How was the Palace of Versailles like?
Versailles as the centre of court and royal life began with Louis XIV, the Sun King – so called because all revolved around him. He made sure he had all his important people there so he could keep an eye on them. It was an honour to have quarters at Versailles; even a small room in the attic conferred a cachet. There was a lot of etiquette involved; the King himself had a public life where he could be viewed arising, eating, disporting himself and retiring. Fashions changed somewhat as time went on. Louis XV also lived there, in the 18th century, and it saw much of Marie Antoinette before the Revolution. There are two excellent books that detail life at Versailles in a very readable fashion; you could order them from your library. Both are by Nancy Mitford. One, dealing with Louis XIV and life there, is called “The Sun King”. The other is “Madame de Pompadour”, dealing with this famous mistress of Louis XV’s; it tells of all kinds of customs, including the quaint one of the ladies taki
