The story of this place
Louis XIV transformed his father's hunting lodge into the seat of French power, moving the court here in 1682 to tame the nobility under his gaze. The Hall of Mirrors, 73 metres long with 357 mirrors, staged the monarchy's grandeur. On 6 October 1789 a Paris mob marched on Versailles and forced the royal family back to the capital, ending the palace's political life. In the same Hall of Mirrors the German Empire was proclaimed in 1871 and the Treaty of Versailles was signed on 28 June 1919, ending the First World War. The estate spans 800 hectares of formal gardens designed by André Le Nôtre.