"It is impossible not to be swept off your feet by the golden grandeur of the Palace of Versailles, but did you know that the town of Versailles is a fabulous visit in its own right? Although a suburb of Paris, Versailles is more like a small city, its streets are lined with majestic buildings, museums and markets says Janine Marsh as she takes a royal ramble."
"Versailles is a 'new town', albeit one that is several centuries old. In 1624, King Louis XIII built a hunting lodge, " nothing much to be proud of," wrote a courtier, in what was then a small village surrounded by forests, vineyards, and meadows, not far from the main royal residence in Saint-Germain-en-Laye (see page 108). The hunting lodge became a small château, and when Louis XIII was succeeded by his son, Louis XIV, he became so fond of it that in 1661, he began embellishing the château"
Versailles evolved from a 1624 hunting lodge into a major royal center under Louis XIV, who expanded the château and ordered a planned town. Prominent designers such as the landscape gardener André Le Nôtre and architect Louis Le Vau shaped symmetrical streets and urban layout. The town contains majestic buildings, museums, markets, secret courtyards, cobbled alleys, historic districts and the rustic hamlet associated with Marie-Antoinette. The Palace of Versailles remains the dominant attraction, including the Hall of Mirrors and spectacular fountains, but the wider town offers independent cultural attractions, architectural heritage, and a lived urban character worth exploring on foot.
Read at The Good Life France
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