Appartement du roi

Infobox
name =
title =


caption =
Plan of the "appartement du roi"

headerstyle = background:#ccf;
labelstyle =

header1 = Key to the rooms of the "appartement du roi"
label1= Creators:
data1=Louis Le Vau; Jules Hardouin-Mansart; Charles Le Brun ; Robert de Cotte
label2=1
data2= Vestibule or loggia
label3=2
data3="Salle des gardes"
label4=3
data4= "Première antichambre" ("salon du grand couvert")
label5=4
data5= "Salon de l’œil de bœuf" (formerly "deuxième antichambre / antichambre des Bassans" and "chambre du roi")
label6= 5
data6= "Chambre de Louis XIV" (formerly "salon du roi")
label7=6
data7= "Salon du conseil" (formerly "cabinet des glaces" and "cabinet des termes")
label8=A
data8= Cour de marbre
label9=B
data9= Cour royale
belowstyle = background:#ddf;
below = The "appartement du roi" is the suite of rooms in the Palace of Versailles that served as the living quarters of Louis XIV. Overlooking the "cour de marbre", these rooms are situated in the oldest part of the chateau in rooms originally designated for use by the queen in Louis XIII’s chateau. Owing largely to discomfort of the grand appartement du roi and to the construction of the Hall of Mirrors, Louis XIV began to remodel these rooms for his use shortly after the death of the queen in 1684. The "appartement du roi" evolved to become the everyday working quarters for Louis XV and Louis XVI. Initially, the "appartement du roi" consisted of a suite of eight rooms that issued from the Queen’s staircase. The number would later be reduced to seven after 1701; and in 1755 the number would reduced again to six. Originally, the "appartement du roi" was arranged as:

* Vestibule or loggia
* "Salle des gardes"
* "Première antichambre" ("salon du grand couvert")
* "Deuxième antichambre" ("salon des Bassans")
* "Chambre du roi"
* "Salon du roi"
* "Cabinet du conseil" ("cabinet des glaces")
* "Cabinet des termes" ("cabinet des perruques") ColBreak

The "deuxième antichambre" and the "chambre du roi" formed part of the apartment of the queen, but in 1684, after the death of Marie-Thérèse d’Autriche, Louis XIV attached this room to his apartment (Verlet, 211).

The "deuxième antichambre" served as waiting room for courtiers waiting to attend the king’s lever in the "chambre du roi" next door. This room was also known as the "antichambre des Bassans" on account of the number of paintings by the northern Italian artists, Jacopo Bassano, that were displayed on the walls (Piganiol, 119). Over the mantelpiece, the famed “"Noli me tangere"s” by Lambert Sustris was displayed. In 1701, the "deuxième antichambre" and the "chambre du roi" were combined to form the "salon de l’œil de bœuf", which became the main antechamber to the king’s new bedroom (Verlet, 211).

As a measure of economy, Louis XIV retained much of the decor of the "salon du roi" in decoration of the "chambre de Louis XIV". The over-door paintings included “The Portrait of Francisco de Moncada” and a “Self-portrait” the two by Anthony van Dyck, “Saint John the Baptist” by Caravaggio, and “Mary Magdalene” by Guido Reni. Domenichino’s “Saint Cecilia was placed in the cornice setting of the south wall above the fireplace and the artist’s “King David playing the harp” hung as pendant opposite on the north wall (Félibien, 61).

The western wall of the room became the wall of the alcove – the area of the room separated by a balustrade in which the bed was located. The decoration of the alcove, with the ornaments of the agrafe and volutes as well as the trelliswork sculpture, anticipate in many respects anticipates the "style Régence" that was in vogue between 1715-1723. Crowning the bed is Nicolas Coustou’s relief sculpture, “France Triumphant,” which is complemented by two relief sculptures of “Fame” by François Lespingola located in the pendentives of the arch (Verlet, 214).

The present brocade on the walls of the alcove and for the bed has been rewoven as part of the initiative of the Fifth Republic to restore Versailles. The original alcove and bed hangings were restored in 1736; and, in 1785, Louis XVI ordered the brocade burned from which he obtained over 60 kilograms of gold. The present hanging, while accurate for the period, are not a reproduction of the brocaded that originally hung in the chambre de Louis XIV. Owing to lack of archival information when the project was under taken, it was decided to use the pattern for hangings of the "tenture d’hiver" for the queen’s bedroom. Only after the project was underway were the original designs found; as the part of the project had been completed, it was decided to use the queen’s "tenture d’hiver" (Meyer, 1989, 79-104; Verlet, 214). On 1 September 1715, Louis XIV died in this room.

The "cabinet de conseil" came into being as a council chamber upon the construction of the Salon of War, which occupied site of the Salon de Jupiter, Louis’s previous council chamber. Initially called "cabinet du roi" from 1684, with the remodeling of the apartment that occurred in 1701, this room received a new decor that featured walls paneled in mirror. With the redecoration, the room was rechristened "cabinet des glaces". In spite of the luxury of mirrors, this room was furnished in a utilitarian manner. In addition to the velvet covered council table, there were three armchairs and 12 folding stools and a daybed, which Louis XIV used in 1686 as a necessity while suffering from an anal fistula and the surgery that removed it (Félibien, 65-65; Piganiol, 123-124; Verlet, 217).

Of all the rooms of the "appartement du roi", this room perhaps best expressed the personal tastes of Louis XIV. In addition to the collection of gems, there were works by Nicolas Poussin and Giovanni Lanfranco on the walls as well as harpsichord with a painted case. The personal nature of this room was offset by the fact that this was the room in which Louis XIV governed France. Councils were held here, writers who extolled the "gloire" of the Sun King were received here, and private audiences most often occurred in this room (Verlet, 217).

The last room of the "appartement du roi" was the "cabinet des termes" – due to the decor that featured 20 Hermes – also called the "cabinet des perruques", as this was the room in which Louis XIV’s wigs were stored. In addition to the gilt Hermes that decorated the wall, the doors were covered with mirrors. The room served as a changing room for the king, where he would change his shirt, wig, and hat as many as four times a day. In the evening, this room would be where Louis XIV would gather with his children, other members of his family, and selected courtiers (Félibien, 347; Verlet, 220).

The "cabinet des glaces" and the "cabinet des perruques" disappeared in 1755 when Louis XV ordered the enlargement and redecoration of the council chamber. This is the room that is seen today.

In 1748, in order to accommodate the newly constructed "cabinet du roi" on the 3rd floor, Louis XV had the ceiling of the cabinet de glaces lowered by about a meter. The new dimension to the room necessitated a complete redecoration of the room. The following year, a new fireplace was installed and the one dating from the time of Louis XIV and was sent to Compiègne. In 1755, during the installation of a terrace in the "cour des cerfs", Louis XV decided to enlarge the council room by incorporating the cabinet des perruques. This larger room was designed by Ange-Jacques Gabriel with the paneling sculpted by Jules-Antoine Rousseau. The panels were sculpted with symbols appropriate to governance: trophies of peace and war, attributes of the army, navy, justice, and the insignia of the monarchy (Verlet, 316).

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Notes