May 6: King Louis XIV of France moves to the Palace of Versailles in 1682.

The wonderful palace and huge gardens of Versailles

Versailles was a country village when the French workers built the Palace 20 kilometers from Paris. The court of Versailles was the center of political power in France from 1682 until the royal family was forced to move to Paris on October 5, 1789, during the French Revolution.

King Louis XIV

The Palace of Versailles is the symbol of absolute monarchy also known as the "Old Regime" or "Ancien Régime".

The château circa 1668, as painted by Pierre Patel (Versailles Mueum) 

In 1575, the Lordship of Versailles was bought by Albert de Gondi, a florerntino "nationalized" in France and who invited King Louis XIII to go sport hunting in the forests of the village environment. The King was delighted with the site and ordered the construction of a hunting lodge in 1624. Eight years later, King Louis bought the Lordship of the Gondi family and began the project of building a Royal Palace.

Hall of Mirrors, Palace of Versailles

The successor of Luis XIII was Louis XIV - the "Sun King" - who enlarged the project and ordered the largest and most beautiful palace ever built worldwide.

King Lous XIV: L'État, c'est moi!

After four building campaigns, the expansion of the château became synonymous with the absolutism of Louis XIV.

The esplendor of Versailles