour, lived in the small Trianon. Later, in 1774, Louis XVI gave the building to Queen Marie Antoinette.



    The masterpiece of the Palace of Versailles is the Hall of Mirrors, which has an area of ​​73 meters. The 17 windows of the Hall of Mirrors offer a delightful view of the park. The hall got its name from the presence of seventeen arches with mirrors. Important events and celebrations were held in the hall.

    In general, the interior design is luxurious. Everywhere you can see wood and stone carvings, painted ceilings, expensive furniture, walls are decorated with numerous paintings by famous artists.


    The Versailles Park deserves special attention. It took 10 years to build the park. The Parc de Versailles is a great example of French garden design. The flower beds and alleys are made in strict symmetry.

    The trees had strict geometric shapes. The crowns were formed in the form of balls, pyramids, squares.

    The flower beds were always fragrant. As soon as the flowers faded, they were replaced with new ones. Trees and other plants were brought from all the provinces of France. Thousands of people participated in the creation of the garden.

    Also noteworthy is the Grand Canal, which is 1670 meters long. The work on the creation of the channel took 11 years. The channel was created under the direction of André Le Notre. The Grand Canal was the site of numerous water shows during the reign of Louis XIV. Nowadays, anyone can take a boat ride on the canal at the Palace of Versailles.