BBC The Real Versailles

[Music] in the 17th century there was only one place to see and be seen the palace of versailles the greatest legacy of louis xiv the sun king louis xiv spent a whopping 72 years on the throne during his reign he turned france from a country wracked by civil war its dukes and nobles constantly at each other's throats into the most glorious and powerful state in europe and he came up with a way of running a royal court that's never been beaten key to his success with this his palace of versailles i'm lucy worsley chief curator at britain's historic royal palaces and i'm helen caster a historian with an unhealthy interest in court politics and intrigue together we're taking a look at the new french-produced drama being shown on the bbc it's set during the building of versailles this was a world where life revolved around endless court rituals where fortunes rose and fell with the latest fashions and where the quickest way to royal favor was through the king's bed chamber take it off behind the facade louis xiv survival depended on his creation of versailles it was his power base his safe house and the gilded cage in which he trapped his enemies never before had a king and his entire court lived together in a single palace this was a new type of building for a new type of ruler it was a huge risk it could all have gone horribly wrong but if anybody could pull it off it was louis xiv [Music] louise palace at versailles sprang from surprisingly humble beginnings even the king's only brother philippe was in for a shock i am about to drag this country out of the darkness and into the light we must build our own destiny right here a new france will be born and this palace will be her mother the palace that one our father's hunting lodge this versailles [Music] the dilapidated hunting lodge and the tiny hamlet around it was buried in the countryside 12 miles from paris the only link between versailles and the capital was an old drover's track it had been used for bringing cattle to the markets of paris in other words the site within the middle of nowhere the seat of power was paris the royal residence was the palace of the louvre the nobles had their homes close by which meant they could attend on the king and still enjoy salon society in the capital and vive la difference but louis was passionate about outdoor pursuits he really enjoyed country life he began to spend more and more time at [Music] louis versailles his courteous to join him [Music] but not everybody wanted to travel out into the sticks we really are out in the wilds here defenses are porous non-existent the sooner we return to paris the better and even after the dukes and duck chest says the counts and marquises had made it out to versailles there was nowhere decent for them to stay according to madame de sevigne after one visit to versailles the courtiers were in a fury because they said the king didn't take care of any of them and there was scarcely a hole to take shelter in the courtyards came up with a new witticism a bond mo they said is a mistress without merit but the modest hunting lodge was about to have a makeover when i hosted a party here a few years ago we did not have the room to accommodate my friends most of them had to take rooms in town so i'm building some myself 400 apartments all told louis incorporated this hunting lodge into his plans and it's still there right at the heart of the later building louis added additions that are still known as the envelope literally enveloping the original building from sleeping a cozy 15 or so extra guests this first phase of construction provided room at versailles for 600 of louie's closest friends and that was just the start but louis didn't build versailles to be nice to his chums he did it for the survival of the monarchy you might be forgiven for wondering why louis xiv would go to such lengths to keep his throne safe as a royal historian it's hard to think of another ruler who comes across as so supremely confident louis inherited from his mother a passionate belief in the divine right of kings the idea that kings were like little mini gods who ruled on earth in case anyone had missed the point that louie's birth he was given the name of dear don a given by god this is because miraculously he was his parents first surviving child after 23 years of marriage a gift from god indeed louis took these ideas very much to heart louis self glorification knew no bounds he had himself painted in the guise of roman emperors as alexander the great even as the omnipotent greek god's use no hero was too glorious no god too mighty to escape the comparison and louis took as his personal emblem a symbol he fought fitting for his dazzling god-like status the sun the sun is the center the heart the mother of the universe without its warmth and light all life is gone man will cease to exist one could almost believe he was talking about you [Music] louie was a master of propaganda but don't let all this grandstanding deceive you in some ways it was a sign of weakness if he had been absolutely powerful and totally secure on his phone then he didn't have bothered louis had learned that being king was a dangerous business are you scared of course you are if history teaches us one thing it is this terrible things happen to kings louis greatest fears were founded in the deep divisions within the country he inherited in the 17th century france wasn't by any means the unified nation we know today different regions had different laws customs even different languages and vast parts of the country were controlled not directly by the king but by great noblemen the north and east who defies me there the duke of cassell sir to my mind he commands great influence hearth and nobility are in his debt his family have occupied those lansings before memory these nobles had huge independent powers in the regions they dominated they didn't even have to pay the king's taxes so the king was locked in a deadly power struggle constantly competing with the nobles louis knew only too well how vulnerable he was and he'd known it pretty much since the day he was born during louie's childhood the monarchy had tried to wrest control from the nobles the result was a bitter civil war in 1651 while louis was staying in paris a riot erupted the violence came a little too close to home the mob broke into the palace and demanded to see the young king they marched into his bedroom where louis pretended to be asleep the royal family managed to escape but louis was traumatized [Music] the incident had a profound effect on louis from that moment on he saw paris as a crucible of danger where the people and the nobles could plot against him never again would he let chaos and violence threaten his very being for louis the safest place from which to rule was not paris but versailles we must lay our own foundation here why here sir because i will not be the king of paris i know who i am i'm louis xiv i'm king of france to prove who was in charge louis made himself an absolute monarch he declared he was the sole ruler of france and set about reigning in the power of the nobles this is your king's new law stripping away the dignity of a true noble defiling the reputation of a man whose family forms the bedrock of this country now once not long ago we knew where we stood but now we must prove ourselves now we must sing for our suppers now the king says i am france but i say it is we who are france in this battle louis had some subtle new tactics in his armory louis solution to the problem of his nobles shows just how good he was at wielding what you might call soft power he'd watched and learned from the mistakes of other kings like charles the first of england for example he had taken up arms to defend his royal prerogative and look what happened to him but louis wanted to wage war with refinement he planned to devastate his enemies with his hospitality he was going to overwhelm them with fancy titles that didn't necessarily mean anything and above all he intended to emasculate them by making them do trivial jobs in his household here at his new country home of [Music] versailles [Music] it's no bigger than a broom cupboard as a matter of fact i believe it was a broom cover welcome to varsa [Music] louis loved to play the host he kept his cortis busy with gambling feasting hunting and to top it all fabulous parties [Applause] louis made sure his dazzling hospitality would always be remembered let's have a look at our massive book of pictures of one of louise parties and here is versailles looking extremely splendid these specific drawings were of an entertainment called the pleasures of the enchanted island that's a very alluring name isn't it it is although after six whole days and six whole nights i'm not sure how allured anyone would have felt it was an epic party based on an epic poem the frenzy of orlando the lead role was roger could it be possible that roger himself was played by the king i think you might have spotted louie's role as he chose for himself here right in the middle on his magnificently rearing horse is roger i wonder who is in charge of casting [Music] louis was a natural showman [Music] he had a reputation as a fine dancer [Music] and he never missed an opportunity to display his talents but here the real star of the show was versailles oh look at this this is the marble courtyard in the heart of the palace isn't it decorated with orange trees on either side to make it look even more beautiful it's splendid hundreds of candles all around the top look at them standing on the ledges inside the windows it is true it was beautiful enough before but now it's transformed into a nighttime spectacular and look here's an orchestra so this is a musical performance and they seem to be dancing on the stage oh it says it's a ballet that's right and a ballet uh alcest a tragedy in music composed by louie's own court composer jean-baptiste luly one of the greatest musicians of his day only the very best for louis [Music] the king was at pains to make sure his guests didn't miss a single detail of his palace one visitor gushed that the festivities astonished the spectators by their magnificence novelty and pomp [Music] now this really is a scene isn't it a nighttime scene of fireworks and illuminations the palace in the background the fountains in the foreground what do you think helen was the point of this book of engravings this is a big pr exercise these are impressive pictures even centuries later in black and white but for the rest of europe in 1664 this is how you do it so louis compiled all the engravings gave them to ambassadors who then take them home to their own european king or queen and say look and learn this is how they do it in france this is the way to hold a party and not just in france but specifically at versailles forget paris that was yesterday's news louis wanted the eyes of the world to be on the palace that he was building once louis had captivated his courteous with the entertainment sir versailles he found other ways to keep them in full to him to keep everybody in their places louis turned his life into a kind of public spectacle every minute of every day was filled with these weird rituals something quite ridiculous which all the courtiers had to follow as if it were a religion all the noblemen at court are required to present themselves at the appointed hour dukes before marquis i believe i'm with the duke only a few however will be given the privilege of entering observing and in some cases participating taking part in louie's daily routines was a strictly controlled business only a chosen elite could share in his more intimate moments the most important ceremony was the king's levee his rising in the morning it was as essential to life at versailles as the rising of the sun at eight o'clock shark the curtains of the state bed were drawn back to reveal the king he may not have slept here but he had to get back in time and then he was greeted by his valet good morning next in came the king's physician to check him over his chamber pot was carried out and this is really nice in came the king's nurse that he'd had since he was a child to give him his good morning kiss then came the privileged few who had the right to attend what was known as the grand entree they were all highborn nobles and they helped the king into his shirt it sounds menial but it was a huge honour [Music] all you do is designed to be seen and admired dressing shaving drinking and eating they are no longer actions but a performance [Music] everything you do is a display of wealth authority harmony and modesty and last but by no means least piety louis thought of himself as a god and now he was worshiped like one [Music] even the most powerful nobles were forced to bow and scrape but observing louie's strict daily routine could reap rewards the clockwork timing of louie's day meant the courtiers always knew exactly where the king was and what he was doing and that meant they could engineer meetings with him opportunities to ask for the favors that only the king could give [Music] like other monarchs the king had the power to transform a courtier's fortunes but louis had his own special criteria for granting requests [Music] as louis progressed for mass courtiers would line his route pressing on either side desperate for a word in the king's ear if they succeeded in catching his attention they might ask a favor for a friend but if louis thought that that particular nobleman hadn't spent enough time at versailles he'd turn the request down with the words we never see him i don't know him it was as if that noble had never existed the message was clear courtiers had better sharpen their elbows and fight their way to the front of the queue if they wanted to get ahead in life they had to put in the hours at versailles the nobles were now too busy vying for the king's attention to plot against him and they weren't allowed to go back to their country seats where they could have fermented rebellion it was all part of this strange cult of the sun king it's as if louis used his magnetism to trap his nobles here in the gilded cage of versailles now louis could get on with enjoying the pleasures of life [Music] and there was nothing he enjoyed more than the ladies he pursued one beauty after another married and single highborn and low not for nothing was his time in power known as the reign of love here are some of louise leading ladies now kings of france often had two wives one a wife for business in louie's case it was maria theresa of spain it was her job to represent an alliance with another country and to give him his official children or heirs but then he would have a wife for fun a mistress or in louie's case mistresses at any one moment the chief of them was called the matress declaree the declared mistrust i think it's very french that she had a sort of semi-official job title louise de la valia was louie's first matris declaree the story of louise de lavaglia is intertwined with the story of versailles itself because louis was falling in love with her at the same time as he was falling in love with the idea of his palace they held trysts there and the magnificent party the pleasures of the enchanted oil was held to celebrate their love louise's position as chief mistress was far from secure the other ladies of the court all had their eye on louie and he was all too susceptible when louise came onto the scene louis was already having rather scandalous relationship with henriette of england she was wait for this his brother's wife and his own first cousin don't you spring is from [Music] and there were plenty of other contenders vying for luis de la valia's prized role of chief mistress [Music] enter atenes de montespan how many have you had i do not recall which case why would one more make any difference hard to say without partaking why is that surely after a certain time it's just a number is it not that depends on the number matineeus was devastatingly intelligent and confident and pretty and manipulative she made friends with louise in order to get close to their king false friend i am boring and you are funny perhaps when he returns you might put him in a good mood for me talk to him make him laugh if he's in a good humor i might just have a chance would you do that it's like a try now louis didn't stand a chance he fell under the spell of attorneys very soon he just had to make love to her three times a day and he was so keen that he would start to undress her even before her ladies had left the room and she was equally enthusiastic it was said that her powder lit very easily it wasn't long before atonas usurped her so-called friend louise and took her place at the top [Music] table reigned supreme as official mistress for the next decade [Music] and it was during this time that louis fulfilled his dream of creating a palace not just fit for any old king but fit for the sun king now the gardens on this side will extend from here to here very good sire what is this large rectangle here a lake you wish to put a lake in this area the area is the lake that is a big lake yes sire a lake that size will dwarf any structure that looks out upon it that depends on the structure does it not nothing could stand in the way of louie's grand plans he drained swamps moved forests and diverted rivers to make way for the world's most opulent royal playground its size and splendor trumpeted louie's wealth and power but a project worthy of such a prince required a workforce to match the palace was under scaffolding for years at a time and the gardens here looked pretty much like a quarry up to 36 000 people were slaving away here and they were laboring under conditions you can only describe as horrendous builders toiled from dawn till dusk a common bricklayer earned five sioux a day about the cost of a tiny piece of butter accidents were so frequent that three hospitals were built to deal with the casualties and even in his exalted position louis could not quite escape the hardships that his workers endured you say you are france riffy trudy were you'd know our suffering he'd feed it in your bones and you take the pain away [Music] builders went on strike in a bid to improve their lot the grievances are many sire many suffer from injuries sustained at their work that are as yet untreated they claim that working conditions are too harsh not enough tensions paid to their safety is this true we lose half a dozen men per week sire many more injured from the archives i've dug out a document that gives a real-life example of louis being brought face to face with the human cost of versailles [Music] in the summer of 1668 there was an accident involving some of the heavy machinery in use at versailles that's reported here in the gazette of amsterdam we're told that there was an accident and some debris fell and underneath it were caught five or six workmen uthrier who crushed underneath crushed to death five or six of them five or six and that's all we're told one sentence at this point but we get a little bit more detail a few days later when the king was confronted by the mother of one of these poor dead workmen she managed to get close enough to ask the king if she could have the body of her son back the newspaper says with many insults directed at the king now whether that's exaggeration for journalistic effect or what the king felt had happened do you think it was quite shocking that she just got close enough and dared to speak to him absolutely that someone of her status should be able to speak directly to the king himself in terms that were not complementary and it didn't go well for her we're told that she was put in prison where she still is locked up the newspaper says so hang on louise machine has crushed to death this woman's son she has asked for his dead body and for that she's been put in prison she has the human cost of his great enterprises is irrelevant to louis in comparison with his grand purposes the question is to what extent this is representative of something bigger more characteristic of louie's rule as a whole well i guess you could say this is an absolute monarch doing his job the needs of the state must come first he has the power to override the trivial needs of the individual but it does seem to me that there's something really cold and uniquely determined about louis himself [Music] i will not be pushed into the sea by a builder on a scaffold [Music] louie's determination and his ruthlessness made him many enemies but he had ways of keeping one step ahead of anyone who might plot against him you might think that surveillance is a modern concept but louis who was insecure to the point of paranoia kept a watchful eye on everyone [Music] no one understood better than louis that information was power that is one of 948 journals gathered by our services detailing every single member of your court their height weight hair and eye color their daily movements from your valet to your cook's assistant madeline dubois and louie even knew everyone's innermost thoughts how because all male to and from versailles was intercepted historian james daybell is guiding me through the lost world of 17th century espionage this is so much more significant and atmospheric than licking the fluff it is it is we really feel like this is a special thing to do now we're going to get our seal which is a fleur-de-lis peel it away slowly and there we are that's not good so if we got this letter in the post you would know that i had sent it and this it hadn't been tempered but it couldn't be tampered with yes theoretically so it's secure but at the course of versailles we know that louie's espionage masters were reading the letters how did they do that when they were sealed up with wax this is a dark art we have an example of a letter from a courtier close to the king in which she warns a german cousin about this opening of letters and she writes just because letters are poorly sealed does not mean anything they have a material made of mercury and other stuff that can be pressed onto the seal where it takes on the shape of the seal after they've read and copied letters they neatly resend them and no one can see that they have been opened so that method involves making a replica of the original seal absolutely and once you have that you're then able to open and reseal people's correspondence all the time that's pretty sneaky stuff and james what happened to the people whose mail was read then contrary to their knowledge once he found that you were talking in a critical tone about his court his policies his friendships you would be out of favor and so many courtiers were destroyed in this way this surveillance state that he develops in the 17th century is incredibly powerful and it's used to keep tabs on the courtiers at the very heart of his power base at versailles disloyal courtiers wised up to louise tactics and found other ways to convey their messages [Music] with all this surveillance going on there's only one way to keep a secret you have to write it in cipher secret code [Music] i have identified this as a cistercian codex from the low countries very rare almost forgotten used it appears as an alternative to roman numerals so these are merely numbers which correspond to letters [Music] but louis beat the courtiers at their own game by employing cryptographers to crack the codes the first message is very simple kill the men who bring this map the second one is more intriguing a riddle in fact the end is near make your peace with god to make sure his own messages remain secret louis engaged the services of antoine rossignol [Music] rossignol was the greatest cryptographer of the 17th century he came up with a code that was so complex that after it fell out of regular use it baffled cryptographers for centuries it was called the great cipher all this secrecy sounds extreme but it worked after all louis wasn't assassinated but the king's paranoia grew in this world of fear and intrigue who could he rely on as so often louis didn't put his trust in the most powerful men in the land potential rivals all but those with whom he spent his most intimate hours his chosen servants and there was one servant who was forever by louise side his valet for over 40 years alexander bonton bonton was the first to see the king in the morning and the last to tuck him up in bed at night he was one of the few people allowed to go through the gate in the golden balustrade into the king's private area of the bed chamber bonton himself slept just here on a camp bed the first valley was the only person allowed to sleep in the king's bedchamber not even the queen could do that constantly vigilant attentive to every need he was like a faithful old hound [Music] sir we received word the parthenae family will arrive this morning and will my goddaughter charlotte be with them yes sir [Music] devotion to louis dominated his life almost to the exclusion of his own family when asked one day how his wife was doing he automatically replied i'll ask the king you have a woman my wife lives in paris with you i live with the king now i am confused wherever the king sleeps nicely ah this is as far as i go his bit must be very crowded bonton knew everything about the king's most private affairs all personal correspondence went through his hands and he acted as a go-between for louis and his lovers it was said that bonton was most secret most faithful and entirely devoted to the king this was one of louie's closest relationships pulled up a chair [Music] i said a chair not a stool a chair with arms [Music] only a king may sit next to his majesty in the chair with arms you are more than a king you are my friend [Music] so could louis xiv and his trusty valet really have been friends what do you think kings were surrounded by servants all the time there was huge intimacy there but real friendship the difference in status made that much more complicated it does seem though that louis was more at ease with his retainers than almost anyone else oh and there is the evidence of the duke of san simon who says that the king loved his servants more than his own children in return for his devoted service louis showered bonton with gifts of land titles and lucrative posts bonton could even afford a townhouse in paris with his own staff of 12. [Music] louis didn't just elevate his personal servants he made a point of promoting ministers for more humble backgrounds and his decision to promote them at the expense of his nobles brought about a change in the way that france was governed it began what the resentful saint simon called the reign of the vile bourgeoisie louis transformed life at court down to the smallest detail he even changed what people wore from the hats on their heads to the shoes on their feet [Music] louie's own love of drama and splendor was reflected in his wardrobe this was power dressing louis xiv style [Music] i must tell you all i believe that very soon we shall have a revolution in our country the world knows france to be a master of the battlefield the one glimpse around this glorious place will tell you soon it will be our textile mercers and our master tailors who shall transform the world our fashions will be revered just as much for their beauty elegance refinement and grace finest in the world to achieve his ends louis introduced a strict new dress code we are trying it on for size with the help of costume historian mark wallace how did louis make his courteous look the way that he wanted them to by the royal edict you cannot wear anything not made of french manufacturer so if you're caught wearing something made from a different country it would be taken off and burnt and fined of course too it is something that never had happened before which is to invent a court uniform called the justice now these coats are entirely new made of blue cloth covered in gold and silver lined with red only 50 men the king the royal dukes the princes etc were allowed to wear this coat that really showed you were in with the in-crowd and if you died your coat would be handed on to the next person considered suitable enough to wear it so it's using the carrot and the stick they want to look like they're part of the club they want to look good and if they break the rules they get fined yes and of course it suited louie's ego the more splendid his court looked the better he looked and was the envy of all christian princes thanks to louis france became the capital of oat couture something it's remained to this day and louis found that forcing his courtiers to follow fashion had other advantages so how much of an investment would an outfit like this would be so you have around your your collar this bertha as it's known this would be the equivalent around your shoulders of perhaps very expensive sports car perhaps in a yacht you also have lace-up on your gown down the front and all around the hem of the skirt again just to show your wealth or your husband's wealth and your extravagance now turning to lucy again with your coat made of silk and of course the gold gloom running down the front vertically on your coat the wonderful detail lots of buttons made in france of gold so really everything is the best yet you've got to afford not just one outfit you have to have lots of different outfits for lots of different occasions all of which cost a fortune [Music] this one is nice we need more than just a dress a filigree bracelet and a necklace of diamonds believe me but how will we pay let me worry about that [Music] what happened if they couldn't afford it it was so expensive it would bankrupt people so you borrow from the king at a certain interest level and that gets you deeper in you're in a royal circle of debt aren't you it's incredible how we manage it like the spider and the great golden web it was typically clever of louis to use fashion to show off his courteous wealth while at the same time stripping it away from them as one marquis said no one at versailles was really rich because they'd spent their fortunes on all this [Music] the ruthless side of louis nature was also evident in his treatment of his closest relative his brother philippe now give it to me i knew it the minute you get the chance you belittle me again brother the magic word what is it do not forget who addresses you you never were good at sharing [Music] throughout history the relationship between a king and his younger brother has been tricky it's no fun being the spare when you want to be the heir and the relationship between louis and his younger brother was understandably tense [Music] you think it's hard to be a king try being a king's brother for a day the differences between louie and philippe were clear from very early on here's louie as a little boy and he's already dressed as a little king in his beautiful leather boots his red breeches with gold fringing his hat with the white plume and at first glance you might assume that this is his sister he looks like a girl with pink cheeks and wearing a dress but actually it's louie's younger brother philippe now don't read too much into this little boys in the 17th century were put in dresses until they were old enough to be breached at the age of seven put into a man's clothing or breeches but in this case the boy's mother was determined that philippe should never present a threat to louie to this end she nurtured his feminine side she called him my little girl and she always encouraged him to wear dresses philippe dreamed of being a soldier in the 1670s when france was at war with holland he demanded to join the action i have a sword armor and a horse why the delay when will i go to war the king is not yet set to date what am i supposed to do until then [Music] in the spring of 1677 the french launched a rapid attack on enemy held towns in northern france [Music] philippe was finally posted to the front line [Music] at the battle of casel he commanded the troops and personally led the charge [Music] eyewitnesses said that he charged like a grenadier philippe fought so bravely that his troops were inspired to perform miracles [Music] the result a complete victory against the dutch afterwards on the road back to paris people shouted long live the king and monsieur who won the battle louis didn't like the sound of that [Applause] louis made sure that when the battle of cassell was painted it represented his version of events in this glorious painting the battle rages a gun is fired and a soldier falls and here in the thick of the fighting is the king on his war horse in his white plumed hat but in life not art louis wasn't even there the hero of the hour was philippe and where's he [Music] here stuck in the corner in his brother's shadow seen nursing a bump on the head at versailles louis receives word of his brother's victory report with joy the success of the king's infantry against the troops of the spanish siege is now laid to the tone of cambray at last some good news most remarkable of all heroes present in the king's name is his majesty's own brother prince philippe the duke of all leon who has shown bravery on the battlefield that's enough news a true and everlasting hero i said enough and so it was in real life louis was so jealous of his little brother's achievement that he never again put him in charge of an army no one could outshine the sun king if louis was the son philippe was the moon only allowed to shine in his brother's reflected glory at first sigh everyone revolved around the sun king louis officially moved the seat of government and installed his court here in 1684 and for the remaining 30 years of his reign he only returned to paris eight times it was a staggering transformation in the way the french monarchy ruled louis had created the ultimate power base five thousand souls living firmly underneath the royal thumb it's tempting to see all this crazy ritual and extravagance as just another example of absolute power corrupting absolutely you'd think that this combination of luxury and cruelty would lead to violent collapse but in louie's case it didn't the country was no longer torn apart by feuding nobles and france became renowned for its culture and sophistication on his deathbed louis pronounced i depart but the state will always remain well remain it did at least for a while and what will surely always remain is louie's palace of versailles [Music] could you survive as a courtier to the sun king in versailles go online and test yourself at bbc dot co dot uk i wonder and the first episode of bbc two sumptuous and epic new drama versailles is available now on bbc iplayer

Channel: Mr. Thomas Social Studies

Views: 46,178

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Id: lDbqD9yFoRA

Length: 52min 8sec (3128 seconds)

Published: Mon Oct 26 2020