Located on the grounds of Versailles, King Louis XIV had this built in 1670 for one of his mistresses, Madame de Montespan. It was a place to go to escape the formalities of the palace. Italian architecture heavily influenced the design of Le Grand Trianon at Versailles. You can see it in the pink marble used throughout Le Grand Trianon. Marble pillars of a portico allowed visitors to move from the courtyard to the gardens without an obstructed view.
We chose to walk to the Grand Trianon, but there is a shuttle that you can take if you don’t feel like walking. It is a bit of a hike from the palace. We brought the shuttle back as it wasn’t that much for a one-way ride and we were a bit tired.
A little about the rooms featured in the photos above:
Image 1: Louis-Philippe Family Room The King and his family gathered in this room in the evenings when they stayed at the Trianon. There are sewing and game tables in the room.
Image 2: The Chapel room Created as a chapel, a door opens to reveal a recessed altar used during mass.
Image 3: Room of Mirrors This room served as a council room from 1691 to 1703 for Louis XIV. It contains much of the original decor, but the furniture was sold and replaced by Napoleon. This room has a view of the grand canal and is considered the finest room in the south wing.
Image 4: The Empress’ bedroom Originally Louis XIV’s bedchamber, it was divided into a smaller bedchamber and sitting room or antechamber used by Empress Marie-Louise.
Image 5: The Le Grand Trianon with the marble columns
And a few more of my favorites:
Image 1: The Garden Room opens to the Chestnut Grove and in Louis XIV reign a game table stood in the center of the room.
A room at the Grand Trianon at the Palace of Versailles, France
Image 2: The shutters above the doorways in the music room where musicians sat and played during the King’s Supper. Servants would remove the panels exposing the areas when the musicians would play.
Image 3: The Cotelle Gallery was built to help protect the gardens from the north winter winds. The long room features 24 paintings of which 21 were created by Jean Cotelle. The Royal Family commissioned the paintings in 1687 and depict the groves of Versailles in the 17th century.
The Cotelle Gallery in the Le Grand Trianon at the Palace of Versailles
Image 4: Malachite Room The name of this room comes from the malachite sculptures given as gifts to Napoleon from Czar Alexander I.
Image 5: The Music Room This is Louis XIV’s former antechamber. You can see the shutters above the doors where musicians sat and played during the King’s Supper. Napoleon later converted this room into an officer’s room and later Louis-Philippe converted it to a billiard room.
The music room at the Le Grand Trianon at the Palace of Versaille. Later converted to a billiard room
This is a great day trip from Paris and worth the train ticket and time to see how the Royal Family lived.
Other great places in France to visit.
