We see that javascript is disabled or not supported by your browser - javascript is needed for important actions on the site. Read more

What's New - Home - Login

Member $avings: $81,570,968.99 | Books Available: 795,261 | Members Online: 250

Swap Used Books - Buy New Books at Great Prices!

How To Swap Books Sign Up Search submenu

PBS Market (New Books)

Gift Buying Guide

Book Browser Advanced Search Books Posted Today Member Book Reviews Award Winning Books NYT Best Sellers Amazon Best Sellers Most Traveled Copies Club Wish List

Discussion Forums Book Lists

Club Lists My Book Lists My Watched Lists Create a List

Blog Donations

School Donation Program In Memory of... Military Donation Program Friends of PBS

Box-O-Books Maps The Eclectic Pen Fun Stuff

20 Questions Sudoku Bookmark Creator

Top 100

Requests Posts Swappers Referrers Reviewers

Pulse of PBS Spread The Word

Invite Friends Bookmarks Facebook Page Facebook App More Ways...

Photo Gallery Recipes Club Tag Cloud Member Testimonials

Help Center submenu

How To Swap Books Browse Help Docs Ask the Librarian PBS Member Icons Live Help

Kiosk

PBS Market (New Books) Go Shopping Buy Credits Buy PBS Money Upgrade Membership Gift Certificates Transfer Credits

Need Help?

Search - Versailles: The History and Legacy of France's Most Famous Royal Palace

Versailles The History and Legacy of France's Most Famous Royal Palace
Author: Charles River Editors

*Includes pictures — *Includes contemporary descriptions of Versailles and its construction — *Includes online resources and a bibliography for further reading — ?Growing up in Versailles is like growing up in a museum, and the people living there are almost the security.? ? Thomas Mars — In every nation, in every era of history, there are inevitabl... more »y one or two places that become the symbol of the times. Mention Valley Forge to an American and it will immediately conjure up visions of a hard won fight for freedom. Likewise, the word Dunkirk said to a Briton will elicit a sense of both pride and horror at the lives lost and saved at that desperate point in World War II. For the French, and those who study their history, Versailles is a symbol of, as Charles Dickens once put it, ?the best of times?the worst of times.? It was here that the Sun King, Louis XIV, built a palace worthy of a great nation during a time when peace was, at best, short-lived. It was at Versailles that Russian Tsar Peter the Great to study the palace?s architecture and gardens so that he could recreate them in his home country. Indeed, the greatest minds and artistic geniuses of the later stages of the Renaissance came to Versailles to build and paint, and it was here that Madame de Pompedour and her successor, Madame du Barry, used their wit and beauty to charm a king into doing their bidding.

However, as history constantly demonstrates, nothing good lasts forever, and so it was with Versailles. From the royal palace, Louis XVI and Queen Marie Antoinette frittered away the goodwill of their people, leading to the French Revolution and their executions. Here the mobs amassed to demand ?freedom, equality and brotherhood,? but mainly a piece or two of pilfered bric-a-brac. In the wake of the French Revolution, the palace was gutted and most of the beautiful reminders of its glory were sold away, along with the monarchy?s birthright and the concept of the ?divine right of kings.?

While the palace was neglected for a time, its original workmen had done their jobs well enough that it managed to weather both time and the political storms that raged around it during the early 19th Century. In fact, it seems as though Versailles was destined to survive, if only so that such a thing of beauty wouldn?t be lost forever. Even as he focused on the rest of Europe, Napoleon felt the need to save Versailles, and over time it was restored to its original glory, if not its original purpose; no monarch has lived in Versailles for a long time. Instead, there is a republic, and with it a sense that the palace, once available only for the wealthy few, is now a place for people across the world to come and enjoy the splendor of a bygone era that, while not exactly missed, can nonetheless still be appreciated.

Versailles: The History and Legacy of France's Most Famous Royal Palace chronicles the remarkable history of one of the world?s most famous palaces and tourist spots. Along with pictures depicting important people, places, and events, you will learn about Versailles like never before.

ISBN-13: 9781543109153
ISBN-10: 1543109152
Publication Date: 2/14/2017
Pages: 78
Edition: Large Print
Rating:

0 stars, based on 0 rating

Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform
Book Type: Paperback
Members Wishing: 0
Reviews: Amazon | Write a Review

Genres:

History >> Europe >> France

Back to the Top ↑

Search - Versailles: The History and Legacy of France's Most Famous Royal Palace

Loading...