Versailles - what did you miss?

Versailles… well that’s an easy subject… because everyone knows about the Palace of Versailles right?  It’s the one that was the principle residence of Louis XIV; the one where Marie Antoinette allegedly said ‘let them eat cake’ when she was told that the peasants of France had no bread in the 17th or 18th century; the one where the Treaty of Versailles was signed - the most important of the peace treaties which ended the First World War; the one which has the stunning Hall of Mirrors, paying tribute to the political, economic and artistic success of France during the reign of Loui XIV. 

You may even know about the then most expensive wedding reception ever, held for Vanisha Mittal and Amit Bhatia and their families in 2004, costing a mere USD60million.  You may know, but its less likely, that the Treaty of Paris was signed there, ending the American Revolution in 1783 – why was it signed there you may wonder?  Well this article won’t tell you.

But poor Versailles city – who knows about it, its fame so overshadowed by the Palace?   Although it used to be in a hunting region in the countryside, now it’s seen as a wealthy suburb of Paris, and it’s economy is mainly funded by servicing the many tourists that visit the Palace, and it’s environs.  It used to be a royal city, and now its the periphery to a massive tourist attraction.   What may be of interest to American tourists is that Washington DC was modelled on the rational and symmetrical grid of streets in Versailles – but that’s a tenuous hope frankly.

But Versailles used to be a seat of power, evidenced by the significant meeting of political greats to sign treaties that would shape the world’s economic and political future in more modern times, but in the late 1700s it was the cradle for the French Revolution.  However, this power didn’t last long and the population decreased significantly when the rising unrest of the plebians of the area caused the royal family to move back to Paris.   After the restoration of the monarchy almost occurred in 1873, Versailles again became the political centre of France.  But this brief rising was again crushed when the republicans won parliamentary elections and moved the government dealings back to Paris.

So what of Versailles today?  What does it have to offer? It has limited industry and a feeling of being compartmentalised, due to the very large avenues which remain, and create an impression of a number of smaller cities.  Although there are a few chemical and food processing plants, it is now a place of services, and tourist attractions which vie to bring visitors into the town when they visit the Palace.  There is an opera house, so far so good, if you like Opera you may wish to visit.  It is noted for its acoustics being primarily made of wood.  There’s a cathedral, and the Church of Notre-Dame de Versailles, there’s even a market. 

Well frankly then, very few reasons to make Versailles a destination, just shoot in, do the Palace and the Trianon, and that’ll do.

 

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