Grand Trianon
Encyclopedia
The Grand Trianon was built in the northwestern part of the Domain of Versailles
at the request of Louis XIV
, as a retreat for the King and his maîtresse en titre of the time, the marquise de Montespan
, and as a place where the King and invited guests could take light meals (collations) away from the strict étiquette
of the Court.
The Grand Trianon is set within its own park, which includes the Petit Trianon
(the much smaller château built between 1762 and 1768 during the reign of Louis XV
).
on the outskirts of Versailles
, and commissioned the architect Louis Le Vau
to design a porcelain pavilion (Trianon de porcelaine) to be built there.
The façade
was made of white and blue Delft
-style "porcelain" (ceramic) tiles from the French manufactures of Rouen
, Lisieux
, Nevers
and Saint-Cloud
. Construction began in 1670 and was finished in 1672.
By 1687, the fragile ceramic tiles had deteriorated to such a point that Louis XIV ordered the demolition of the pavilion and its replacement with one made of stronger material. Commission of the work was entrusted to the architect Jules Hardouin Mansart
. Hardouin-Mansart's new structure was twice the size of the porcelain pavilion, and the material used was red marble of Languedoc
.
Begun in June 1687, the new construction (as we see it today) was finished in January 1688 and inaugurated by Louis XIV and his secret wife, the marquise de Maintenon
, during the summer of 1688.
The Grand Trianon would often play host to the King and his wife. The first set of Grands appartments lasted from 1688 to 1691. The next was from 1691 till 1701; then 1701 till his death at Versailles in 1715.
From 1703 to 1711, the building was the residence of le Grand Dauphin.
The domain was a favourite of the Duchess of Burgundy, the wife of his grandson Louis de France, the parents of Louis XV
.
In the later years of Louis XIV's reign, the Trianon was the residence of the King's sister-in-law Elizabeth Charlotte of the Palatinate
, Dowager Duchess of Orléans and known at court as Madame
. Her son, Philippe d'Orléans
, future son-in-law of Louis XIV and Regent
of France, lived there with his mother. Louis XIV even ordered the construction of a larger wing to the Grand Trianon which was begun in 1708 by Mansart; this wing, called Trianon-sous-Bois, housed the Orléans family, including Louis XIV's legitimised daughter Françoise-Marie de Bourbon
.
The King's youngest grandson Charles de France and his wife Marie Louise Élisabeth d'Orléans
also resided there. The Orléans family, who had apartments at the Palace of Versailles, were later replaced by Françoise-Marie's sister; the Duchess of Bourbon, Madame la Duchesse
lived at the Trianon and later built the Palais Bourbon
in Paris
, the design of the palace being copied on that of the Trianon.
In 1717, Peter the Great of Russia
, who was studying the palace and gardens of Versailles, resided at the Grand Trianon; the Grand Palace at Peterhof
is copied on Versailles.
Louis XV did not bring any changes to the Grand Trianon. In 1740 and 1743, his father-in-law, Stanislas Leszczynski, former king of Poland stayed there during his visits to Versailles. Later, it was during a stay at Trianon that Louis XV fell ill before being transported to the Palace of Versailles, where he died on 10 May 1774.
No more than his predecessor had, Louis XVI
brought no structural modifications to the Grand Trianon. His wife, Queen Marie Antoinette
, who preferred the Petit Trianon, gave a few theatrical representations in the galerie des Cotelle, a gallery with paintings by Jean l'Aîné Cotelle representing the bosquets of Versailles and Trianon.
During the French Revolution
of 1789, the Grand Trianon was left to neglect. At the time of the First French Empire
, Napoleon
made it one of his residences, and furnished it in the Empire Style.
Napoleon lived at Trianon with his second wife Marie Louise of Austria
.
The next royals to live at Trianon were the King and Queen of the French, Louis Philippe I and his Italian wife Maria Amalia of the Two Sicilies
; he was a descendant of the Regent Philippe d'Orléans and she was a niece of Marie Antoinette.
In October 1837 Marie d'Orléans (daughter of Louis Philippe I) married Alexander of Württemberg at Trianon
In 1920, the Grand Trianon hosted the negotiations and signing of the Treaty of Trianon
, which left Hungary
with less than one-third of its pre-World War I
land size. To the Hungarians, the word "Trianon" remains to this day the symbol of one of their worst national disasters.
1963 saw Charles de Gaulle
order a renovation of the building.
A popular site for tourists visiting Versailles, it is also one of the French Republic presidential residences used to host foreign officials.
It is today the residence of visiting foreign dignitaries.
Palace of Versailles
The Palace of Versailles , or simply Versailles, is a royal château in Versailles in the Île-de-France region of France. In French it is the Château de Versailles....
at the request of Louis XIV
Louis XIV of France
Louis XIV , known as Louis the Great or the Sun King , was a Bourbon monarch who ruled as King of France and Navarre. His reign, from 1643 to his death in 1715, began at the age of four and lasted seventy-two years, three months, and eighteen days...
, as a retreat for the King and his maîtresse en titre of the time, the marquise de Montespan
Françoise-Athénaïs, marquise de Montespan
Françoise Athénaïs de Rochechouart de Mortemart, marquise of Montespan , better known as Madame de Montespan, was the most celebrated maîtresse en titre of King Louis XIV of France, by whom she had seven children....
, and as a place where the King and invited guests could take light meals (collations) away from the strict étiquette
Etiquette
Etiquette is a code of behavior that delineates expectations for social behavior according to contemporary conventional norms within a society, social class, or group...
of the Court.
The Grand Trianon is set within its own park, which includes the Petit Trianon
Petit Trianon
The Petit Trianon is a small château located on the grounds of the Palace of Versailles in Versailles, France.-Design and construction:...
(the much smaller château built between 1762 and 1768 during the reign of Louis XV
Louis XV of France
Louis XV was a Bourbon monarch who ruled as King of France and of Navarre from 1 September 1715 until his death. He succeeded his great-grandfather at the age of five, his first cousin Philippe II, Duke of Orléans, served as Regent of the kingdom until Louis's majority in 1723...
).
History
In 1668, Louis XIV purchased Trianon, a hamletHamlet (place)
A hamlet is usually a rural settlement which is too small to be considered a village, though sometimes the word is used for a different sort of community. Historically, when a hamlet became large enough to justify building a church, it was then classified as a village...
on the outskirts of Versailles
Versailles
Versailles , a city renowned for its château, the Palace of Versailles, was the de facto capital of the kingdom of France for over a century, from 1682 to 1789. It is now a wealthy suburb of Paris and remains an important administrative and judicial centre...
, and commissioned the architect Louis Le Vau
Louis Le Vau
Louis Le Vau was a French Classical architect who worked for Louis XIV of France. He was born and died in Paris.He was responsible, with André Le Nôtre and Charles Le Brun, for the redesign of the château of Vaux-le-Vicomte. His later works included the Palace of Versailles and his collaboration...
to design a porcelain pavilion (Trianon de porcelaine) to be built there.
The façade
Facade
A facade or façade is generally one exterior side of a building, usually, but not always, the front. The word comes from the French language, literally meaning "frontage" or "face"....
was made of white and blue Delft
Delft
Delft is a city and municipality in the province of South Holland , the Netherlands. It is located between Rotterdam and The Hague....
-style "porcelain" (ceramic) tiles from the French manufactures of Rouen
Rouen
Rouen , in northern France on the River Seine, is the capital of the Haute-Normandie region and the historic capital city of Normandy. Once one of the largest and most prosperous cities of medieval Europe , it was the seat of the Exchequer of Normandy in the Middle Ages...
, Lisieux
Lisieux
Lisieux is a commune in the Calvados department in the Basse-Normandie region in northwestern France.Lisieux is the capital of the Pays d'Auge area, which is characterised by valleys and hedged farmland...
, Nevers
Nevers
Nevers is a commune in – and the administrative capital of – the Nièvre department in the Bourgogne region in central France...
and Saint-Cloud
Saint-Cloud
Saint-Cloud is a commune in the western suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the centre of Paris.Like other communes of the Hauts-de-Seine such as Marnes-la-Coquette, Neuilly-sur-Seine or Vaucresson, Saint-Cloud is one of the wealthiest cities in France, ranked 22nd out of the 36500 in...
. Construction began in 1670 and was finished in 1672.
By 1687, the fragile ceramic tiles had deteriorated to such a point that Louis XIV ordered the demolition of the pavilion and its replacement with one made of stronger material. Commission of the work was entrusted to the architect Jules Hardouin Mansart
Jules Hardouin Mansart
Jules Hardouin-Mansart was a French architect whose work is generally considered to be the apex of French Baroque architecture, representing the power and grandeur of Louis XIV...
. Hardouin-Mansart's new structure was twice the size of the porcelain pavilion, and the material used was red marble of Languedoc
Languedoc
Languedoc is a former province of France, now continued in the modern-day régions of Languedoc-Roussillon and Midi-Pyrénées in the south of France, and whose capital city was Toulouse, now in Midi-Pyrénées. It had an area of approximately 42,700 km² .-Geographical Extent:The traditional...
.
Begun in June 1687, the new construction (as we see it today) was finished in January 1688 and inaugurated by Louis XIV and his secret wife, the marquise de Maintenon
Françoise d'Aubigné, Marquise de Maintenon
Françoise d'Aubigné, Marquise de Maintenon was the second wife of King Louis XIV of France. She was known during her first marriage as Madame Scarron, and subsequently as Madame de Maintenon...
, during the summer of 1688.
The Grand Trianon would often play host to the King and his wife. The first set of Grands appartments lasted from 1688 to 1691. The next was from 1691 till 1701; then 1701 till his death at Versailles in 1715.
From 1703 to 1711, the building was the residence of le Grand Dauphin.
The domain was a favourite of the Duchess of Burgundy, the wife of his grandson Louis de France, the parents of Louis XV
Louis XV of France
Louis XV was a Bourbon monarch who ruled as King of France and of Navarre from 1 September 1715 until his death. He succeeded his great-grandfather at the age of five, his first cousin Philippe II, Duke of Orléans, served as Regent of the kingdom until Louis's majority in 1723...
.
In the later years of Louis XIV's reign, the Trianon was the residence of the King's sister-in-law Elizabeth Charlotte of the Palatinate
Elizabeth Charlotte of the Palatinate
Elizabeth Charlotte, Princess Palatine was a German princess and the wife of Philippe I, Duke of Orléans, younger brother of Louis XIV of France. Her vast correspondence provides a detailed account of the personalities and activities at the court of her brother-in-law, Louis XIV...
, Dowager Duchess of Orléans and known at court as Madame
Fils de France
Fils de France was the style and rank held by the sons of the kings and dauphins of France. A daughter was known as a fille de France .The children of the dauphin, who was the king's heir apparent, were accorded the same style and status as if they were the king's children instead of his...
. Her son, Philippe d'Orléans
Philippe II, Duke of Orléans
Philippe d'Orléans was a member of the royal family of France and served as Regent of the Kingdom from 1715 to 1723. Born at his father's palace at Saint-Cloud, he was known from birth under the title of Duke of Chartres...
, future son-in-law of Louis XIV and Regent
Régence
The Régence is the period in French history between 1715 and 1723, when King Louis XV was a minor and the land was governed by a Regent, Philippe d'Orléans, the nephew of Louis XIV of France....
of France, lived there with his mother. Louis XIV even ordered the construction of a larger wing to the Grand Trianon which was begun in 1708 by Mansart; this wing, called Trianon-sous-Bois, housed the Orléans family, including Louis XIV's legitimised daughter Françoise-Marie de Bourbon
Françoise-Marie de Bourbon
Françoise Marie de Bourbon, Légitimée de France was the youngest legitimised daughter of Louis XIV of France and his maîtresse-en-titre, Françoise-Athénaïs, marquise de Montespan. Originally known as the second Mademoiselle de Blois, that style eventually gave way to the name Françoise Marie de...
.
The King's youngest grandson Charles de France and his wife Marie Louise Élisabeth d'Orléans
Marie Louise Elisabeth d'Orléans
Marie Louise Élisabeth d'Orléans, Duchess of Berry , was a member of the House of Orléans who married Charles, Duke of Berry.-Biography:...
also resided there. The Orléans family, who had apartments at the Palace of Versailles, were later replaced by Françoise-Marie's sister; the Duchess of Bourbon, Madame la Duchesse
Louise-Françoise de Bourbon
Louise Françoise de Bourbon, Légitimée de France was the eldest surviving legitimised daughter of Louis XIV of France and his maîtresse-en-titre, Madame de Montespan. She was said to have been named after her godmother, Louise de La Vallière, the woman that her mother had replaced as the king's...
lived at the Trianon and later built the Palais Bourbon
Palais Bourbon
The Palais Bourbon, , a palace located on the left bank of the Seine, across from the Place de la Concorde, Paris , is the seat of the French National Assembly, the lower legislative chamber of the French government.-History:...
in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, the design of the palace being copied on that of the Trianon.
In 1717, Peter the Great of Russia
Peter I of Russia
Peter the Great, Peter I or Pyotr Alexeyevich Romanov Dates indicated by the letters "O.S." are Old Style. All other dates in this article are New Style. ruled the Tsardom of Russia and later the Russian Empire from until his death, jointly ruling before 1696 with his half-brother, Ivan V...
, who was studying the palace and gardens of Versailles, resided at the Grand Trianon; the Grand Palace at Peterhof
Peterhof Palace
The Peterhof Palace in Russian, so German is transliterated as "Петергoф" Petergof into Russian) for "Peter's Court") is actually a series of palaces and gardens located in Saint Petersburg, Russia, laid out on the orders of Peter the Great. These Palaces and gardens are sometimes referred as the...
is copied on Versailles.
Louis XV did not bring any changes to the Grand Trianon. In 1740 and 1743, his father-in-law, Stanislas Leszczynski, former king of Poland stayed there during his visits to Versailles. Later, it was during a stay at Trianon that Louis XV fell ill before being transported to the Palace of Versailles, where he died on 10 May 1774.
No more than his predecessor had, Louis XVI
Louis XVI of France
Louis XVI was a Bourbon monarch who ruled as King of France and Navarre until 1791, and then as King of the French from 1791 to 1792, before being executed in 1793....
brought no structural modifications to the Grand Trianon. His wife, Queen Marie Antoinette
Marie Antoinette
Marie Antoinette ; 2 November 1755 – 16 October 1793) was an Archduchess of Austria and the Queen of France and of Navarre. She was the fifteenth and penultimate child of Holy Roman Empress Maria Theresa and Holy Roman Emperor Francis I....
, who preferred the Petit Trianon, gave a few theatrical representations in the galerie des Cotelle, a gallery with paintings by Jean l'Aîné Cotelle representing the bosquets of Versailles and Trianon.
During the French Revolution
French Revolution
The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...
of 1789, the Grand Trianon was left to neglect. At the time of the First French Empire
First French Empire
The First French Empire , also known as the Greater French Empire or Napoleonic Empire, was the empire of Napoleon I of France...
, Napoleon
Napoleon I of France
Napoleon Bonaparte was a French military and political leader during the latter stages of the French Revolution.As Napoleon I, he was Emperor of the French from 1804 to 1815...
made it one of his residences, and furnished it in the Empire Style.
Napoleon lived at Trianon with his second wife Marie Louise of Austria
Marie Louise, Duchess of Parma
Marie Louise of Austria was the second wife of Napoleon I, Emperor of the French and later Duchess of Parma...
.
The next royals to live at Trianon were the King and Queen of the French, Louis Philippe I and his Italian wife Maria Amalia of the Two Sicilies
Maria Amalia of the Two Sicilies
Maria Amalia of Naples and Sicily sometimes known as Maria Amalia of the Two Sicilies was a Princess of Naples and Sicily and later the Queen of the French from 1830–1848, consort to Louis Philippe I....
; he was a descendant of the Regent Philippe d'Orléans and she was a niece of Marie Antoinette.
In October 1837 Marie d'Orléans (daughter of Louis Philippe I) married Alexander of Württemberg at Trianon
In 1920, the Grand Trianon hosted the negotiations and signing of the Treaty of Trianon
Treaty of Trianon
The Treaty of Trianon was the peace agreement signed in 1920, at the end of World War I, between the Allies of World War I and Hungary . The treaty greatly redefined and reduced Hungary's borders. From its borders before World War I, it lost 72% of its territory, which was reduced from to...
, which left Hungary
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
with less than one-third of its pre-World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
land size. To the Hungarians, the word "Trianon" remains to this day the symbol of one of their worst national disasters.
1963 saw Charles de Gaulle
Charles de Gaulle
Charles André Joseph Marie de Gaulle was a French general and statesman who led the Free French Forces during World War II. He later founded the French Fifth Republic in 1958 and served as its first President from 1959 to 1969....
order a renovation of the building.
A popular site for tourists visiting Versailles, it is also one of the French Republic presidential residences used to host foreign officials.
List of residents
- 1690-1703 : Louis XIVLouis XIV of FranceLouis XIV , known as Louis the Great or the Sun King , was a Bourbon monarch who ruled as King of France and Navarre. His reign, from 1643 to his death in 1715, began at the age of four and lasted seventy-two years, three months, and eighteen days...
- 1703-1711 : le Grand Dauphin, son of Louis XIV
- From 1708 : Elizabeth Charlotte of the PalatinateElizabeth Charlotte of the PalatinateElizabeth Charlotte, Princess Palatine was a German princess and the wife of Philippe I, Duke of Orléans, younger brother of Louis XIV of France. Her vast correspondence provides a detailed account of the personalities and activities at the court of her brother-in-law, Louis XIV...
in the Trianon-sous-Bois wing
- From 1708 : Elizabeth Charlotte of the Palatinate
- 1711-1712 : The Duke and Duchess of Burgundy, son of the above and his wife
- 1712-1714 : The Duke and Duchess of BerryMarie Louise Elisabeth d'OrléansMarie Louise Élisabeth d'Orléans, Duchess of Berry , was a member of the House of Orléans who married Charles, Duke of Berry.-Biography:...
, brother of the above - 1717 : Peter the GreatPeter I of RussiaPeter the Great, Peter I or Pyotr Alexeyevich Romanov Dates indicated by the letters "O.S." are Old Style. All other dates in this article are New Style. ruled the Tsardom of Russia and later the Russian Empire from until his death, jointly ruling before 1696 with his half-brother, Ivan V...
, Emperor of Russia and his entourage - c.1720 : Madame la DuchesseLouise-Françoise de BourbonLouise Françoise de Bourbon, Légitimée de France was the eldest surviving legitimised daughter of Louis XIV of France and his maîtresse-en-titre, Madame de Montespan. She was said to have been named after her godmother, Louise de La Vallière, the woman that her mother had replaced as the king's...
, daughter of Louis XIV and Madame de Montespan - 1740 and 1743 : Stanislas Leszczynski, former king of Poland
- 1774 : Louis XVLouis XV of FranceLouis XV was a Bourbon monarch who ruled as King of France and of Navarre from 1 September 1715 until his death. He succeeded his great-grandfather at the age of five, his first cousin Philippe II, Duke of Orléans, served as Regent of the kingdom until Louis's majority in 1723...
, there the week before his death - 1810-1814 : Empress Marie LouiseMarie Louise, Duchess of ParmaMarie Louise of Austria was the second wife of Napoleon I, Emperor of the French and later Duchess of Parma...
, wife of Napoléon INapoleon I of FranceNapoleon Bonaparte was a French military and political leader during the latter stages of the French Revolution.As Napoleon I, he was Emperor of the French from 1804 to 1815... - 1830-1848 : Queen Marie AmélieMaria Amalia of the Two SiciliesMaria Amalia of Naples and Sicily sometimes known as Maria Amalia of the Two Sicilies was a Princess of Naples and Sicily and later the Queen of the French from 1830–1848, consort to Louis Philippe I....
, wife of Louis Philippe ILouis-Philippe of FranceLouis Philippe I was King of the French from 1830 to 1848 in what was known as the July Monarchy. His father was a duke who supported the French Revolution but was nevertheless guillotined. Louis Philippe fled France as a young man and spent 21 years in exile, including considerable time in the...
It is today the residence of visiting foreign dignitaries.
See also
- RosecliffRosecliffRosecliff, built 1898-1902, is one of the Gilded Age mansions of Newport, Rhode Island, now open to the public as a museum.The house has also been known as the Herman Oelrichs House or the J. Edgar Monroe House....
- Subsidiary structures of the Palace of VersaillesSubsidiary structures of the Palace of VersaillesFive subsidiary structures located near the Palace of Versailles have a historical relation with the history and evolution of the palace. Of these five structure – the Ménagerie, the Pavillon de la Lanterne the Trianon de Porcelaine, the Grand Trianon , and the Petit Trianon – two have been...
- Treaty of TrianonTreaty of TrianonThe Treaty of Trianon was the peace agreement signed in 1920, at the end of World War I, between the Allies of World War I and Hungary . The treaty greatly redefined and reduced Hungary's borders. From its borders before World War I, it lost 72% of its territory, which was reduced from to...
- Établissement public du château, du musée et du domaine national de VersaillesÉtablissement public du château, du musée et du domaine national de VersaillesThe Établissement public du château, du musée et du domaine national de Versailles is a French public establishment , established in 1995, and working under the supervision of the French Ministry of Culture, in order to administer the Palace of Versailles.It is headed by Jean-Jacques Aillagon,...