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The Chevalier vs Chevalier.
It’s been almost a year now since Versailles first aired in France and since then it aired in several other countries worldwide, currently in America. During this year, I have met quite a lot of people who had one particular issue with one of the characters. That issue can be partly blamed on the show itself, for it is not explained…
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Mademoiselle In Facebook Purgatory
Some might have already noticed it, my whole Facebook presence vanished from one second to the next. With that I mean, my actual account and my page for this blog. What happened? I actually don’t really know. All was normal until Saturday and I didn’t hit the disable button myself, in fact I didn’t even notice something was wrong. That…
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Laure Mancini, Duchesse de Mercœur
Laure Mancini was the oldest of the five Mancini sisters. Born on May 6, 1636, she was called to France by Cardinal de Mazarin, along with her sister Olympe and cousin Anne-Marie Martinozzi, in 1647. Upon arriving in France, Laure adopted, like the rest, the French spelling of her name, Laure-Victoire Mancini. Due to the influence of their uncle, Cardinal…
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The Last Days Of Louis XIV – October 23, 1715
After laying-in-state for forty days, during which a constant stream of visitors roamed Saint-Denis, Louis XIV’s coffin is carried into the crypt. By tradition, the coffin of a deceased King is placed by the entrance of the crypt, until his successor’s demise, after which the King’s coffin is brought to its final resting place and the successor takes the spot…
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The Plundering Of The Royal Tombs of Saint-Denis
The Basilique royale de Saint-Denis has been the burial side of French Monarchs for centuries. Saint Denis, after which the Basilique was named, is the Parton Saint of Paris. You can find images of him carrying his head all over the city and France. Saint Denis, or Dionysius, is believed to have been the very first Bishop of Paris. He…
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Alexandre Bontemps, Valet and Special Agent
Born on 9 June in 1626 in Paris, Alexandre Bontemps rose to be one of the most powerful men at the court of Louis XIV. His father, Jean-Baptiste Bontemps, was originally from Marseille and was made first surgeon to Louis XIII in 1633 and in 1643, he became premier valet de chambre ordinaire by lettres patentes. Louis XIII died a…
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Funny And Not So Funny Things That Happened At The Court Of Louis XIV, Part Six
Marly-le-Roi appears to be the perfect place for playing pranks on others, as we have learned, but it also seems to be a good place to try new things at. The King’s daughters Françoise-Marie de Bourbon, Duchesse de Chartres, and Louise-Françoise de Bourbon, Duchesse de Bourbon, while visiting Marly, borrowed pipes from the Swiss Guards. They were eager to try…
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Dangeau’s Diary, October 1685
2d. — The King at his levee received the intelligence that all the town of Castres was converted. 5th. — We have learnt that Montpellier and all the diocese, as well as Lunel, Maugnio, Aigues- mortes, are converted. The diocese of Nismes, the same. 7th. — The death of Vittorio Siri, historiographer to the King, was announced. He had been…
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Five Things You Probably Did Not Know About Louis XIV
-Louis XIV liked his windows open. He did not care much if the weather was good or bad, as soon as he entered a room, Louis opened all windows. His mistresses did not like this habit much. Madame de Maintenon complained of it regularly, saying the King does not care whether she felt cold due to the windows being open. It was…
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Paris With Claire
Paris is a beautiful city and a large city full of history. There are the major tourist attractions everyone knows about, but there are also the little side-streets with their beautiful buildings, small parks, corners the normal Paris visitor does not normally see. For example the oldest tree in Paris or were the old Roman wall once stood. If you plan…
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Alexandre bâtard de Lorraine, Chevalier de Beauvernois
Alexandre de Lorraine was born to Philippe de Lorraine and a certain Claude de Souches or possibly Mademoiselle de Fiennes, both are mentioned as his mother. His year of birth was between 1668 and 1674, 1670 being the most common year mentioned. Alexandre was one of several children fathered by the Chevalier de Lorraine, the infamous paramour of Louis XIV’s brother, which according…
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The Last Days Of Louis XIV – September 9, 1715
At first light, the funeral convoy is welcomed at the city gates by the Dionysian clergy. After the customary prayers are said, Louis XIV’s body is taken into the Basilica of Saint Denis. It had been decorated in mourning and the upper choir was transformed into a lying-in-state chapel for the King’s coffin. In the meanwhile, the King’s heart was…
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The Last Days Of Louis XIV – September 8, 1715
Louis XIV’s coffin is brought from his apartments to the Marble Court of Versailles. At precisely seven o’clock in the evening the royal hearse leaves the château for Saint-Denis, the traditional burial-place of the French Kings. The Sun King will join his wife and legitimate children there, as well as his brother, and his first wife, their mother and father.…
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The Last Days Of Louis XIV – September 5, 1715
It is Louis XIV’s birthday. He would have turned seventy-seven today. His coffin of oak is still on display in the Royal Apartment and will be so for a few more days, before it travels to Saint Denis. The Royal Apartments have been transformed into a place of mourning. The walls and floors are covered. People come and go to…
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The Miracle Birth Of Louis XIV
Anne d’Autriche and Louis XIII had been married for a long twenty-three years before their first son, Louis XIV, was born. This birth of a healthy heir to the throne of France was regarded a miracle and what led to it was reportedly a happy coincidence. As Anne d’Autriche and Louis XIII were married on the 24th November in 1615, both…
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Funny And Not So Funny Things That Happened At The Court Of Louis XIV, Part Five
As the Trianon de Porcelaine was taken down and what is now the Grand Trianon was built in 1687, Louis XIV visited the construction side regularly. Having a accurate eye for measurements, he noticed during one of his visits that something was wrong with one of the windows. Louis thus pointed it out to Louvois, his Minister of War and…
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Versailles by Elizabeth Massie
There are many cases in which the book is better than the movie or show. Naturally, a book has more space for descriptions, while a movie or show needs to be more compact. In books many small details can be added to make the reader feel engulfed in the setting and not just that. A book, especially one set in…
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Dangeau’s Diary, September 1685
1st. — Intelligence arrived that the Princes de Conti, three days after the taking of Neuville, had left Hungary. That they had already arrived at Strasburg, whence they had dispatched a courier to Monsieur le Prince and that they had repaired there to await the answer, and the King’s commands. 2d. — We heard this evening that all the Huguenots…
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The Last Days Of Louis XIV – September 2, 1715
Louis XIV’s body is opened for an autopsy. His leg is black with gangrene. His heart and guts are removed, his body put into a coffin of lead. It is noted that the King’s bowels are apparently twice as long as that of a normal man. In them, a tapeworm of ‘extraordinary’ size is discovered. Outside of Louis XIV’s…
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The Last Days Of Louis XIV – September 1, 1715
Le Roi Est Mort. Vive Le Roi. It is Sunday morning as the Sun sets over Versailles and France. At quarter past eight, Louis XIV takes his last breath, four days before his seventy-seventh birthday. The King’s valets close his eyes and change his shirt. The Duc d’Orleans, now Regent of France, presents the five year old Louis XV to the court.…
