Is Versailles Based On A True Story?

First and foremost, historical dramas do not have to be historically correct. It’s lovely when they are, but that isn’t the point of melodrama – it’s amusement, not teaching. It’s a rare and challenging effort to portray the past with meticulous verisimilitude while simultaneously producing watchable television. The past was a shambles. Stories, on the other hand, necessitate a fixed meaning. In the instance of Versailles, the series focuses on historical facts, but the chronology has been changed and crucial characters have been constructed in order to create a more compelling story. When historians discuss events, it is understandable that the most racially charged perspective of those occurrences is dramatized.

For historians, Versailles is a pleasurable watch since it’s fascinating to identify historical events and appreciate their portrayal. Professor Kate Williams focused his BBC Two discussion show Inside Versailles on these “yeah, that just really transpired!” instances, but – as you presumably now understand – some factual compromises were also undertaken to heighten the storyline.

The French nobility has started to reject and violate the king in the aftermath of the Fronde in 1667. As a tactic of forcing compliance, youthful King Louis XIV  chose to leave the palace from the Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye near Paris to his dad’s erstwhile hunting lodge near the hamlet of Versailles. The aristocrats were separated from their customary circumstances but obligated to attend the monarch. They became entangled in more perilous conspiracies as Louis completely remodeled and builds his magnificent Palace of Versailles.

Is Versailles Based On A True Story?

Is Versailles Based On A True Story

The show follows King Louis XIV of France as he attempts to subdue the French nobles by enclosing them in the opulent cage of his enormous palace, which is modeled after his father’s former log cabin at Versailles. We first encounter King Louis when he is 29 years old in the tale, which takes place between 1667 and 1670. This appears to be a young fellow, yet he has already ruled for 25 years. Hadn’t he? To be precise, Louis was not in charge as a four-year-old boy, even after reaching his legal majority at the age of 13. He was influenced heavily by his mom and her top minister, Cardinal Mazarin. King Louis’ political authority was untethered only when both of them died.

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Despite several years in charge, we discover a King who is only now expressing his political aims and attempting to rebuild France in his image at the beginnings of Versailles. Nearly majority of the events took place at Versailles, which is now under construction. Indeed, the show’s creators have made the castle both a crucial character in and of itself. As well as a metaphor for Louis’  psychological development, for entirely reasonable purposes. Louis is creating himself as the scaffolds rise. He began dancing in ballets costumed as the Sun King at the age of 15. Now he is attempting to physiologically and mentally embrace that role.

The dichotomy of Versailles and Louis is an intriguing theme for a novel. But one that is a little skewed in terms of historical accuracy. In actuality, Versailles did not become the principal royal palace until 1682. It was only used for a few months at a time. However, if someone else was creating this show, they would have set it all in Versailles as well. It provides for a more exciting piece.

Versailles Characters

Is Versailles Based On A True Story

The main cast includes George Blagden as Louis XIV, King of France, Tygh Runyan as Fabien Marchal, Alexander Vlahos as Monsieur Philippe I, Duke of Orléans. Stuart Bowman as Alexandre Bontemps, Amira Casar as Béatrice, Evan Williams as Chevalier de Lorraine. Anna Brewster as Françoise-Athénaïs, Noémie Schmidt as Henrietta of England. Sarah Winter as Louise de La Vallière, Suzanne Clément as Madame Agathe, Elisa Lasowski as Marie-Thérèse, Jessica Clark as Elizabeth Charlotte. Pip Torrens as the Duke de Cassel, Harry Hadden-Paton as Gaston de Foix, and Greta Scacchi as Madeleine de Foix.

The recurring cast includes Lizzie Brocheré as Claudine Masson, Steve Cumyn as Jean-Baptiste Colbert, Gilly Gilchrist as Jacques. Dominique Blanc as Anne of Austria, Geoffrey Bateman as Jacques-Bénigne Bossuet, and Joe Sheridan as François-Michel le Tellier. Geoffrey Bateman as Jacques-Bénigne Bossuet, Thierry Harcourt as André Le Nôtre, Anatole Taubman as Montcourt, George Webster as William of Orange, and James Joint as Father Pascal.

Where To Watch Versailles ?

“Versailles” is presently available to view on Netflix or purchase as a download through Google Play Movies, Apple iTunes, Vudu, and Amazon Video.


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