Châteaux in France are like cathedrals in Spain... you've seen enough of them... but you just can't get enough. On this trip we will not visit Versailles... we've seen it a couple of times and find it somewhat overwhelming. This holiday, we are circling Versailles and looking at the Châteaux with strong connections to the kings and queens of France. We've already done Rambouillet (the favourite hunting lodge of many kings) and Fontainebleau (where royalty sought relief from the stresses of sovereignty). Today, we did Châteaux de Vaux le Vicomte... the building that motivated Louis XIV to build Versailles. It's a great story full of royal intrigue... pettiness and extravagance.
Enter stage right... Nicolas Fouguet... a young man of exceptional talents. Very early in his life, he became a close advisor to the young Prince Louis. When Louis became king, Fouguet was given the responsibility of many senior posts in the King's administration... including that of Finance Minister. Fouguet introduced a taxation system that provided Louis with a large and reliable flow of taxation income. Like all good Finance Ministers, he became extremely unpopular... to such an extent that he had to take an overseas posting until the heat died down.
The King missed his wise advise and persuaded him to return after 5 years... whereupon he resumed his position as Finance Minister. In that position, he further enhanced the King's income... and also built a huge fortune for himself. Fouguet decided he needed a country estate... he had lots of good ideas of what was needed to make a chateau charming... and had three contacts with the skills needed to put his ideas into practice. He was friends with a brilliant gardener/landscaper... one of the leading painter/decorators in France... and an outstanding architect.... and these three unified their genius to create a model of harmony between building and landscape that inspired Europe for a century. Fouguet borrowed from the best of buildings all over the world... but produced something that was uniquely French.
After the building had progressed for a couple of years, word started to get around that Fouguet was producing something special. Even the king heard the rumours... and started to worry that the building might upstage the standard he set with his royal palaces... Versailles has not been thought of at this stage. Fouguet was very loyal to the king and knew how to handle his pettiness. "No one can outshine the 'Sun King'", was the line of comfort Fouguet gave to Louis... and continued with his building. After many more years, the Château was complete.
The King had spies watching the building take its final shape... and knew he had been upstaged. His could restrain his rage and curiosity no longer. He announced that he would visit Fouguet's Château on a particular date... with his court... and Fouguet needed to officially open his Château on that date. Fouguet assumed his standing with the king was as good as ever... he was so involved with his exciting building, he failed to notice the king had stopped seeking his counsel and was now listening to Fouguet's enemies. In the best of spirits, Fouguet put the final touches to the Château... all ready for the big opening... it looked spectacular!
On the allocated day, the king and court arrived... all smiles... full of compliments... but totally shocked at what they saw. This was not a building that had grown like Topsy... it was balanced... integrated... full of novelty... full of functionality. The Château was the first building in France to have a reception hall that was circular... of a height reaching the top story. The Château was the first building in France to have a dedicated dining room... all the ceilings were painted by the same master artist... the garden had hidden surprises that appeared as the visitor walked the grounds. The dinner in honour of the king was perfect. The kitchen delivered food of the highest quality... and the newly invented dining room worked just as planned.
The visitors were in raptures... everyone congratulated Fouguet on his personal brilliance... almost everyone... the king made complimentary noises... but inside he was seething with anger. No one was allowed to be more brilliant than the king... but in building such a special Château, Fouguet had dared to allow such a comparison to be made.
Fouguet went to bed at 2:00 AM that morning absolutely delighted. The king stayed up just a little longer... to make sure his prepared plans to arrest Fouguet were put into action. A special court had already been assembled in Paris. Within a week, Fouguet was behind bars... and remained in a penitentiary for the rest of his life.
The next move by the king was to meet with the architect... point out mistakes made by Fouguet in out shining the king... mentioned the punishment metered out... and named a few people who had assisted Fouguet to make those mistakes. The king then asked the architect of he could build a palace far more grand than the Château de Vaux le Vicomte in the grounds of Versailles.
That is how and why Versailles grew to be the first Disneyland ever built.
No comments:
Post a Comment