A day in Versailles. . . .

Versailles was being re gilted

Versailles

Louis XIV portrait with one of his real wigs

Royal Chapel, Versailles

At the Petit Trianon, Versailles. The cart belonged to the dauphin, Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette's son

Portrait of Marie Antoinette by Elizabeth Vigee Lebrun, royal portrait artist to Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette

Door and hardware in the Petit Trianon

Marie Antoinette's initials in the bronze work

Marie Antoinette's hamlet

We are a day behind in the blog posts, but what the heck! We are on vacation. We took the RER train to Versailles yesterday. Linda last visited here when she was 18 and Debbie never. We rented, in the interest of time, a golf cart type deal to get out to the Petit Trianon, which Louic XVI gave to Marie Antoinette where she could leave the riguers and formality of court life and spend time with only invited guests. It was originally built between 1762 and 1768 as a place for the private use of Louis XV and Madame de Pompadour. Renovation began in 2008 so it was treat to see the small (4500-5000 square feet?) house. In the upstairs bronze grill work of the stair rail are Marie Antoinette's initials. We also took a quick look at MA's hamlet created for her with thatched roof buildings, ponds and farm animals. Another place for her to escape court life. We bumped along in our 5 mile an hour electric cart over the cobblestones back to the chateau to catch our small tour of the private apartments of Louis XV and Louis XVI with the tour guide we dubbed Francois, since he didn't tell us his name. At the end of the tour, we were able to see the Chateau's Opera house which was only used for 19 years, until the beginning of the French Revolution. It is only one of about 10 opera houses left in Europe as most were burned down due to the use of candles for illumination and the fact that they were built of wood for best acoustics. It is stunningly beautiful! The King's apartments were very nice, with one room retaining its 17th C paneled walls. One of the most interesting things on display was bronze clock that stood about 6 feet tall on 4 legs which was placed on a beveled white marble base. It took 12 years to design and 8 years after that to construct. It is made to keep time until the year 9000!!! It is still keeping time accurately!! The guided tour by Francois was excellent and was a highlight of our visit to Versailles.