Château de Versailles (France) - first part : the outsides and the gardens
The place is so big, and I have so many pictures of it - various seasons and atmospheres, sunny, cloudy, snowy, crowded, deserted... - that it's quite difficult to organise it all. I'll make several posts... and the first one is already a big one !
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When Louis XIII bought the estate of Versailles, in 1623, nothing was built on the site of the actual castle but a windmill. The king destroyed it, and replaced it by a simple hunting lodge, extended in the 1630's. The property suffered many years of carelessness during the youth of Louis XIV but in 1660, the young king started to devote himself to the castle. Four building campaigns, between 1664 and 1710, transformed the logde into one of the largest palaces in the world, where the court was officially established in 1682.
A few views of the castle from the front courtyard.
The chapel
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The Gardens - during the musical fountains shows
During the show (from april to october), almost all the gardens'secret places are open to public...
Le bassin de Flore
L'Encelade
(by Gaspard Marsy - 1675 / 1677)
La colonnade
(by Jules Hardouin Mansart - 1685)
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When Louis XIII bought the estate of Versailles, in 1623, nothing was built on the site of the actual castle but a windmill. The king destroyed it, and replaced it by a simple hunting lodge, extended in the 1630's. The property suffered many years of carelessness during the youth of Louis XIV but in 1660, the young king started to devote himself to the castle. Four building campaigns, between 1664 and 1710, transformed the logde into one of the largest palaces in the world, where the court was officially established in 1682.
A few views of the castle from the front courtyard.
The chapel
♣
The Gardens - during the musical fountains shows
During the show (from april to october), almost all the gardens'secret places are open to public...
Le bassin de Flore
L'Encelade
(by Gaspard Marsy - 1675 / 1677)
La colonnade
(by Jules Hardouin Mansart - 1685)
♣♣♣