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Place d'Armes, 78000 Versailles, France
GPS: 48.805803511921, 2.1218982077722
Visiting Palace of Versailles in France is an opportunity to visit the past. Until the French Revolution (1789), the Palace of Versailles was the permanent residence of the French kingdom. Located about 15 kilometres southwest of Paris and sublimated by Louis XIV, known as the Sun King, the château forms the central part of a huge royal estate with a park and flamboyant gardens.
Designed not only to showcase the grandeur of the French monarchy to the world but also to better control central power within its court, the Palace of Versailles is an architectural gem of luxury and magnificence. The existence of this château dates back to the time when King Louis XIII, father of Louis XIV, enjoyed hunting game in the surrounding woods. Having become his favourite hunting land, he decided to acquire a small pavilion and then the residence of Versailles in 1623. Louis XIII first had a hunting lodge built to satisfy his overflowing passion. In 1631, he called on the architect Philibert Le Roy to replace it with a small castle and use it as a peaceful retreat away from Paris.
When the king died, his descendant Louis XIV was only four years and a few months old. The original Palace of Versailles ceased to be a royal residence before the young Sun King returned there to enjoy hunting. Fallen under the spell of the place that he rediscovered, he undertook gigantic works in 1661 like a visionary architect. In 1682, Louis XIV moved his entire court and administration to the Palace of Versailles, from where he ruled the Kingdom of France, the largest nation in Europe. A place of splendour and prestigious ceremonies under the Ancien Régime, the royal estate embodies the absolute power exercised by Louis XIV. This symbol of national power was embellished by the successors of the Sun King, who died in 1715 after a 72-year reign (the longest in French history): Louis XV and Louis XVI, until the French Revolution put an end to the monarchy. Having narrowly escaped destruction, the Palace of Versailles was neglected and eventually restored. In the 19th century, Louis-Philippe I (the last monarch to reign in France from 1830 to 1848) transformed it into a museum in the hope of reconciling French people with their heritage. More than 300 years after the death of the Sun King, the palace and its outbuildings contain an exceptional heritage. As for the park, it is still fascinating because of its geometrical layout with bushes, flowerbeds, sculptures and fountains. Its surface area is a today tenth of its original size, but the park of the Palace of Versailles is still one of the largest royal parks in Europe.