The Chapelle St.-Louis is NOT Cathedral St.-Louis
by hquittner
The Chapelle St.-Louis is part of the Palace and its apse juts out to the right as you enter the grounds. It was built for Louis XIV by Hardouin-Mansart from 1699-1709. The Cathedral St-Louis is in the city about 0.6 km south of the palace gate. It was built in 1754 (by Mansart's grandson) for Louis XVI and is said to be one of the finest examples of French Classic architecture. I have never gone to look at it but there are glimpses here in VT Things to Do. Official services were held there.
The Chapel can be glimpsed across the gallery of the second level from the vestibule (chapel drawing room) through which one gains access to the Hercules Salon from the stairs. This is where the King sat undisturbed by worshippers on the ground level. It is 2 storeyed for this purpose like Ste.-Chapelle. In order to enter the ground floor level (which has side chapels) you have to take one of the guided special tours (extra fee) which go there. The fountains in play on Sundays
A Magnificient Palace
by Goner
Versailles is so large and filled with so many gilded, marbled rooms with wall-sized art and people-sized sculptures, it's overwhelming. And, don't forget to look up, the ceilings are filled with paintings and frescoes that will astound you. There are more than 2,000 windows, 700 rooms, 1,250 fireplaces and 67 staircases. Not all the rooms are open to the public, many are used as government buildings.
During the French Revolution, most of the furnishings were torn down and scattered around the world, but much has been returned to Versailles to rivel any palace in the world.A map is your best friend, instead of wandering aimlessly as I did, have a plan, that way you will make note of the important objects in each room. Versailles! It is wonderfully beautiful! You gaze, and stare, and try to understand that it is real, that it is on the earth, that it is not the Garden of Eden—but your brain grows giddy, stupefied by the world of beauty around you, and you half believe you are the dupe of an exquisite dream.
—Samuel Langhorne Clemens, The Innocents Abroad, 1869
The Sun King
by Pieter11
Louis XIV chose the sun as his emblem. The sun was associated with Apollo, god of peace and arts, and was also the heavenly body which gave life to all things, directing everything as it rises and sets. Like Apollo, the warrior king Louis XIV brought peace and was a patron of the arts. The regularity of his work habits and his ritual risings and retirings were another point of solar comparison.
All over Versailles, decoration combines images and attributes of Apollo (laurel, lyre, tripod) with the king's portraits and emblems (the double LL, the royal crown, the sceptre and hand of justice). The Apollo Salon is the main room of the Grand Apartment because it was originally the monarch's state chamber. The path of the sun is also traced in the layout of the gardens.
Garden (2)
by eho
The first thought I had when I entered the garden was that it was huge. But it looked empty and lacked a focus point. When I first looked down beyond the canal, I thought "the lush green flower gardens in British Columbia are much more beautiful." And maybe because it was under renovations, I find the place actually quite dusty.
I walked around for a long time before I can find a spot where I could take a good shot.
The Kings Bedchamber
by Goner
In 1701 Louis XIV converted the State Drawing Room into his bedchamber and here he died in 1715. This room has been meticulously restored exactly as according to the original in 1723. the brocade, embrodered with gold was rewoven at Lyons. The restoration the bedchamber took over 20 years.
There is so much gold here it hurts your eyes.
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The gardens
Dragon Fountain
Parc du Chateau, Versailles, France 2006
Pierre with the map of Normandy D-day sites
