Palace of Versailles
What lies inside the Palace of Versailles?
The Palace of Versailles, the former residence of the French monarchs, has endless rooms you can explore.
These include the King and Queen’s State Apartments, Hall of Mirrors, Royal Chapel, Royal Opera, Gallery of Great Battles, Empire Room and Grand Commun.
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The Hall of Mirrors
As soon as you enter the Hall of Mirrors at the Palace of Versailles, you will find your jaw on the floor in awe.
The Hall was intended to be of political, financial and artistic superiority over the rest of the world.
This was accomplished with the help of numerous paintings, sculptures, luxurious furniture and the 357 mirrors which were the most expensive at the time.
Courtiers and visitors also utilized the Hall for waiting and meeting regularly.
Considered the most beautiful room in the world – and rightly so – the Hall of Mirrors was a politically important chamber where treaties were signed.
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The War Room
Six bronze-gilded trophies and swords decorate the walls of the War Room.
Built by Hardouin Mansart, the room was constructed to pay tribute to the French military victories.
In addition to this structure, the ceiling paintings added by the artist Le Brun pay a similar tribute to these victories which ultimately led to the signing of the peace treaties Nijmegen.
The Peace Room
Similar to the War Room, the Palace of Versailles’ Peace Room is a tribute to the peace France brought to Europe.
The marble panel and bronze trophies of arms are similar to the decorations in the War Room, while the novelty of the Peace Room can be observed in the cupola and arches.
The King’s State Apartments
The King’s State Apartments at the Palace of Versailles were built to host the official ceremonies for the French King.
Anyone who wanted to catch a glimpse of the King could do so as the Royals passed through to reach the chapel.
There were multiple gatherings every week during the period of Louis XIV’s reign at these Italian interior state apartments.
The Hercules Room
Formerly the palace chapel, the Hercules Room was the last room to be built during Louis XIV’s reign and was completed in Louis XV’s reign.
The work in the room was officially completed in 1736 as soon as François Lemoyne completed the ceiling painting of The Apotheosis of Hercules.
The Room of Abundance
The Room of Abundance was the designated room to refreshments like coffee and wines.
Additionally, it served as the entrance to Louis XIV’s Collection Room or the Room of Rare Objects, where the king enjoyed displaying diamonds, medals, and silver vases to his visitors.
The Venus Room
The Venus Room at the Palace of Versailles was one of the primary entrances to the State Apartments.
Ceiling paintings in the room depict the goddess of love, Venus, and the similarity between the acts of the heroes of ancient Greece and Louis XIV.
This room also acted as a space for displaying flowers and fruit during evening events.
The Diana Room
Gabriel Blanchard’s ceiling painting shows Diana, the goddess of the hunt, keeping an eye on hunting and navigational events.
The Diana Room also provided one of the main entrances to the State Apartments.
The Mars Room
The Mars Room is where the beginning of the King’s Apartment can be seen.
Here, the ceiling painting made by Claude Audran depicts Mars, the god of war, riding in a chariot drawn by wolves.
Several corners of the room are decorated with triumphant heroes and military equipment. Some of it is even illustrated in gold.
The Mercury Room
The series of differently-themed rooms finally lead the visitors to the King’s bed chambers in the State Apartment known as the Mercury room.
This room saw all sorts of luxurious decorations like mirrors, tables, chandeliers and brocades with silver and gold backbones.
However, these embellishments were melted by Louis XIV to provide funding for the War of the League of Augsburg.
The casket bearing Louis XIV’s body was also on exhibit in this room from September 2 until September 10, 1715.
The Apollo Room
The Palace of Versailles’ Apollo Room was designed as the monarch’s Ceremonial Room and used as the throne room after 1682.
Like the Mercury Room’s decorations, Louis XIV’s silver throne had to be melted to finance the war.
The room’s ceiling is painted with the figure of Apollo riding his chariot.
The Queen’s Apartments
Similar in design to the King’s Apartments, the Queen’s Apartments consist of a series of rooms which is now toured in the opposite order of the traditional one.
The bed chamber comes first on tour; the final room is the Queen’s Guard Room.
These apartments were occupied by queens Maria Theresa, Marie Leszczyńska and Marie-Antoinette in that order.
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The Queen’s Guard Room
The Guard Room, where 12 of the Queen’s Guards were on duty day and night, regulated access to the Queen’s Apartments from the Queen’s Staircase.
This room is the only area of the Apartments where the decor from the 17th century, featuring marble paneling and paintings, has been completely conserved.
The Royal Table Antechamber
The Queen’s Antechamber served as the setting for the royal family’s and the king’s traditional public meals at the Royal Table.
However, different monarchs adhered to this tradition differently.
Louis XIV followed the custom almost every evening, Louis XV preferred to dine privately, while Louis XVI and Marie-Antoinette took to the Royal Table weekly.
The Nobles’ Room
An additional antechamber, the Nobles’ Room was used by queen Marie Leszczyńska for formal gatherings.
Marie-Antoinette had other plans for the room and, with the help of the architect Richard Mique, completely redecorated it, keeping only the ceiling.
Everything was new and modernized, from the furniture to the fireplace.
The Queen’s Bedchamber
The Queen spent the majority of her time in the Bedchamber, making it the most significant room of all.
This is where she slept, attended to guests and even gave birth.
One can even guess the objects added during the occupancy of a particular queen.
The Bedchamber saw the birth of 19 princesses and princes and the demise of two queens, Maria Theresa and Marie Leszczyńska
The Royal Opera
The architect, Ange-Jacques Gabriel designed the magnificent Royal Opera which was inaugurated during the monarchy of Louis XV.
It served as a theatre and has been the location of parties, performances, and legislative debates.
Louis XIV ideated the hall to be spacious enough to accommodate machinery for events md started working on it with the architect.
However, the Royal Opera was finally built dueing the reign of Louis XV.
The Royal Chapel
Built during the reign of Louis XIV, the Royal Chapel was the fifth and he last one to be constructed at the palace since the reign of Louis XIII.
Robert de Cotte finished the project after the death of the architect to the King.
The chapel is finished with Gothic architecture and was dedicated to Saint Louis, the patron saint of the monarch and a member of the royal family.
The Gallery of Great Battles
Through 33 paintings, the Gallery of Great Battles depicts about 15 centuries’ worth of French military victories, from Clovis to Napoleon.
The largest room in the Palace, it covers almost the entirety of the first floor of the South Wing.
Created by Louis-Philippe, the gallery’s paintings span over many French dynasties, namely the Bourbons, Merovingians, Carolingians, Capetians, and Valois.
The Gallery of Great Battles is the most historically significant aspect of the Palace of Versailles due to its references to the Revolution.
The Empire Rooms
The Palace of Versailles’ 13 Empire Rooms depict the series of events that took place as Napolean gained power across Europe in just a few years.
This project was a political one taken up by King Louis-Philippe to gain support of Napolean’s empire.
The Empire Rooms also house some greatly significant artworks by renowned artists like Guérin and Regnault.
The Grand Commun
After Louis XIV set up his court permanently at Versailles, he recognized the need for additional accomodation for servants and secondary officers.
A new building was built with six floors and constituted offices, a chapel, kitchens and dining rooms.
It was mainly used to prepare meals for the people at the King’s court.
But the Grand Commun could also not accomodate all the workers after a point of time and the population ofthe building rose up to 1,500.
The living conditions got worse but the situation remained that way till 1789.
Featured Image: Chateauversailles.fr