Versailles

In the drawing room of the Rawlinson's late Victorian villa in Kent, life as it was lived before the war is quietly resuming. The family's son, Leonard Rawlinson, is among the British delegation sent to Versailles to draw up the treaty that will come to define Europe, the Middle East and the rest of the world. With the ghost of a fallen loved one still haunting him, Leonard perceives that the choices made in Paris will shape the fate of millions for centuries to come. Versailles premiered at the Donmar Warehouse, London, in February 2014.

In the drawing room of the Rawlinson's late Victorian villa in Kent, life as it was lived before the war is quietly resuming. The family's son, Leonard Rawlinson, is among the British delegation sent to Versailles to draw up the treaty that will come to define Europe, the Middle East and the rest of the world. With the ghost of a fallen loved one still haunting him, Leonard perceives that the choices made in Paris will shape the fate of millions for centuries to come. Versailles premiered at the Donmar Warehouse, London, in February 2014.

Called fast-paced ( Kirkus Reviews ) and highly engrossing ( Publishers Weekly ), this is the behind-the-scenes story of the world's most famous palace. The story of Versailles is one of high historical drama mixed with the high camp and glamour of the European courts, all in an iconic home for the French arts. The palace itself has been radically altered since 1789. Versailles sets out to rediscover what is now a vanished world: a great center of power and, for thousands, a home both grand and squalid. Using the latest historical research, Spawforth offers the first full account of Versailles in English in over thirty years. He probes the conventional picture of this perpetual house party and gives full weight to the darker side: not just the mounting discomfort of the aging palace but also the intrigue and status anxiety of its aristocrats, as well as the changing place of Versailles in France's national identity since 1789. Many books have told the stories of the royals and artists living in Versailles, but this is the first to turn its focus on the palace itself--from architecture to politics to scandal to restoration.

Called fast-paced ( Kirkus Reviews ) and highly engrossing ( Publishers Weekly ), this is the behind-the-scenes story of the world's most famous palace. The story of Versailles is one of high historical drama mixed with the high camp and glamour of the European courts, all in an iconic home for the French arts. The palace itself has been radically altered since 1789. Versailles sets out to rediscover what is now a vanished world: a great center of power and, for thousands, a home both grand and squalid. Using the latest historical research, Spawforth offers the first full account of Versailles in English in over thirty years. He probes the conventional picture of this perpetual house party and gives full weight to the darker side: not just the mounting discomfort of the aging palace but also the intrigue and status anxiety of its aristocrats, as well as the changing place of Versailles in France's national identity since 1789. Many books have told the stories of the royals and artists living in Versailles, but this is the first to turn its focus on the palace itself--from architecture to politics to scandal to restoration.

‘The Château de Versailles is a real photographic challenge because it is so huge: there is an infinite number of possible points of view and they are never the same, depending on the time of day, the weather or the season… There are always new photos to take, to contemplate, to dream of. It is a demanding place that stimulates creativity and encourages you to look at it again and again’ Thomas Garnier Versailles is one of the most photographed places in the world, but only four people have the privilege of being the Palace’s official photographers. They have uniquely unfettered access to the secrets that lie within, outside and beneath this enormous domain where they spend their days – and sometimes their nights. Now, for the first time, they open their personal albums to offer a wealth of impressions and responses. Two hundred and fifty previously unpublished photographs reveal a plethora of outstanding artworks, the private apartments of Louis XIV, MarieAntoinette and Madame de Pompadour, magnificent galleries, the delightful Orangerie and more, all accompanied by texts that provide a lively introduction to daily life at the Château and its momentous history. This is a monumental volume on a scale that matches the grandeur of the worldrenowned Palace it celebrates.