royal reign
Ladies of the Grand & Petit Trianon If diamonds are a girl’s best friend, then what is to be said about private palaces in the French countryside mere acres away from Versailles with gardens abound for mistresses of French Kings?
The Grand Trianon
Portriat of King Louis XIV, painted by Hyacinthe Rigaud on display at the louvre museum. In 1701 Louis XIV commissioned a copy of the portrait, that portrait is on display in the Apollo Salon of the Château de Versailles’ Grand Apartment.
K
ing Louis XIV of France purchased Trianon, a hamlet on the outskirts of Versailles in 1668. Two years later, he commissioned architect, Louis Le Vau, to design a porcelain tiled pavilion. The Trianon de Porcelaine was completed in 1672 to serve as a retreat for him and his chief mistress, the Marquise de Montespan.
The “reign” of Madame de Montespan began in 1667 when she wiggled her way into seducing the King, even though she was a married woman at the time, as was the King to Queen Marie-Thérèse. The King’s current mistress, Louise de La Vallière, laughed at Montespan’s efforts. However, Montespan prevailed when she dropped her towel for the King. Louise then played second fiddle to the King, as he placed the two mistresses in connecting rooms so he had access to both ladies. Louise later joined a convent, embarrassed that she had been replaced by a much younger woman. Montespan officially separated from her husband, Louis Henri de Pardaillan de Gondrin, the Marquis of Montespan in 1674. However, this did not stop her from having seven illegitimate children with the King with their first child born in 1669. As a new widow, Madame Scarron was about to leave for Lisbon as a lady-in-waiting to the new Queen of Portugal, Marie-Françoise de Nemours, but she met Madame de Montespan and Montespan took such a liking to her that she had the King reinstate her pension enabling her to stay in Paris. Madame Scarron become the caretaker for Madame de Montespan’s first child with King Louis XIV, giving her a large income and staff of servants. She later became a royal governess. As a governess, she was one of the few people allowed to converse with the King as an equal. The King was charmed by her ability to speak without holding back, though he didn’t much care for her at first. However, he was beginning to tire of Madame de Montespan’s temper and found Madame Scarron increasingly favorable. After refusing a few attempts to make her his mistress, and telling him to pay attention to his neglected wife the Queen, Madame Scarron later gave in to his persistence. Queen Marie-Thérèse tolerated her husband’s infidelity, and she even responded warmly to Madame Scarron when her husband gave the her the title of Madame de Maintenon; especially after Madame de Montespan would openly disrespect the Queen’s position at court. By the late 1670’s, King
12
Chateaux & Castles
www.chateauxmag.com
