Versailles
| Versailles | ||
|---|---|---|
.svg)
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| region | Île-de-France | |
| Department | Yvelines ( prefecture ) | |
| Arrondissement | Versailles | |
| Canton |
Versailles-1 (main town) Versailles-2 (main town) |
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| Community association | Versailles Grand Parc | |
| Coordinates | 48 ° 48 ' N , 2 ° 8' E | |
| height | 103-180 m | |
| surface | 26.18 km 2 | |
| Residents | 85,862 (January 1, 2017) | |
| Population density | 3,280 inhabitants / km 2 | |
| Post Code | 78000 | |
| INSEE code | 78646 | |
| Website | www.versailles.fr | |
[ vɛʀsɑːj ] is aFrenchcity in theregion Ile-de-Francewith 85,862 inhabitants (at January 1, 2017). It is the administrative seat (French:chef-lieu) ofthe Yvelines department(78) and since 1801 the seat of thediocese of Versailles. The elegant place of residence in the catchment area ofParisis also agarrison townand one of the most important tourist destinations in the country. He is known worldwide for thePalace of Versailles, which waslargely built for the "Sun King"Louis XIV. Inthe 17th century,and theTreaty of Versaillessigned there in1919.
The inhabitants are called Versaillais .
geography
location
Versailles is 22 kilometers west of the zero point , which is in the center of Paris on the forecourt of Notre-Dame . It is embedded in a horseshoe-shaped valley that cuts through a plateau rising from the left bank of the Seine . This valley, which is closed in the southeast near Viroflay and open to the northwest, extends far beyond Villepreux, reaches its widest extent between Rocquencourt and Satory. Two small hills rise in the middle: the formerly higher Montboron, which was partially demolished as the castle was built, and the Saint-Antoine hill.
The wooded slopes of the valley, with the Bois des Fonds des Maréchaux and the Bois des Fausses Reposes in the north, the forests of Viroflay and Meudon in the east and the forests of Gonards and Satory in the south, still form a green crown around Versailles. In earlier times they extended to the later Paradeplatz and today's castle gate.
Soil condition
The geological subsoil of the valley consists of Cretaceous limestone . A Quaternary clay layer and a sand hill on which the castle was built lie above . From the watershed on the Montboron, one of the two streams called Ru flows in the south along the foot of the valley slope (ru de Marival), while the other formerly spread west of the castle and - due to the impermeable soil - formed a swamp area with several ponds Has. The most important bodies of water were the Étang de Clagny (pond or pond of Clagny) in the north near the village of the same name, which has since disappeared, and a water hole in the area of the second kitchen garden that still exists today. To the west of what is now the Swiss lake was another pond with the meaningful name of Étang puant (smelly pond). The final drainage of these swamps took place between the end of the 17th and the middle of the 18th century.
climate
The unfavorable nature of the terrain is complemented by the almost constant winds blowing from the Atlantic, which can penetrate the valley, which is wide open to the west, and mean that the average annual temperature in Versailles is 3 ° C lower than in Paris.
District
Versailles has eight districts ( quartiers ). The castle and cathedral are located in the oldest quarter, Notre-Dame. The Quartier Saint-Louis borders Notre-Dame in the direction of Paris. The other quartiers are Chantiers, Montreuil , Porchefontaine, Clagny-Glatigny, Bernard de Jussieu and Satory.
Since this is a city complex planned in the Baroque period , the road network is straight and symmetrical.
history
The origin of the name is not clear. Occasionally, the unsubstantiated assumption is made that it was derived from the Latin versare (turn, turn over) in the 11th century , and refer to plowed (turned over) earth.
The fact that Versailles was founded much later than other places in the area that were already settled in the Gallo-Roman times could be explained by the aforementioned unfavorable geographical and climatic conditions. In any case, Versailles remained a small, insignificant collection of rather poor houses throughout the Middle Ages. In the 16th century, Versailles developed into a small market town thanks to its location at the intersection of three streets.
In the Ancien Régime
Under King Louis XIV , Versailles gradually developed into the center of power in France. At the beginning of his reign, however, the monarch only stayed in Versailles for a short time. It was not until 1682 that Louis XIV declared the place the permanent seat of government and court. The expansion of the hunting lodge and the park of his father Ludwig XIII. began in 1661 and lasted for several decades. The castle was supposed to visualize the absolutist claim to rule and order. The king had a new town built east of the palace complex. Since then, the city has been divided by three avenues . They run radially towards the forecourt of the castle, the Place d'Armes . The street plan copies the goose foot shape (patte d'oie) that has been common since the Renaissance. This pattern was later used for the construction of the city of Washington . Despite the size of the castle and some extensions that had been made, not all courtly incumbents were able to move into an apartment in the complex. Many nobles therefore moved to the city of Versailles, where they either rented apartments or had new palaces built. In order to counteract the high rents in the city, Louis XIV issued a decree in 1671 that exempted nobles in Versailles from property tax and forbade pledging their homes.
Yet many high officials remained heavily in debt because of their urban housing. Low courtiers were often housed in the Grand Commun , an outbuilding near the castle. The cramped living conditions there regularly led to conflicts. The court kitchens and rooms for the servants of the king and queen were on the ground floor. The four floors above were the quarters for the lower courtiers and their servants. The Grand Commun housed both large apartment units with several private rooms and apartments in which officials had to share anteroom and lounge. Many courtiers did not settle permanently at Versailles. Their service at the court was often limited to just a few days a week or a few weeks a year. They therefore continued to live mainly in Paris and the surrounding area. In Versailles they often only needed rented accommodation, from which the inn in particular benefited. While the Police Commissioner of Versailles only knew about 50 accommodations with furnished rooms at the beginning of the reign of Louis XIV, in 1724 there were already more than 400. For the city's residents, renting out living space became an important sideline. Furthermore, over 150 inns were built in Versailles.
The street fan became the basic structure of the city of Versailles, around which a regular street grid with representative city squares was laid out. Aristocratic palaces, dwellings for court servants, churches and markets were built in regular architecture.
The first balloon flight with passengers took place on September 19, 1783. A mutton, a rooster and a duck survived the twelve-minute journey on the Montgolfière .
In the French Revolution
Versailles played an important role in the early stages of the French Revolution . The French King Louis XVI. convened the General Estates in the city to have new taxes approved in the face of a national bankruptcy. The meeting met on May 5, 1789 at the Hôtel des Menus Plaisirs . This building was erected around the middle of the 18th century. It was usually used to store theater sets, furniture and other utensils that were needed for court festivities in the castle. In contrast to the castle, the Hôtel des Menus Plaisirs had sufficiently large rooms to accommodate the 1200 representatives of the estates. Spectators were added to these. In this meeting room, on June 17, 1789, the third state of the National Assembly declared itself. After the king refused entry to the Hôtel des Menus Plaisirs , the National Assembly met on June 20, 1789 in the nearby ballroom , a sports hall. There the representatives announced that they would not split up until a constitution had been drawn up.
The French Revolution ended Versailles' status as the residence and seat of government that same year: on October 5, 1789, a march of protest by Parisian market women reached the Palace of Versailles. The assembled crowd wanted to get the king to accept the resolutions of the National Assembly and to make their demands for a better bread supply be heard. On the morning of October 6th, the demonstrators stormed the castle and ultimately forced the king to move to Paris. On October 12, 1789, the National Assembly also moved its seat from Versailles to Paris. The loss of importance of Versailles was reflected in the number of inhabitants. In 1789 about 60,000 people lived in the city, in 1791 there were only 39,000 inhabitants.
19th and 20th centuries
In 1801 Versailles became the seat of the new diocese of the same name .
On July 1, 1815, a battle took place in Versailles as part of the Wars of Liberation between Prussians and French.
On January 18, 1871, the Prussian King Wilhelm I was proclaimed German Emperor in Versailles. After the First World War , the Versailles Peace Treaty was signed there .
The great storm of December 26, 1999 devastated the park, whereupon an extensive program was started to restore the original planting in its arrangement from the 17th century.
politics
coat of arms
Blazon : "Under a silver shield head, inside a growing double-headed rooster in natural colors, in blue three golden lilies (2: 1)."
Twin cities
Versailles has developed close relationships with the cities of Nara ( Japan ), Gießen ( Germany ), Pushkin ( Russia ), Canberra ( Australia ) and Taipei ( Taiwan ) over time; Versailles is twinned with Potsdam (Germany).
Economy and Infrastructure
traffic
Versailles has an exit on the A13 autoroute . The Route nationale 10 to the Spanish border crossed Versailles until 2006. From this branch in Versailles the Route nationale 184 , Route nationale 185 and Route nationale 186 branched off . There are several train stations, including the through station Versailles-Chantiers with around 65,000 passengers a day, the Versailles-Rive Gauche station of the RER C from Paris near the palace and Versailles-Rive Droite of the Transilien .
economy
Versailles is home to companies such as Nexter , Renault Trucks (military vehicles), Citroën and Blizzard Entertainment .
Education and Research
Versailles is home to the University of Versailles with over 10,000 students.
military
In the southern district of Satory in particular, there are numerous military units such as the 5th Engineer Regiment, a unit of the National Gendarmerie with armored vehicles and the Groupe d'intervention de la gendarmerie nationale (GIGN).
Personalities
literature
- Le Patrimoine des Communes des Yvelines. Flohic Editions, Volume 2, Paris 2000, ISBN 2-84234-070-1 , pp. 966-1042.
- Sylvia Jurewitz-Freischmidt: Galantes Versailles - The mistresses at the court of the Bourbons . Casimir Katz Verlag, Gernsbach 2004, ISBN 3-925825-86-X .
- Olivier Bernier: Louis XIV. The biography. Albatros-Verlag, Düsseldorf 2003, ISBN 3-491-96085-1 .
Web links
- Official website of the City of Versailles (French)
- Tourist Office website (French, English, Spanish)
Individual evidence
- ↑ Klaus Malettke: Ludwig XIV. 1643-1715 , in: Peter Claus Hartmann (ed.), French kings and emperors of the modern age. From Louis XII. until Napoleon III. 1498-1870 . Beck, Munich 2006, p. 203.
- ↑ Michael Erbe: Versailles. Splendor and misery at the court of the Sun King. Darmstadt 2012, pp. 29–30.
- ↑ Michael Erbe: Versailles. Splendor and misery at the court of the Sun King. Darmstadt 2012, pp. 67-68.
- ↑ Michael Erbe: Versailles. Splendor and misery at the court of the Sun King. Darmstadt 2012, p. 89.
- ↑ Michael Erbe: Versailles. Splendor and misery at the court of the Sun King. Darmstadt 2012, p. 24.
- ^ William Ritchey Newton: Behind the Facades of Versailles. Mistresses, fleas and intrigues at the court of the Sun King , Berlin 2010, p. 20.
- ^ William Ritchey Newton: Behind the Facades of Versailles. Mistresses, fleas and intrigues at the court of the Sun King , Berlin 2010, pp. 15–16.
- ↑ Michael Erbe: Versailles. Splendor and misery at the court of the Sun King. Darmstadt 2012, p. 126.
- ↑ Hans-Ulrich Thamer: The French Revolution. Beck, Munich 2004, p. 32.
- ↑ Hans-Ulrich Thamer: The French Revolution. Beck, Munich 2004, pp. 39-40.
- ↑ Michael Erbe: Versailles. Splendor and misery at the court of the Sun King . Darmstadt 2012, p. 129.
- ↑ Potsdam has a new love. MAZ.online, accessed on June 12, 2016 .
- ↑ Daniel Larmet, Jean-François Candeille, Bernard Ciry: Réaménagement du pôle d'échanges de Versailles-Chantiers . In: Revue générale des chemins des fer . No. 207 , 2011, ISSN 0035-3183 , p. 46-52 .