rhyssain – Page 13 – French Travel Boutique

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The Queen’s New Apartment

When Louis XV died, his grandson Louis XVI allowed his three surviving daughters, Adelaide, Victoire and Sophie, to keep their spacious apartments on the ground floor. The new king referred to them as “Mesdames Tantes” (aunts). Madame Sophie died in 1782 and Marie-Antoinette took the opportunity to convert her ground floor apartment into her own “little apartment on the marble courtyard”. There was already a suite of small private rooms behind the official bedchamber which had been there from the time of Marie-Leszczynska and which Marie-Antoinette redecorated. She had also taken took over the rooms above on the second floor to create even more “by invitation only” spaces, including a salon, dining room and boudoir as well as rooms for her staff. The new apartment on the marble courtyard was different in that it was the same idea as the private bedroom of Louis XV and XVI. It was a personal bedroom and bathroom, separate from the courtiers. This new apartment was very much in keeping with the idea of Louis XV which had been followed by her husband Louis XVI to have a private apartment. Official ceremonies still took place in the Queen’s bedchamber but this private apartment was where she liked to spend her time. It was referred to by the staff as “the Queen’s new apartment”. The green damask bed she had used for the birth of her first two children was modified and placed there. As childbirth for the Queen could not be private, she gave birth to her third and fourth children in her official bedchamber on the first floor. Marie-Antoinette’s new bedroom was on the right hand side and the bathroom was on the left. Between was a library on the site of Madame Sophie’s. The apartment was destroyed by Louis-Philippe when he turned Versailles into a museum. The bedroom and bathroom have been restored but the central part is now displayed as the vestibule it was in the time of Louis XIV. All bathrooms contained a day bed to take a rest following the bath. The bed in Marie-Antoinette’s ground floor bathroom is the original from Louis XVI’s bathroom at Compiegne. In case you were wondering, the toilet is in the room behind the bath. You can see the doorway that leads to it. In 2011 there was an amazing exhibition by Belgian artist Isabelle de Borchgrove which brought to life Marie-Antoinette’s bathroom. The reason the fabric is different on the bed is that everything the artist does is in paper!! For the exhibition they recreated a bath. The door on the left leads to the toilet. Behind the bath there was a two way mirror, allowing light into the toilet area.

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Marie-Antoinette’s Boudoirs at Fontainebleau

The Turkish Boudoir The Silver Boudoir

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Marie-Antoinette’s Baby’s Cradle

When Marie-Antoinette asked Elisabeth Vigée Le Brun to paint a portrait of her with her children, the youngest child Sophie was depicted in her cradle. The portrait had to be adjusted when the 11 month old baby died during the time it was being painted. The green silk ,which was typically used as it was regarded as the best colour for a tranquil environment encouraging sleep, is in shadow, turning it to almost black. The painting was originally in Marie-Antoinette’s bedroom but when her older son died she could no longer bear to look at it and had it removed from her apartment. That saved it from being destroyed during the French Revolution and the painting can now be seen in the Queen’s apartment at Versailles.

The “Cabinet de glaces mouvantes” (moving mirrors) - Marie-Antoinette’s boudoir at the Petit Trianon

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Petit Trianon Boudoir

When Marie-Antoinette took over the Petit Trianon, she focussed her efforts on changing the garden. Louis XV’s botanical garden was replaced by the new “English style” garden complete with a river and island. One of the first interior changes Marie-Antoinette made was to remove Louis XV’s private staircase and coffee room next to the room she now used as her bedroom and replaced it with a boudoir. Two years before the French Revolution, Marie-Antoinette decided to refurnish the interior of the Petit Trianon. Her interior designer commissioned new boiseries for the boudoir. They were the latest fashion at the time, known as “arabesque”. The entry door to the boudoir is on the left of the bed. On the other side of Marie-Antoinette’s bedroom, she replaced Louis XV’s botanical library with a “cabinet de toilette”, which did not contain a toilet*. The “cabinet de toilette” was where Marie-Antoinette had her hair and make up done. Even though Marie-Antoinette deliberately reduced the staff she brought with her to the Petit Trianon— to a total of six people – two of them were hairdressers. *In keeping with the confusing labels of the rooms, the toilet was in a small room called the “cabinet de garde-robe” (which was not used as a wardrobe) behind the wall opposite the windows in the bedroom. The bathroom visitors pass leaving Marie-Antoinette’s apartment dates from the time of the Duchess of Orleans, almost 50 years after Marie-Antoinette left the Petit Trianon.

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Versailles Boudoir

In 1781 Marie-Antoinette was pregnant for the second time. She was convinced the child would be a son — the highly desired Dauphin. She had her favourite architect Richard Mique design a boudoir directly behind her official bedchamber which was a celebration of the anticipated birth. The emblems on the boiseries included symbols of marital love and dolphins (Dauphin is French for dolphin). It turned out Marie-Antoinette was right. A month after her new boudoir was completed she did indeed give birth to the desired dauphin. To ensure privacy, the architect had to create a new walkway so that the staff did not have to cross the boudoir. Marie-Antoinette spent as much time as she could in this delicious private little (14 sq meter) space. She often escaped to the day bed (“meridienne”) there.

Marie-Antoinette's Bedchamber at the Petit Trianon. Entry to the boudoir

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Marie-Antoinette’s Bed: Petit Trianon

From Mme du Barry to Marie-Antoinette The records of the “Garde-Meuble” the department responsible for the furniture, show that in 1772 a fine sculptured bed was delivered to the Petit Trianon for Madame du Barry. Like the rest of the furniture, it was painted white and not gilded. Six years after his first dinner at the Petit Trianon, Louis XV was staying there with Mme du Barry when he fell ill. His surgeon insisted he return to Versailles. He had smallpox and it became clear he would not survive. He sent Mme du Barry to stay with a friend and died a few days later. Within days of Louis XV’s death, his successor Louis XVI exiled Mme du Barry. She was sent to a convent 60 kilometers away. Her Versailles days were over. Louis XVI decided to give the Petit Trianon to Marie-Antoinette. He had a jeweller make a master key to the domain which was garnished with 531 diamonds. Marie-Antoinette made it very much a private home. She dressed simply and enjoyed the freedom from the royal protocol. She kept the furniture which had been left by Madame du Barry for 13 years. After three years she gilded the white woodwork on the bed. She also replaced the fabric but chose something very similar—white silk with multi coloured flowers (Mme du Barry had branches and Marie-Antoinette had birds). Two years before the Revolution she ordered the new furniture for the bedroom which is now there. Flowers had always been the decorative theme of the Petit Trianon. Painted ribbon tied bundles of wheat, with branches of ivy and jasmine and lily of the valley decorate the sculptured wood of the furniture. The new fabric was specially ordered from Lyon and features cornflowers and roses. Like all the furniture at Versailles it disappeared with the French Revolution. There is however a happy ending with Marie-Antoinette’s bedroom at the Petit Trianon. Just as the original bed cover from the Queen’s state apartment in the chateau was returned, a substantial amount of the furniture from Marie-Antoinette’s bedroom at the Petit Trianon has returned to Versailles including the fire screen and four of the chairs. The bed was recreated with the identical fabric. Desfarges, the silk manufacturer from Lyon, delivered the fabric for both the Queen’s official bed chamber in the Chateau and this bedroom in the Petit Trianon two years before the French Revolution. Marie-Antoinette replaced Louis XV’s staircase and coffee room next to the bedroom with a state of the art boudoir.

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Glaces Mouvantes

To ensure Marie-Antoinette’s privacy in her new boudoir, a unique solution was provided by the court’s mechanic from the royal “garde meuble”. He installed an innovative system using mirrors to cover the windows from inside. The mirrors could be raised or lowered on a system of pulleys and springs.

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3 Mins Read

Anne of Brittany

Anne of Brittany is the only woman who became Queen of France twice. At the age of 11 Anne became Duchess of Brittany when her father died. Because the Duchy of Brittany had been an independent state, as heir to the duchy Anne had been the marriage target for a number of key players including the future king of England. The year after she became Duchess of Brittany she was married by proxy to Maximilian of Austria. This was handled the usual way, with his representative attending the church ceremony in Rennes and subsequently placing a toe in the bed with Anne, which was supposed to represent the marriage having been consummated. Charles VIII This marriage provoked a swift reaction from France. There had been an agreement that any marital alliances had to be approved by France. Not only had this not occurred, but Anne had married a potential enemy of France. The French King Charles VIII was twenty one years old when he successfully laid siege to Brittany. Anne, the Duchess of Brittany signed a treaty with France. This included marrying the young French king. It was going to be complicated. Not only was Anne legally married to Maximilian of Austria, but Charles was engaged to Maximilian’s young daughter Margaret who was living in the royal residence in Amboise. They were regarded as details which could be overcome and almost a year to the day after the wedding to Maximilian, Anne married Charles VIII. The Château de Langeais has a wonderful recreation of the event, which is well worth a visit. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rqX9MeM75HM Anne became pregnant immediately and gave birth to a son and heir to the French throne named Charles-Orland. Virtually each of the next five years, she gave birth, with none of the children surviving. Charles VIII bought a residence near the Chateau of Amboise which was a retreat. He added a chapel in the local white stone known as “tuffeau” where his wife Anne of Brittany retreated to mourn the loss of her children. This residence, later known as Clos Lucé, would be used to house Leonardo da Vinci when Francois I invited him to live in France. Charles Orland, the only surviving child died of measles at the age of three. A few days after the birth – and death – of the youngest daughter, Charles was at the Chateau of Amboise where he went to watch a “jeu de paume” – a type of tennis played in the dry moat. He hit his head on the lintel and died from the injury a few hours later. He was twenty seven. His widow Anne was twenty one. The importance of Brittany to France had been shown by a clause in the agreement which meant that if the French King died without an heir, Anne of Brittany would marry his successor. This was somewhat complicated by the fact that the new King, Louis XII was already married – to Charles VIII’s sister. However it was a marriage that had been forced on him and he had tried to get out of many times. This time the Pope came through for him and the marriage was annulled. Louis XII married Anne of Brittany in January 1499. They lived in his Chateau of Blois. Again she was pregnant immediately and gave birth to a daughter named Claude. Anne then gave birth to two sons who did not survive, and had a number of miscarriages. Eleven years after giving birth the Claude, she had a second daughter, Renée, who survived. The year after giving birth to yet another stillborn son, Anne died at the age of 36. Claude succeeded her as Duchess of Brittany. Four months later Louis XII went ahead with his plan to marry his elder daughter Claude to then heir of the French throne – François. Seven months later on New Years Day 1515 François became King of France. Anne of Brittany’s daughter was now Queen of France. Louis XII

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Vauban

Vauban was Chief Engineer for Louis XIV. He changed the way war was conducted. It was a totally different approach with this mathematically minded person co-ordinating the troups. He set up the Royal Corps of Military Engineers He was an expert in siege warfare and fortifications. He transformed fortresses, towns and harbours. His unique method was such a great success at the siege of Maastricht that Louis XIV gave him enough money to buy the Chateau de Bazoches in Burgundy. tvaban His bed is still there and unlike the vast majority, it still has the original fabric. Vauban is buried at Bazoches. His place in history was such that one hundred years after his death, Napoleon ordered Vauban’s heart to be removed from the tomb (hearts were always interred separately) and placed at Les Invalides.

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Anne of Austria’s Bed

Anne of Austria’s marriage to Louis XIII was unhappy to say the least. This was not helped by the fact it took more than 16 years for Anne to finally produce an heir to the throne. When her son Louis XIV inherited the throne at the age of five, Anne managed to overturn her late husband’s wishes and became Regent of France during his minority. She endured all sorts of political intrigue and ensured that her son was able to rule independently when the time came. Unlike the two previous Queen Mothers who had also been Regents, she did not build her own Paris residence (Catherine de Medici had built the Tuileries Palace and Marie de Medici the Luxembourg Palace). Anne decided to become the benefactor of Val de Grace, a nunnery where she maintained an apartment. Anne had apartments at all the royal residences. Visitors can walk through her lovely summer apartment at the Louvre, with the bedroom overlooking the Seine, although only the ceilings are original. She redesigned the Queen Mother’s apartment at Fontainebleau which had been used previously by Catherine de Medici and Marie de Medici. 150 years later it was used by Napoleon to accommodate the Pope. When his mother died of breast cancer at the age of 66 Louis XIV was grief stricken. A councillor tried to comfort him by saying what a great queen she had been. Louis replied: “No monsieur, she was more than a great Queen. She was a great King.“