Palace of Versailles

Background:

The Palace of Versailles is a stable of Baroque architecture and a cultural icon of France. Construction started in 1624 at the height of the 30 Years' War initially as the personal hunting lodge for King Louis XIII, as the years went by the palace would be enlarged by the chief architect and engineer Philibert Le Roy. It would be during this era of European history were France would become the dominant power as the Germanic powers of Central Europe under the Hapsburg were routed, this shifted the balance of power greatly.    

Eventually more and more attention would grow onto the Palace, becoming the royal residence and home of the French royal family. They would even go as far as relocating to the town of Versailles along with the government, replacing Paris as the capital city for a time.

Features:

The Palace is home to some of the most well known baroque artwork and architecture in the world. Most famous of which is the Hall of Mirrors, a long corridor meant to represent the whole of French success from Antiquity to the end of the Monarchy in the late 18th century. In an already opulent and magnificent building, the Hall of Mirrors elevates that opulence to an entirely new level as the entire room is filled to the brim with statue made of marble and gold, mirrors polished to perfection, intricate chandeliers.

The Hall of Mirrors really conveys that the nobility who built this place spared no expense and did their utmost to make it impress. Part of the appeal of baroque is the grandeur, such a massive use of gold and expertly crafted marble certainly makes the Palace as a whole a jaw dropping place.

Personal Thoughts:

I find the entire Palace to be just amazing, its earned its reputation as one of the worlds' most recognizable and well-known buildings in the world and for good reason. It embodies the aristocratic and opulent nature of the 17th and 18th centuries when no expense was spared in creating the most luxurious chateaus, manors, and palaces. The Versailles Palace would be greatly influential as it would inspire similar places like the Winter Palace in St. Petersburg in Russia. 

It is a historically important place, from the home of the royalty to the place where the last treaties of the First World War were signed. When people think of a palace, Versailles is what most people think of or something reminiscent of it.

   

Citations;

Centre, UNESCO World Heritage. “Palace and Park of Versailles.” UNESCO World Heritage Centre. Accessed October 12, 2021. https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/83/.

“The Hall of Mirrors.” Palace of Versailles, June 28, 2021. https://en.chateauversailles.fr/discover/estate/palace/hall-mirrors#the-hall-of-mirrors.

“V&A · Inside the Baroque Palace.” Victoria and Albert Museum. Accessed October 12, 2021. https://www.vam.ac.uk/articles/inside-the-baroque-palace.