Did it smell at Versailles?
Versailles had a bit of a natural odour issue caused by the very land it was built on. The former march land had quite the foul smell at some spots, especially during the summer, which mingled with the scents of sweat given off by the courtiers and their garments.
Who was the main architect of the Palace of Versailles?
Le Vau was the first architect to carry out major work on Versailles under King Louis XIV. He built the King’s and Queen’s State Apartments and the white stone façade on the garden side, known as “Le Vau’s Envelope”. Versailles was without doubt the last great work by this famous architect of the mid-17th century.
How did Louis XIV control life at Versailles?
Louis XIV installed his royal court at Versailles. He required all the great nobility of France, to come live at Versailles for at least part of the year. This has the effect of reducing one major threat to his power – Nobility. He separated power from status and grandeur: secured the nobles’ cooperation.
Was there a real Fabien Marchal?
Unlike many of his co-stars, Tygh’s character Fabien Marchal is entirely fictional. Fabien is the chief of King Louis’ repressive police force at Versailles.
How did Louis XIV and Jean Baptiste Colbert centralize control of France?
With the help of his finance minister, Jean-Baptiste Colbert, Louis XIV established reforms that cut France’s deficit and promoted industrial growth. During his reign, Louis XIV managed to improve France’s disorganized system of taxation and limit formerly haphazard borrowing practices.
Was Sophie de Clermont a real person?
Even though Sophie and her mother Béatrice de Clermont are fictional, there is a royal house named Clermont in France.
Was Versailles a dirty place?
The sheer amount of people, along with the squalid filth in which they lived, led to the spread of syphilis, a disease that riddled the nobility at Versailles and plagued the court up until the French Revolution. The lack of hygiene practices meant that many French aristocrats would be infested with lice.
