Peak District Tourism

Everyone knows about France’s rich and colourful history with regards to the monarchy. The bloody decapitation in 1793 of King Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette, infamous for her line “Let them eat cake” and of course, the proclamation of the French revolution in 1789.

Central to the French revolution was the city of Paris. The place where the hunger was epidemic, people were angry, and the symbol of power and wealth of the few, poverty for the masses. The King and Queen were safe in their Palace in Versailles, and as you can imagine, with the power, wealth and well documented greed of Marie Antoinette in particular, Versailles was the height of luxury. So much so in fact, that Versailles has become, over the centuries, the most sumptuously clad château in the world, absurdly over the top, but a definite must see on a trip to Paris.

This beautiful place is perfect for a weekend trip if you are staying in accommodation Paris, as it is not far away (roughly an hours drive) and means you can get away from the hustle and bustle of inner city Paris. Ostentatious does not really describe the luxury of the palace and gardens, with beautifully decorated rooms inside, walls embellished with tapestries and gold leaf and the “Hall of Mirrors” – a dazzling 73 metre gallery overlooking the garden, hung with chandeliers. Commissioned in 1678 by Louis XVI and decorated by Le Brun with scenes from the emperor’s reign, it has a staggering 357 mirrors lining its walls.

Another interesting sight to see in Versaille is the Grand Trianon, Petit Trainon and Domaine de Marie-Antionette. This is where in 1678 Hardouin-Mansart built the pink marble Grand Trianon in the north of the park, away from the court. Louis XVI took his mistress and secret second wife here. As well as this, The Petit Trainon, built for Louis XVI’s second mistress, is beautiful and definitely worth seeing. Finally, and perhaps most interestingly is Marie Antoinette’s Domaine. This hide away given as a wedding present to Marie Antoinette by the King in 1774, was where Marie Antoinette escaped from court to play in her little model village and included a chapel, a theatre and a farm and dairy where she pretended to be a humble milkmaid. This is now open to the public and iPod guides are available.

So, make sure you leave your apartments Paris or Paris hotel for the day and take a trip to this fantastic place!