Long before Louis XIV, France's Sun King, finished building the magnificent Château de Versailles, the palace's gardens had already become Europe's most famous party destination. The legendary royal fêtes of the Sun King's reign, intended to celebrate military victories, births, and weddings (and, unofficially, to honor Louis XIV's mistress at the time), surpassed anything contemporaries had ever seen.
The "Menus-Plaisirs," a sort of ministry whose sole purpose was to oversee the entertainment of the king and court, spared no expense in order to make marvels seemingly spring from the ground overnight. During "The Great Royal Divertissement" of 1668, the most magnificent fête of Louis XIV's reign, guests were invited to pluck candied fruit from the branches of imported Portuguese orange trees lining the avenues of the gardens. In the Bosquet de l'Etoile, piles of caramels, vials of fine liqueur, and a miniature palace constructed entirely out of marzipan tempted guests and onlookers alike. (The common people were allowed in the gardens and were permitted to eat the leftovers.) In another torch-lit grove, an improvised theater illuminated by hundreds of candles in crystal chandeliers set the scene for a comedy by French playwright Molière, after which the king and court enjoyed a supper comprising five courses of 53 different dishes each. Like all important royal celebrations, the party of 1668 ended with a blazing pyrotechnic display: Illuminated vases and glowing fountains lit the gardens, while fireworks spelled out the Sun King's number "XIV" in the sky.
For this one night alone, the Menus-Plaisirs spent a sum equal to about one third of Versailles' entire expenses for that year. But as decadent as it may have seemed, partying at Versailles was serious business. In addition to pressuring workers into completing the king's extravagant projects by a certain date, the parties functioned as laboratories for artistic experimentation. The elaborate decors that sprang up and disappeared overnight gave teams of renowned architects, composers, decorators, pyrotechnics experts, and gardeners — all hand-picked by the king himself — the opportunity to test and implement new styles and trends, whose success or failure could make or break the career of the person responsible.
Louis XIV's big bashes were also an important political tool. Besides keeping the French nobility docile by providing frivolous ways for them to spend their time and money, the Sun King used his fêtes as a means to broadcast his own glory throughout the courts of Europe. Engravings commissioned by the king showing sumptuous processions and spectacular fireworks displays proclaimed to the world Louis XIV's intention to rule as an absolute monarch, as well as his growing attachment to Versailles and its gardens. As the palace's renown spread, so did the number of copycats, as monarchs across Europe constructed their own lavish palaces and gardens.
What remains today of all the pomp and finery of the magnificent parties held by the Sun King? Going into the Salle de Bal (the "ballroom") or Bosquet des Trois Fontaines, one can easily imagine the sound of music from French composer Lully mingling with the tinkle of fountains and the murmur of powdered ladies. Many of the same groves and fountains that provided the backdrop for the royal fêtes over 300 years ago are still open to visitors today. Throughout the summer months, visitors can also experience the grandes eaux (the playing of all the fountains), and those who stay on into the night may just be rewarded by a vision straight out of the Louis XIV's reign: fireworks over the Grand Canal.
