There are 700 topiaries in the gardens of Versailles, of 67 different shapes! At the beginning of the Great Lawn, you can head left towards the refreshments centre at the Girandole Grove, where there are also some toilets. Half-way along the Great Lawn, turn left into the Winter Walk.
King Louis XIV of France assigns the design and construction of the Gardens of Versailles to landscape architect André Le Nôtre. Le Nôtre interviews several other garden designers who have submitted designs for the project, including one woman, Sabine de Barra.
Members of the bourgeois frequented Paris' many gardens in an effort to display their wealth and their "savoir faire." Through proper attire and etiquette the bourgeoisie were able to increase their public image as well as socialize with other auspicoius members of society.
Rather refreshingly, the film acknowledges right at the start that the whole story is fictional. It's prologue text reads simply “There is an outdoor ballroom in the gardens of Versailles. In what follows, that much at least is true.” Sabine is a completely fictitious character.
It is characterised by a symmetrical layout of the flower beds and sheared box hedging to form ornamental patterns known as broderie. Even the arrangement of the flowers is designed to create a harmonious interplay of colours. Frequently found in French Baroque gardens are water gardens, cascades, grottos and statues.
Simply put, a gravity-fed fountain uses gravity to draw water to its lowest point while air pressure builds and pushes the water back up through a series of tubing. A continuous-flow water fountain moves water without a pump or mechanical parts.
Source of waterMost outdoor fountains are connected to a home's water supply. Generally, fountains that can be filled with a hose use a pump that re-circulates water through the fountain on a continuous basis. These fountains must be checked periodically to ensure they have a sufficient amount of water.
where is this water going to come from, and how will it be pumped all throughout the Versailles grounds? There was a lot to plan, to say the least. A machine called the Marly Machine was built in 1684 to pump water from the Seine river to supply Versailles' needs.
The baroque decorative fountains of Rome in the 17th and 18th centuries marked the arrival point of restored Roman aqueducts and glorified the Popes who built them. By the end of the 19th century, as indoor plumbing became the main source of drinking water, urban fountains became purely decorative.
How expensive is a waterfeature to install and run? Water features range in scale from small self-contained bubbling features costing perhaps a few hundred pounds to install, up to large complex pool features costing tens of thousands of pounds, with a whole spectrum inbetween.
Louis XIV was Louis XV's great-grandfather. The Sun King was a nickname that King Louis XIV received because he chose the sun as his personal symbol. Some sources state that “the Sun King” was a nickname that the king called himself, but others say it was given to him by his subjects.
Louis XIV (1638-1715) was king of France from 1643 to 1715. He brought the French monarchy to its peak of absolute power and made France the dominant power in Europe. His reign is also associated with the greatest age of French culture and art.
In general, prioritize Wednesdays and Thursdays (except during school holidays), when there are fewer crowds. The most crowded Versailles hours are between 10 am to 3 pm, especially during the weekends.
Wednesdays and Thursdays are the best days to visit the Château de Versailles. It's less crowded, so you will have a much better time and you will be able to visit the castle and all its attractions in the best conditions.
"Plan on two to three hours for the château, one hour for the gardens, and another two hours if you want to include the Domaine de Marie-Antoinette in your visit.
The ticket price is 40€ (basic) or 49€ (including one day of Musical Gardens or Musical Fountains, Tuesdays, Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays in high season). The ticket includes access to: The Palace (free audio guide) The Estate of Trianon.
Purchase your tickets in advance and be at the gate as early as you can for about 8.30am/9am. In any case, before 10am. The park of the Chateau de Versailles is huge : it spreads over 800 hectares. It's difficult to visit it within a day.
Can I bring food into Versailles? You can't take food into the palace itself, but you can bring food and beverages onto the grounds if you skip the interior tour. There are also food vendors on the grounds if you want to do both!
Admission is free and no ticket is required. The gardens are also free, except on Musical Fountains Show and Musical Gardens days. The Park is open every day all year round and admission is free.
Driving from Central Paris to Versailles can be as fast as 30 minutes but generally takes much longer. Follow the Autoroute A13 towards Rouen and use exit 6 (Versailles Centre) – signs point the way to the chateau.
The Palace, the gardens and the Estate of Trianon are closed until further notice. Except during lockdow, the Palace is open every day except on Mondays from 9:00 am, but the estate of Trianon and the Coach Gallery only open in the afternoon. Except during lockdow, the Park and Gardens are open every day.
Palace of Versailles, France – $50.7 billion (£39bn)The building itself and contents are likely to worth another $10 billion (£7.6bn), so Versailles could in all likelihood be valued at $50.7 billion (£39bn).
The Versailles TV series is very accurate, almost down to the last detail. The TV correctly portrays the historical characters. For example, Philippe d'Orléans, Louis XIV's brother was extremely effeminate and homosexual and married to Henriette of England, which is very well portrayed.
Magnifique Golden Gate Back at Versailles. (Newser) – One of France's most popular tourist sites, Paris' Palace of Versailles, has a new golden royal gate—an $8 million replica of a gate demolished during the French Revolution. The 87-yard-long steel gate is decorated with 100,000 gold leaves.
Versailles season four has not been confirmed by Canal Plus, the French channel behind the series. Versailles was originally intended to run for four seasons, however, in April, it was announced season three would be the shows last.
How is Versailles used today?
Comparison of world's large palaces
| Rank | Name | Floor Area |
|---|
| 19 | Palace of Versailles | 63,154 square metres (679,784 sq ft) |
| 20 | Royal Palace of Stockholm | 61,210 square metres (658,859 sq ft) |
| 21 | Winter Palace | 60,000 square metres (645,835 sq ft) |
| 22 | Mannheim Palace | 60,000 square metres (645,835 sq ft) |
The 39-year-old actress plays Sabine De Barra, a fictional landscape gardener commissioned to design an ornate rockery for King Louis XIV's elaborate gardens of Versailles in the period drama, directed by Alan Rickman.
A submission from United Kingdom says the name Versailles means "Palace built in the 17th century by king Louis XIII of France near the capital of Paris" and is of French origin.
