0:00:05 > 0:00:10Louis XIV - so powerful, he took his name from the sun itself.
0:00:12 > 0:00:17So dominant, he made the haughtiest aristocrats bend to his will.
0:00:17 > 0:00:21So insatiable, that no one mistress could satisfy him for long.
0:00:24 > 0:00:30Throughout a long and turbulent life, Louis sought magnificence in all things.
0:00:30 > 0:00:33He strived for it in love...
0:00:33 > 0:00:37in battle...and in art.
0:00:37 > 0:00:40But above all, he wanted magnificence at Versailles
0:00:40 > 0:00:43by creating a building so spectacular,
0:00:43 > 0:00:46it would outshine any palace on Earth.
0:00:47 > 0:00:51Taken from intimate memoirs and official records,
0:00:51 > 0:00:53this is the story of how a king's obsession
0:00:53 > 0:00:57created one of the wonders of the world.
0:01:13 > 0:01:15It started in a swamp.
0:01:17 > 0:01:21It was here, in a stretch of mosquito-infested marshland,
0:01:21 > 0:01:23that Louis, the 27-year-old King of France,
0:01:23 > 0:01:27decided to construct his new palace,
0:01:27 > 0:01:31near a small and unremarkable country town called Versailles.
0:01:34 > 0:01:36His courtiers were far from impressed.
0:01:38 > 0:01:42It was almost as though Louis had deliberately picked the worst possible
0:01:42 > 0:01:43site for his magnificent palace
0:01:43 > 0:01:47in order to prove to the world that his will was greater than nature.
0:01:56 > 0:02:00Louis had a sentimental reason for choosing Versailles.
0:02:00 > 0:02:03It was the site of his father's old hunting lodge,
0:02:03 > 0:02:06and as a boy, he'd played and hunted here.
0:02:11 > 0:02:16The original chateau of Louis' father was on top of a hill.
0:02:18 > 0:02:22The problem, if you wanted to turn it into a whacking great palace,
0:02:22 > 0:02:24was that you weren't going to be building on flat land.
0:02:24 > 0:02:28Louis was told, this is not a great place for a big expansion
0:02:28 > 0:02:30of your father's chateau.
0:02:30 > 0:02:33As a monarch with absolute power,
0:02:33 > 0:02:36Louis wasn't used to being told what to do.
0:02:36 > 0:02:38And he didn't much like it.
0:02:38 > 0:02:42TRANSLATION:
0:02:48 > 0:02:51From the outset, Louis was thinking big.
0:02:51 > 0:02:55He started by hiring the greatest architect of the age,
0:02:55 > 0:02:59Louis Le Vau, to transform the hunting lodge into the palace of his dreams.
0:03:03 > 0:03:06Louis was to devote much of his energy to his new project
0:03:06 > 0:03:10but he was always sure to make time for his other great passion.
0:03:11 > 0:03:14Although married to Queen Marie-Therese,
0:03:14 > 0:03:16he had numerous affairs.
0:03:16 > 0:03:19His current mistress was a young aristocratic beauty
0:03:19 > 0:03:21called Louise De La Valliere.
0:03:23 > 0:03:25TRANSLATION:
0:03:35 > 0:03:39Louis' attitude towards women was one of tremendous enthusiasm!
0:03:39 > 0:03:43He really loved women. He didn't just love them for sex,
0:03:43 > 0:03:47he loved their company, he loved their conversation,
0:03:47 > 0:03:51he loved their elegance, he loved women who were witty and refined.
0:03:51 > 0:03:54Most of all I think he loved women because they teased him,
0:03:54 > 0:03:55they made him laugh.
0:03:55 > 0:03:57TRANSLATION:
0:04:00 > 0:04:02He had a tremendous sexual appetite.
0:04:02 > 0:04:05He would quite often, if his mistress was too slow in taking her dress off,
0:04:05 > 0:04:08have a turn with her lady's maid while he was waiting,
0:04:08 > 0:04:11or a passing servant in the corridor at Versailles.
0:04:11 > 0:04:15He made love the way he did everything else, with enormous gusto.
0:04:18 > 0:04:21A French king was expected to have a mistress.
0:04:21 > 0:04:24It sort of symbolised the virility of the nation.
0:04:24 > 0:04:28And, you know, a hundred years later, poor Louis XVI -
0:04:28 > 0:04:32the French were furious with him because he DIDN'T have a mistress!
0:04:34 > 0:04:38Louise De La Valliere was Louis XIV's first official mistress.
0:04:38 > 0:04:40She was a lady-in-waiting at the court.
0:04:40 > 0:04:45She was guileless, charming, daughter of a good family,
0:04:45 > 0:04:49and she adored the King, and it was irresistible because she
0:04:49 > 0:04:53convinced him, quite genuinely, that she loved him for himself.
0:04:53 > 0:04:57And I think this is what the young King wanted to hear.
0:04:57 > 0:04:59I think he had a very good time.
0:05:03 > 0:05:06Louise was very important to him, he did love her.
0:05:06 > 0:05:10They had two children together, he made her a duchess.
0:05:10 > 0:05:16But it was a young man's crush, rather than a profound passion.
0:05:16 > 0:05:18PANTING AND MOANING
0:05:19 > 0:05:22Whatever his feelings for Louise,
0:05:22 > 0:05:27Louis was always careful to fulfil all of his obligations to his wife.
0:05:27 > 0:05:31His marriage to Queen Marie-Therese was politically vital.
0:05:31 > 0:05:34It had ensured peace between France and Spain for many years.
0:05:34 > 0:05:37And he needed to father children with her
0:05:37 > 0:05:39to ensure that his dynasty lived on.
0:05:40 > 0:05:43Louis did a feel a duty towards the Queen.
0:05:43 > 0:05:44He made love to her frequently,
0:05:44 > 0:05:48and she would always have a special mass said the day afterwards.
0:05:48 > 0:05:53Everybody would nudge each other at court because she'd look very pleased as she came into the chapel.
0:05:53 > 0:05:55He was attentive to her, polite to her.
0:05:55 > 0:06:00They had children together, but she simply didn't have the looks or the
0:06:00 > 0:06:06education or the spirit or the charm to captivate a man like that.
0:06:06 > 0:06:09She accepted his infidelity, as did
0:06:09 > 0:06:13most royal and aristocratic women of the time, as being part of marriage.
0:06:15 > 0:06:21Louis' mosquito-bitten courtiers also had to accept their King for what he was.
0:06:21 > 0:06:23Like all 17th century monarchs,
0:06:23 > 0:06:26Louis believed himself appointed directly by God.
0:06:29 > 0:06:31TRANSLATION:
0:06:45 > 0:06:48Nobody could tell him what to do, he was quite simply
0:06:48 > 0:06:50the only power in the realm.
0:06:50 > 0:06:53And having had this consciousness since he was a very, very small
0:06:53 > 0:06:59child, I think it meant that he was, without any arrogance or hubris,
0:06:59 > 0:07:02of the opinion that he was pretty much a god himself.
0:07:06 > 0:07:09As a kind of living god, Louis liked nothing more
0:07:09 > 0:07:13than being the centre of everyone else's attention.
0:07:16 > 0:07:18Louis was brought up in a theatre-mad age.
0:07:18 > 0:07:22As a young man, he took dancing lessons,
0:07:22 > 0:07:26which seem to have completely transformed his self confidence.
0:07:28 > 0:07:31He was actually a very accomplished dancer,
0:07:31 > 0:07:35and he clearly enjoyed greatly taking part in these
0:07:35 > 0:07:39performances, which were mainly in front of a court audience.
0:07:39 > 0:07:40TRANSLATION:
0:07:46 > 0:07:51I think all his contemporaries were extremely impressed by him.
0:07:51 > 0:07:53He was astonishingly handsome
0:07:53 > 0:07:56with his long golden hair and his almost cherubic face.
0:07:56 > 0:08:01He was indeed "God given", as his mother, Anne of Austria, called him.
0:08:02 > 0:08:05Louis liked dressing up, and not just for fun.
0:08:05 > 0:08:07It was part of his public image.
0:08:07 > 0:08:10He chose as his role model the Greek god Apollo,
0:08:10 > 0:08:14represented in classical imagery as the sun.
0:08:14 > 0:08:16TRANSLATION:
0:08:29 > 0:08:33Louis was very interested in the sun as a symbol.
0:08:35 > 0:08:39It's a very powerful symbol because it sheds its light everywhere.
0:08:39 > 0:08:41It's obviously very beneficial.
0:08:41 > 0:08:43But it's also a symbol of domination,
0:08:43 > 0:08:47because all the other elements are subordinate to the sun.
0:08:49 > 0:08:51He's in a sense, above everything.
0:08:59 > 0:09:02The Sun King seems to be an appropriate title.
0:09:02 > 0:09:06It was one that was a piece of propaganda when he was young.
0:09:06 > 0:09:09But like many bits of propaganda, I think it became fact.
0:09:17 > 0:09:21Le Vau's plans for the remodelling of Versailles were complete
0:09:21 > 0:09:24and ready to present to his demanding boss.
0:09:34 > 0:09:36Louis certainly knew that what he wanted
0:09:36 > 0:09:40was a building which had that shock and awe effect.
0:09:40 > 0:09:43There's absolutely no doubt that he wanted a building
0:09:43 > 0:09:45that would be sensational.
0:09:48 > 0:09:51Le Vau's model was impressive, but had a major flaw.
0:09:51 > 0:09:54He planned to destroy the old hunting lodge.
0:09:56 > 0:09:58TRANSLATION:
0:10:02 > 0:10:04The idea of Louis XIV was to
0:10:04 > 0:10:08keep always the little chateau of his father.
0:10:08 > 0:10:11So that was a problem for an architect because architects
0:10:11 > 0:10:14prefer to destroy everything and to build a new building.
0:10:14 > 0:10:17So Louis sent the architect away and told him,
0:10:17 > 0:10:20"I want this little chateau preserved."
0:10:20 > 0:10:22TRANSLATION:
0:10:34 > 0:10:37With Le Vau sent back to the drawing board,
0:10:37 > 0:10:39Louis turned his attention to the landscape.
0:10:39 > 0:10:43He wanted to expand the existing garden,
0:10:43 > 0:10:48adding ornamental lakes and groves lined with dazzling fountains.
0:10:48 > 0:10:50But he'd picked an awful site.
0:10:53 > 0:10:58There were no views - it's hemmed in by the sides of a valley.
0:10:58 > 0:11:00And also Versailles wasn't endowed,
0:11:00 > 0:11:05the region, with the sort of trees which Louis wanted for his garden.
0:11:05 > 0:11:09Louis's chief gardener was the century's most celebrated landscape designer,
0:11:09 > 0:11:13Andre Le Notre. Versailles would be the greatest challenge of his career.
0:11:13 > 0:11:15TRANSLATION:
0:11:21 > 0:11:25But the Sun King did not want to wait for his earthly paradise,
0:11:25 > 0:11:28or for his trees to grow from saplings.
0:11:28 > 0:11:32Louis XIV wanted results and he wanted them fast.
0:11:32 > 0:11:37This was really a theme of the whole sort of Project Versailles.
0:11:37 > 0:11:41And the solution was to uproot mature trees
0:11:41 > 0:11:44from other parts of France and bring them in.
0:11:44 > 0:11:47And a special contraption was invented,
0:11:47 > 0:11:51a horse-drawn contraption, which would allow these
0:11:51 > 0:11:55mature trees to be transported on, as you can imagine, these terribly
0:11:55 > 0:11:57bad roads from other provinces.
0:12:02 > 0:12:05With major new building work on hold,
0:12:05 > 0:12:09Louis instructed Le Vau to upgrade the interior of Versailles.
0:12:09 > 0:12:12On his inspection tours, Louis was accompanied by his
0:12:12 > 0:12:16entourage, including mistress Louise De La Valliere.
0:12:16 > 0:12:19But Louise now had a rival.
0:12:23 > 0:12:25TRANSLATION:
0:12:52 > 0:12:55After a while he became bored with Louise, and she hung around
0:12:55 > 0:12:59at court desperate to get his attention back. She never really did.
0:12:59 > 0:13:01So I think she probably suffered quite a lot.
0:13:01 > 0:13:04I think the King could pick and choose.
0:13:04 > 0:13:08Power's a great aphrodisiac, and a crown even more so.
0:13:08 > 0:13:11So naturally I think he picked very beautiful women.
0:13:15 > 0:13:18Louis liked to display his power.
0:13:18 > 0:13:20After winning a war against Spain,
0:13:20 > 0:13:23he celebrated with a huge party in the gardens of Versailles.
0:13:27 > 0:13:31It was also a chance for the King to show off
0:13:31 > 0:13:35the woman who had now replaced Louise as his favourite mistress.
0:13:35 > 0:13:37Her name was Madame De Montespan,
0:13:37 > 0:13:41and she was one of the most beautiful women in France.
0:13:42 > 0:13:44TRANSLATION:
0:13:55 > 0:13:58Montespan is such an attractive figure, I think.
0:13:58 > 0:14:02She was a tremendous goer. She loved everything to do with pleasure.
0:14:02 > 0:14:05She loved jewels, she liked marvellous clothes,
0:14:05 > 0:14:07she liked food, flowers, gardening.
0:14:07 > 0:14:11And above all she liked sex, you see, and he did too,
0:14:11 > 0:14:16so he found the absolutely the right maitresse-en-titre for him.
0:14:19 > 0:14:22And she knew about having wonderful feasts
0:14:22 > 0:14:24and about having entertainments.
0:14:24 > 0:14:30So she was exactly the kind of person Louis envisaged as being suitable. At the
0:14:30 > 0:14:35same time she was so beautiful that ambassadors thought she contributed
0:14:35 > 0:14:37to the legend of the Sun King.
0:14:37 > 0:14:41The Sun King's festivities were about more than pleasure.
0:14:41 > 0:14:44They had real political significance.
0:14:44 > 0:14:48Louis was slowly turning his new palace into the most important
0:14:48 > 0:14:51and the most fashionable seat of power in Europe.
0:14:56 > 0:14:58The parties at Versailles,
0:14:58 > 0:15:01they've been described as Pagan masses.
0:15:04 > 0:15:07Fireworks, rides along the canal in gondolas,
0:15:07 > 0:15:10balls for 3,000 people under the stars.
0:15:10 > 0:15:13Plays, ballets with a hundred dancers by Lully.
0:15:13 > 0:15:17Everything you could possibly imagine all at once
0:15:17 > 0:15:21in this tremendous circus of celebration for the King.
0:15:23 > 0:15:27The great parties were intended to show the nobility and the rest
0:15:27 > 0:15:31of Europe how powerful the King of France was, what wonderful artists
0:15:31 > 0:15:33he had, what wonderful musicians.
0:15:33 > 0:15:36How superior his court and his culture were
0:15:36 > 0:15:38to every other court and culture in Europe.
0:15:44 > 0:15:46The King's former mistress Louise
0:15:46 > 0:15:48eventually gave up trying to win him back.
0:15:48 > 0:15:51After years of neglect, she decided
0:15:51 > 0:15:55to enter a convent, leaving behind the children she'd had with Louis.
0:16:01 > 0:16:03I don't think she felt guilt about leaving them
0:16:03 > 0:16:07behind because she knew that they were going to be very well treated.
0:16:07 > 0:16:11So I don't think she felt that kind of guilt, because I think
0:16:11 > 0:16:15her big guilt she wanted to expunge with penance and fasting and all that in the convent.
0:16:15 > 0:16:19And when she finally got away I think she was much happier.
0:16:22 > 0:16:28And she became a very hard-line nun, you know, hair cut, hair-shirt,
0:16:28 > 0:16:34praying and repentance, and generally ended her life more or less in the odour of sanctity.
0:16:34 > 0:16:39Because Louis was spending more and more time at Versailles, he decided
0:16:39 > 0:16:41to move his entire government there.
0:16:41 > 0:16:45To accommodate the new officials, Le Vau suggested a brand new idea -
0:16:45 > 0:16:47keeping the old hunting lodge
0:16:47 > 0:16:52but enclosing it with massive new buildings on three sides.
0:16:54 > 0:16:56The design was known as the "envelope".
0:17:00 > 0:17:05The chateau was preserved, but it was enveloped in this new
0:17:05 > 0:17:09building in a completely different style, which looked like a palace.
0:17:11 > 0:17:15What he also did with Le Vau was to build pavilions for his ministers.
0:17:15 > 0:17:19This was very important. What this meant was that for the first time,
0:17:19 > 0:17:23Versailles could function as a seat of monarchy,
0:17:23 > 0:17:26a place from which the King could govern.
0:17:31 > 0:17:34Building the "envelope" was a massive task,
0:17:34 > 0:17:36requiring thousands of workers.
0:17:39 > 0:17:45The largest number of workers were 40,000 people at the same time.
0:17:45 > 0:17:46It was a very dangerous place
0:17:46 > 0:17:52also because the work to be done was not done in a secure way of course,
0:17:52 > 0:17:56it was with accidents and people dying.
0:18:00 > 0:18:04Louis was impatient to get the job done quickly.
0:18:04 > 0:18:06Work went on day and night.
0:18:08 > 0:18:11There was no health and safety regime.
0:18:11 > 0:18:13And the workers who were most at risk
0:18:13 > 0:18:15were the ones who were working high up.
0:18:15 > 0:18:19So, for instance, the roofers, the carpenters.
0:18:22 > 0:18:27We do know that there were a lot of accidents on site.
0:18:27 > 0:18:28WOMAN CRIES OUT
0:18:28 > 0:18:30TRANSLATION:
0:18:39 > 0:18:43There were times when the death rate, the mortality rate,
0:18:43 > 0:18:48was high, and in order not to demoralise the workforce,
0:18:48 > 0:18:51the corpses would be removed at night.
0:19:03 > 0:19:06Louis' mistress Madame De Montespan was already married,
0:19:06 > 0:19:10but that didn't stop her spending most of her time with the King.
0:19:10 > 0:19:14And he made sure she got the VIP treatment.
0:19:14 > 0:19:18She had a suite of 20 rooms whereas the Queen had to make do with 11.
0:19:18 > 0:19:23They were gorgeously appointed, and he spent a lot of time in them.
0:19:23 > 0:19:26They included a bathroom - most unusual for the time,
0:19:26 > 0:19:30in which apparently he and Madame De Montespan spent many happy hours.
0:19:35 > 0:19:37Despite her elevated status,
0:19:37 > 0:19:41Montespan found it hard to share Louis, even with his own wife.
0:19:43 > 0:19:46TRANSLATION:
0:20:02 > 0:20:08I don't think she was really jealous of the Queen because after all she had
0:20:08 > 0:20:12everything of Louis' real love, and she knew it.
0:20:12 > 0:20:14But I think she made scenes about the other mistresses,
0:20:14 > 0:20:17when they came along as the years passed.
0:20:17 > 0:20:21And I think there are some men - possibly Louis among them - who
0:20:21 > 0:20:24rather like it if a woman is jealous and shows signs of caring.
0:20:24 > 0:20:28You know, she certainly complained like mad if she felt
0:20:28 > 0:20:32he was straying from what was in fact an illegitimate relationship.
0:20:39 > 0:20:43Louis kept a close eye on the building works.
0:20:43 > 0:20:46But one inspection visit brought a nasty surprise.
0:20:47 > 0:20:51A mother angry at the death of her son, killed on site,
0:20:51 > 0:20:53was waiting for him.
0:20:54 > 0:20:56TRANSLATION:
0:21:08 > 0:21:12We're told that she just let fly at Louis XIV.
0:21:20 > 0:21:23I mean, he was very surprised. He said, "Is that me?"
0:21:36 > 0:21:39This was a courageous thing for this mother to have done, because
0:21:39 > 0:21:41there were guards everywhere,
0:21:41 > 0:21:46and of course as soon as she had said this she was very quickly
0:21:46 > 0:21:49hustled away for her punishment.
0:21:51 > 0:21:53SHE CRIES OUT
0:21:53 > 0:21:55TRANSLATION:
0:22:24 > 0:22:28Le Notre's ambitious plans were finally taking shape.
0:22:28 > 0:22:33And Louis' dream of creating the most spectacular palace in Europe
0:22:33 > 0:22:36was slowly becoming a reality.
0:22:36 > 0:22:39Louis' great gardener, his real gift
0:22:39 > 0:22:44was for rearranging the landscape basically and dividing it up on a
0:22:44 > 0:22:50grid, and then you treat the units within the grid essentially as outdoor rooms.
0:22:50 > 0:22:53And then you would bring in all sorts of other people -
0:22:53 > 0:22:56water engineers, sculptors,
0:22:56 > 0:23:00architects, essentially to furnish these rooms.
0:23:02 > 0:23:04TRANSLATION:
0:23:20 > 0:23:24The "envelope" around the old hunting lodge was complete.
0:23:24 > 0:23:28Louis' ministers were installed in their new apartments, and the King
0:23:28 > 0:23:30began governing from Versailles.
0:23:34 > 0:23:38Now, Louis decided he would make the palace his permanent home,
0:23:38 > 0:23:42and insisted that leading French nobles come and live there too.
0:23:46 > 0:23:48TRANSLATION:
0:23:55 > 0:23:58There's no question that for Louis, the nobility,
0:23:58 > 0:24:01particularly the court nobility, were an essential aspect of his kingship.
0:24:01 > 0:24:05They surrounded him with glory and status.
0:24:07 > 0:24:10This is a state where the ultimate decider
0:24:10 > 0:24:14on granting favour or refusing favour is in the hands of the king.
0:24:14 > 0:24:18If you were looking for a military command, if you
0:24:18 > 0:24:22were looking for favours for many of your clients, supporters and family,
0:24:22 > 0:24:26then the way to achieve this was by getting access to Louis
0:24:26 > 0:24:31and to a lesser extent by gaining access to the ministers around Louis.
0:24:31 > 0:24:35But housing all the nobles would mean yet more building work.
0:24:35 > 0:24:39Louis' finance minister Jean-Baptiste Colbert
0:24:39 > 0:24:40worried about the cost.
0:24:40 > 0:24:43TRANSLATION:
0:25:08 > 0:25:12Louis wanted the nobility at Versailles in order that
0:25:12 > 0:25:14he could keep an eye on them.
0:25:14 > 0:25:18The message he wanted to give to his nobles was this -
0:25:18 > 0:25:21"You don't need to rebel to get what you want.
0:25:21 > 0:25:25"What you have to do is come and pay your court to me."
0:25:34 > 0:25:36TRANSLATION:
0:25:42 > 0:25:46Original architect Louis Le Vau died before his project was complete.
0:25:46 > 0:25:51His replacement, Jules Mansart, had ideas of his own.
0:25:54 > 0:25:58Mansart had the great idea to have big wings
0:25:58 > 0:26:02each side of the "envelope", to make some accommodation for
0:26:02 > 0:26:05the princes and the court, so it was a huge design,
0:26:05 > 0:26:08and I think he had a greater idea
0:26:08 > 0:26:12of what would be a great palace for a great king.
0:26:12 > 0:26:14TRANSLATION:
0:26:20 > 0:26:22Mansart's most ambitious proposal
0:26:22 > 0:26:26was to build a fabulous gallery lined with mirrors.
0:26:53 > 0:26:55However magnificent the plans,
0:26:55 > 0:26:58Louis' experience with his builders was a familiar one.
0:26:58 > 0:27:03Everything took much longer and cost far more than the estimates.
0:27:03 > 0:27:05And they made a terrible mess.
0:27:06 > 0:27:10Nothing is more false than these gracious pictures of Versailles,
0:27:10 > 0:27:14which shows this stately place with everything perfect, everybody gliding about.
0:27:14 > 0:27:17Actually, it was a huge building site.
0:27:18 > 0:27:21All the court ladies complained about it.
0:27:21 > 0:27:24The workmen starting at 6am, my dear, the dust
0:27:24 > 0:27:27and the smell of wet plaster which got into their hair.
0:27:27 > 0:27:31It's exactly like today - exactly like what we feel on a tiny scale
0:27:31 > 0:27:33when our neighbours go building.
0:27:33 > 0:27:35TRANSLATION:
0:27:38 > 0:27:41Must have been an amazing sight.
0:27:41 > 0:27:44I mean, the first day in at Versailles.
0:27:45 > 0:27:49Everybody starts jostling, jostling, jostling for bigger rooms and
0:27:49 > 0:27:51better rooms and a better position.
0:27:51 > 0:27:56In meantime, the lesser folk, they were trying to get down from the
0:27:56 > 0:28:01attics, get better rooms, always to get as near as possible to the King.
0:28:01 > 0:28:03TRANSLATION:
0:28:14 > 0:28:17At night, there was this sort of great unrolling of
0:28:17 > 0:28:22mattresses all over the palace, as servants and soldiers, guards,
0:28:22 > 0:28:24they'd go to sleep on the floor.
0:28:26 > 0:28:30The lavatory arrangements were pretty kind of basic.
0:28:30 > 0:28:33Servants would think nothing of relieving themselves
0:28:33 > 0:28:35in the corridors of Versailles.
0:28:35 > 0:28:39So you have this extraordinary attention on outward appearances
0:28:39 > 0:28:43and magnificent clothes, but alongside you have all these smells.
0:28:43 > 0:28:46I mean, you could have been in a farmyard.
0:28:46 > 0:28:47TRANSLATION:
0:28:52 > 0:28:56I think many of the nobility would have resented the chaos
0:28:56 > 0:28:59and lack of order, and doubtless complained about this at length.
0:28:59 > 0:29:03But I think one shouldn't underestimate the compulsive desire
0:29:03 > 0:29:06of most of the great nobility to attend at court
0:29:06 > 0:29:07to be around the King.
0:29:11 > 0:29:13Louis' desire for magnificence
0:29:13 > 0:29:18extended to every aspect of his life - especially his wardrobe.
0:29:18 > 0:29:21He dressed in the finest cloth
0:29:21 > 0:29:24and expected his courtiers to do likewise.
0:29:24 > 0:29:26And when his hair began to recede,
0:29:26 > 0:29:29he adopted the fashion for elaborate wigs.
0:29:32 > 0:29:35A half inch of lace on a cuff, a gold or a silver button,
0:29:35 > 0:29:37whether your pearl was here on your collar or here.
0:29:37 > 0:29:40These could mean life and death to the courtiers.
0:29:40 > 0:29:43Fashion was hugely important and it was a very important way for
0:29:43 > 0:29:48the aristocracy to distinguish themselves from the ordinary people.
0:29:49 > 0:29:52Louis influenced fashion to some extent.
0:29:52 > 0:29:56When he was a young man he dressed quite flamboyantly -
0:29:56 > 0:29:59lots of cavalier silks and laces and ribbons.
0:29:59 > 0:30:02He was a bit on the short side, so he introduced a fashion
0:30:02 > 0:30:05for high-heeled shoes. His mistresses perhaps
0:30:05 > 0:30:08were more influential on fashion.
0:30:08 > 0:30:12Madame De Montespan invented various outfits including one,
0:30:12 > 0:30:16the glorious deshabille, which was a sort of a tunic worn over trousers,
0:30:16 > 0:30:19and she invented this because it was very easy to take off.
0:30:19 > 0:30:23Normally a lady's dress required two women to stand behind her to
0:30:23 > 0:30:28undo all the strings, and of course Louis was an impatient man, he couldn't be bothered waiting.
0:30:28 > 0:30:31So she invented this so that he could undress her easily in private.
0:30:38 > 0:30:43With so many courtiers now craving his attention, Louis kept them busy
0:30:43 > 0:30:46by turning his daily activities into public rituals.
0:30:48 > 0:30:52When he gets up in the morning, that's the royal lever, with a
0:30:52 > 0:30:59great queue of great nobles who hand him different articles of clothing.
0:30:59 > 0:31:02At night it's all reversed, it's the royal coucher
0:31:02 > 0:31:04and he takes things off and gives them to nobles.
0:31:04 > 0:31:08Great nobles would quarrel with one another as to which of them had the
0:31:08 > 0:31:10right to hand him his shirt,
0:31:10 > 0:31:14because it had to be the person of highest rank in the room.
0:31:17 > 0:31:20They couldn't go off to the country on their estates and
0:31:20 > 0:31:24start raising armies, meddling. It meant that they had to stay there,
0:31:24 > 0:31:28quarrelling about whose turn it was to give the King his napkin.
0:31:28 > 0:31:33Even the King's mealtimes turned into a performance, where the nobles
0:31:33 > 0:31:37stood and watched the King eat, waiting for him to speak to them.
0:31:40 > 0:31:45One of the phenomena of Versailles was the sight of leading nobles
0:31:45 > 0:31:49adopting these very deferential poses.
0:31:49 > 0:31:53This was actually a very powerful signal that the monarchy was back in charge.
0:31:53 > 0:31:58For the courtiers, flattery became a way of life.
0:31:58 > 0:32:03For instance, one courtier, a great nobleman in his province,
0:32:03 > 0:32:06Louis says to him, "When is your wife's baby due?"
0:32:06 > 0:32:10And this nobleman says, "When your majesty wishes it."
0:32:10 > 0:32:12LAUGHTER
0:32:16 > 0:32:20As well as accommodating thousands of courtiers and officials,
0:32:20 > 0:32:25Versailles was also used by the King to promote France itself.
0:32:26 > 0:32:31There was a deliberate intention to create a showcase
0:32:31 > 0:32:37for French manufacturers and to rival or outdo
0:32:37 > 0:32:42Italy above all, which was the great source of taste in the 17th century.
0:32:43 > 0:32:47The magnificence of the interior - of course, it was all about the
0:32:47 > 0:32:50splendour of the monarchy and the splendour of Louis XIV.
0:32:50 > 0:32:54Louis personally loved rich materials and fine craftsmanship.
0:32:56 > 0:33:01But it was also a careful orchestration of Louis XIV's -
0:33:01 > 0:33:06France's - claim to lead Europe in terms of taste and the arts.
0:33:10 > 0:33:14As building progressed, Louis commissioned hundreds of paintings,
0:33:14 > 0:33:19sculptures and other decorations, many containing images of himself
0:33:19 > 0:33:22as the embodiment of French glory.
0:33:22 > 0:33:24This was no accident.
0:33:24 > 0:33:31If you compare Louis with rulers before, it is remarkable how he had professional advice.
0:33:31 > 0:33:34So, he's not presenting his image by himself.
0:33:34 > 0:33:39There was a whole back-up team of intellectuals, writers.
0:33:39 > 0:33:43This is a real innovation, that there should be a small committee
0:33:43 > 0:33:48of people who are simply working on how to present the king's image
0:33:48 > 0:33:51in the most grand manner possible.
0:33:53 > 0:33:56The great French painter Charles Le Brun was recruited to the cause.
0:33:58 > 0:33:59TRANSLATION:
0:34:19 > 0:34:23Louis' image-makers liked art that presented him as a conquering
0:34:23 > 0:34:28hero - drawing on figures from ancient mythology like Jupiter
0:34:28 > 0:34:30and his favourite, Apollo.
0:34:33 > 0:34:38The association with the image of very powerful men of the past
0:34:38 > 0:34:41were part of the strategy of being
0:34:41 > 0:34:45the best king and the most powerful and most important king of the time.
0:34:48 > 0:34:54Louis' public image may have included a fair amount of 17th century hype.
0:34:54 > 0:34:57But he was certainly a remarkable man.
0:34:57 > 0:35:01He goes hunting three times a day, goes to council meetings
0:35:01 > 0:35:05three times a day, he's a very hard worker,
0:35:05 > 0:35:06he makes love three times a day -
0:35:06 > 0:35:10we must conclude the man had amazing energies.
0:35:26 > 0:35:29Louis' restless pursuit of glory and magnificence
0:35:29 > 0:35:32found expression in the gardens of Versailles.
0:35:32 > 0:35:35But even the King could not change the geography of a region that was
0:35:35 > 0:35:40critically short of running water to power the hundreds of new fountains
0:35:40 > 0:35:42that Le Notre had installed.
0:35:43 > 0:35:46And so, when the King took a stroll,
0:35:46 > 0:35:49his gardeners had to turn the fountains on as he approached.
0:35:51 > 0:35:55And then off again once he had walked past.
0:36:17 > 0:36:18TRANSLATION:
0:36:20 > 0:36:25The problem of getting supplies of fast running, high-pressure water
0:36:25 > 0:36:27were never adequately solved.
0:36:28 > 0:36:31Various attempts were made to find alternative sources from
0:36:31 > 0:36:33quite far away from Versailles.
0:36:33 > 0:36:37The celebrated Machine of Marly was a series of vast water wheels which
0:36:37 > 0:36:41were intended to bring water up from the Seine
0:36:41 > 0:36:44and deliver it to the Palace of Versailles.
0:36:44 > 0:36:47This provided water but not enough...
0:36:47 > 0:36:54The great and final scheme involved building a full scale Roman-style aqueduct.
0:36:54 > 0:36:58This was abandoned as being too expensive and the result,
0:36:58 > 0:37:01of course, was that the great gardens of Versailles never
0:37:01 > 0:37:05had enough water to drive all the fountains simultaneously.
0:37:14 > 0:37:20Fortunately, there was enough glass to furnish the Palace's most ambitious development,
0:37:20 > 0:37:23the result of six years' intense work.
0:37:23 > 0:37:29This was Mansart and Le Brun's most stunning achievement,
0:37:29 > 0:37:31Versailles' Hall of Mirrors.
0:38:01 > 0:38:03TRANSLATION:
0:38:14 > 0:38:19I think the effect of the gallery is more a dream.
0:38:19 > 0:38:22A wonderful light given by the mirrors.
0:38:22 > 0:38:27And it's... I think it's very impressive. And astonishing.
0:38:31 > 0:38:33Versailles is undoubtedly one of the great palaces.
0:38:35 > 0:38:38Louis would have wanted us to think of the chateau as
0:38:38 > 0:38:40an integrated whole.
0:38:40 > 0:38:42Not to focus on specific items,
0:38:42 > 0:38:45whether the Hall of Mirrors or the Great Canal.
0:38:45 > 0:38:49And as an integrated unit it completely outshines, I think,
0:38:49 > 0:38:51almost every other palace ever conceived or built.
0:38:56 > 0:38:58TRANSLATION:
0:39:17 > 0:39:20Louis said of his house, "Versailles, c'est moi."
0:39:20 > 0:39:23Louis was Versailles, he was his house.
0:39:23 > 0:39:25If we understand one, we understand the other.
0:39:30 > 0:39:34The King wishes to assert his authority and maintain his position.
0:39:34 > 0:39:37He has to do it through display.
0:39:37 > 0:39:40Versailles is an ideal theatre set on which he can act out
0:39:40 > 0:39:43what he regards as his royal duties.
0:39:43 > 0:39:46Versailles from this view point fulfils those requirements
0:39:46 > 0:39:50better than almost any other building that could be imagined.
0:39:52 > 0:39:54Louis' love affair with his palace
0:39:54 > 0:39:57lasted longer than any of his human relationships.
0:39:57 > 0:40:03After 14 years, nine pregnancies and seven children,
0:40:03 > 0:40:07Montespan was beginning to lose her looks and her hold on the king.
0:40:07 > 0:40:11Madame de Montespan began to fall out of favour because,
0:40:11 > 0:40:15inevitably, after nine pregnancies, her figure wasn't quite what it was.
0:40:15 > 0:40:18She became rather blousy, she drank too much,
0:40:18 > 0:40:21she gambled too much, she made a nuisance of herself with
0:40:21 > 0:40:25her tantrums, and I think, as happens to a lot of women, the more she felt
0:40:25 > 0:40:27her man slipping away from her,
0:40:27 > 0:40:29the more needy and clingy she became,
0:40:29 > 0:40:32and the more needy and clingy she became, the more she drove him away.
0:40:34 > 0:40:36TRANSLATION:
0:40:44 > 0:40:48But I think Louis was also undergoing quite a significant personal transformation.
0:40:48 > 0:40:50He was becoming much more religious.
0:40:50 > 0:40:53Madame de Montespan was a married woman.
0:40:53 > 0:40:56Committing adultery with an unmarried woman was one thing,
0:40:56 > 0:40:58but double adultery was sacrilege.
0:40:58 > 0:41:00It was a tremendous scandal,
0:41:00 > 0:41:05and he was becoming conscious of the fact that his way of life was
0:41:05 > 0:41:09really compromising the state and compromising his kingship.
0:41:12 > 0:41:15Louis turned to a very different woman.
0:41:15 > 0:41:20Madame de Maintenon - governess to his illegitimate children.
0:41:20 > 0:41:24Maintenon was pious, quiet and intelligent.
0:41:24 > 0:41:27Qualities that a middle-aged Louis had come to admire.
0:41:31 > 0:41:34Poor Madame de Maintenon had to do everything.
0:41:34 > 0:41:38She had to act as a cook, plumber, gardener, as well as a teacher and nursemaid.
0:41:38 > 0:41:43It was exhausting, and she did this so well that Louis began to pay attention to her.
0:41:43 > 0:41:46He noticed this, this intelligent woman, this calm presence.
0:41:49 > 0:41:53Slowly, slowly Madame de Maintenon began to seduce the King.
0:41:56 > 0:42:00Rejected mistress Montespan was distraught.
0:42:03 > 0:42:04TRANSLATION:
0:42:16 > 0:42:19I think it was the rise of Maintenon in the first place
0:42:19 > 0:42:23which really riled her because she found she'd made a mistake -
0:42:23 > 0:42:25she'd underestimated another woman.
0:42:25 > 0:42:27Maintenon was poor, and a widow
0:42:27 > 0:42:31and innocuous and very pleasant and intelligent.
0:42:31 > 0:42:34And she didn't spot that Louis might actually fall in love with a woman
0:42:34 > 0:42:38like that, you know, and it might be a very seductive thing to him,
0:42:38 > 0:42:42in quite a different way from her own seductive past.
0:42:42 > 0:42:46And I think, for a couple of years at least, she was extremely angry.
0:42:47 > 0:42:51When Louis' long-suffering queen, Marie Therese, died,
0:42:51 > 0:42:53he was free to marry again.
0:42:53 > 0:42:56And he turned to the quiet governess.
0:42:56 > 0:42:58She'd not only won his heart,
0:42:58 > 0:43:01she'd convinced him she could help save his soul.
0:43:03 > 0:43:0617th century mentality - it was very different.
0:43:06 > 0:43:10The attention paid to salvation, dying in a state of grace so you
0:43:10 > 0:43:13didn't go to hell was enormous, and Louis, who in some ways was
0:43:13 > 0:43:19quite simple took this very, very, seriously and I think Maintenon
0:43:19 > 0:43:23persuaded him that she could help him towards his salvation.
0:43:23 > 0:43:25As Maintenon was a commoner,
0:43:25 > 0:43:29the King could only marry her behind closed doors.
0:43:33 > 0:43:37He did need a secret church wedding, a morganatic wedding,
0:43:37 > 0:43:42as they're called, in the presence of clergy and witnesses.
0:43:42 > 0:43:45After that, he's all right with God and the church - he can go to
0:43:45 > 0:43:47communion, it's all perfectly OK.
0:43:51 > 0:43:55And it's interesting that Louis never declared the marriage
0:43:55 > 0:43:57because she wasn't a princess.
0:43:57 > 0:44:01He had his own values, that is, he would have his private life,
0:44:01 > 0:44:03but in public, he was solitary.
0:44:13 > 0:44:16In public, Louis concentrated on running his palace.
0:44:17 > 0:44:21And his court life at Versailles became ever more formalised.
0:44:23 > 0:44:27I think the establishment of the full court at Versailles really turned it
0:44:27 > 0:44:33into the great social political power broking centre of France.
0:44:37 > 0:44:41Versailles was exciting, if you thought like a French nobleman.
0:44:41 > 0:44:45Because Louis XIV was your host.
0:44:45 > 0:44:50You would spend the evening in the physical presence of the King of France.
0:44:50 > 0:44:53You would be admitted to his gaming table.
0:44:55 > 0:45:00You would be invited to dance in front of the King. Now, for nobles,
0:45:00 > 0:45:04this was an enormously prestigious, an enormously flattering thing.
0:45:29 > 0:45:32The court of Versailles could be seen as a cross, perhaps, between
0:45:32 > 0:45:37Royal Ascot and the dealing floor of a futures exchange.
0:45:37 > 0:45:38A combination of a very
0:45:38 > 0:45:43socially elite group who already know each other and can interact with each
0:45:43 > 0:45:48other and at the same time a group of hardened professionals who have their
0:45:48 > 0:45:50own language and their own codes.
0:45:50 > 0:45:54Who know how to strike deals, and to extract the best possible advantages
0:45:54 > 0:45:56from a particular situation.
0:45:59 > 0:46:03Versailles was the original hotbed of scandal.
0:46:03 > 0:46:06The phrase with which everyone began their conversation was, "On dit" -
0:46:06 > 0:46:10"it's being said." They're saying this, they're saying that.
0:46:10 > 0:46:13All day, these whispers of rumour would travel about the palace
0:46:13 > 0:46:16and people would send each other little bulletins by sedan chair,
0:46:16 > 0:46:19to report on what was going on in the different rooms and that of
0:46:19 > 0:46:23course made it a tremendously claustrophobic place to live.
0:46:23 > 0:46:26You couldn't do anything without everybody knowing about it.
0:46:31 > 0:46:34It was this extraordinary networking centre.
0:46:34 > 0:46:38Everyone who was anyone in France, was now at Versailles,
0:46:38 > 0:46:42so to be excluded was disastrous for a French nobleman.
0:46:44 > 0:46:47The worst thing that a courtier could hear from the King
0:46:47 > 0:46:49was, "He's a man I never see."
0:46:49 > 0:46:52People would spend literally years
0:46:52 > 0:46:56trying to hear one word or have a gesture from the King.
0:47:03 > 0:47:06With the nobility now so dependent on him,
0:47:06 > 0:47:10Louis could fully immerse himself in the role he was born to play.
0:47:12 > 0:47:17He emerges as this absolutely consummate performer.
0:47:19 > 0:47:23The whole regime at Versailles hinged on your having this
0:47:23 > 0:47:28extraordinarily charismatic figure who could perform in all the right
0:47:28 > 0:47:33ways for this enormous audience which he had assembled around him.
0:47:33 > 0:47:35GROANING
0:47:37 > 0:47:40But Louis was only human. And after years of good health,
0:47:40 > 0:47:45he began to suffer from a serious medical problem, an anal fistula.
0:47:49 > 0:47:51TRANSLATION:
0:48:05 > 0:48:09This was an extremely serious condition in the context of the 17th century.
0:48:09 > 0:48:13The risk of it becoming gangrenous - that the pus would seep into the rest
0:48:13 > 0:48:16of the body and infect - was very great indeed.
0:48:16 > 0:48:20Untreated, it would almost certainly have killed the King.
0:48:23 > 0:48:27The only way that it was likely to be cured was through invasive surgery.
0:48:27 > 0:48:30Such surgery had had a very poor success rate.
0:48:31 > 0:48:34But Louis instructed his doctors to go ahead.
0:48:35 > 0:48:38His senior physician devised a new instrument
0:48:38 > 0:48:40especially for the operation.
0:48:44 > 0:48:46The doctors involved in the operation
0:48:46 > 0:48:50practised on a number of others who had anal fistulas before hand.
0:48:50 > 0:48:53But it was nonetheless still a very risky operation.
0:48:53 > 0:48:58In the 17th century, the doctors were much more likely to kill you than cure you.
0:48:58 > 0:49:02Huge effort was made at Versailles to keep the details of this secret
0:49:02 > 0:49:06because it was felt so likely that the King wouldn't survive,
0:49:06 > 0:49:09that the diplomatic repercussions of this would sweep through Europe.
0:49:22 > 0:49:24TRANSLATION:
0:49:39 > 0:49:41HE GASPS AND MURMURS
0:49:48 > 0:49:52He was so stalwart during the operation, he never spoke at all.
0:49:52 > 0:49:55Imagine the pain, no anaesthetic.
0:50:01 > 0:50:04This extraordinary self control he had,
0:50:04 > 0:50:09he just gritted his teeth and conducted himself with great dignity.
0:50:28 > 0:50:30And that night, he took a counsel meeting.
0:50:30 > 0:50:36Extraordinary, very pale with a sort of sheen of sweat, but he made it.
0:50:45 > 0:50:49Louis recovered his health, but other troubles were looming.
0:50:49 > 0:50:52His fame and success had earned him many enemies.
0:50:52 > 0:50:54Two years after his operation,
0:50:54 > 0:50:59France began a costly war against Spain, England and Sweden.
0:51:01 > 0:51:04As the fighting dragged on, some of Versailles' silver was
0:51:04 > 0:51:08quietly removed and melted down to pay the King's soldiers.
0:51:12 > 0:51:16Unable to win the war, Louis signed an unfavourable peace treaty,
0:51:16 > 0:51:19conceding territory to his enemies.
0:51:21 > 0:51:25The Sun King was finally in decline and, although he continued to make
0:51:25 > 0:51:28small improvements to his great palace,
0:51:28 > 0:51:30he lost much of his enthusiasm.
0:51:31 > 0:51:33TRANSLATION:
0:52:03 > 0:52:07After just four years of peace, a new crisis threatened.
0:52:07 > 0:52:13The Spanish king died, leaving his empire to Louis' grandson.
0:52:13 > 0:52:19If Louis accepted on the boy's behalf, he knew the other European powers would try to stop him.
0:52:19 > 0:52:24But if he refused, the territories would go to France's rivals in Austria.
0:52:25 > 0:52:28He was in an impossible situation.
0:52:29 > 0:52:33Louis was damned if he did, damned if he didn't.
0:52:33 > 0:52:36Faced with an issue which concerns the honour of his dynasty,
0:52:36 > 0:52:41it's perhaps not surprising that he opts for the acceptance of the Spanish offer.
0:52:44 > 0:52:49But inevitably, therefore, provokes war with the other major European powers.
0:52:51 > 0:52:54This, the most gruelling war of Louis' reign,
0:52:54 > 0:52:58lasted for 12 years and brought France to the brink of ruin.
0:53:02 > 0:53:06As Louis grew old and frail, he fell ever more under the influence of his
0:53:06 > 0:53:10devout wife, and now shunned the lavish amusements
0:53:10 > 0:53:12that had once filled his beloved palace.
0:53:15 > 0:53:19I think Versailles became a chilly, tedious place in many respects once
0:53:19 > 0:53:22de Maintenon got Louis into her grip.
0:53:24 > 0:53:27It became this sort of rather dreary world
0:53:27 > 0:53:30where whatever the King of France was doing, you could set your
0:53:30 > 0:53:33watch by - you could look at a clock at any hour of the day and
0:53:33 > 0:53:38know exactly where Louis was, and his whole life became this, this endless
0:53:38 > 0:53:42choreography of etiquette and ritual, with Madame de Maintenon sitting
0:53:42 > 0:53:46there in the corner like some sort of holy spider watching it all.
0:53:48 > 0:53:50TRANSLATION:
0:54:06 > 0:54:09Maintenon was a comfort to Louis when he needed it the most.
0:54:09 > 0:54:13Illness took the life of many members of his family, including
0:54:13 > 0:54:19a son and grandson, and he was haunted by the legacy of his wars.
0:54:19 > 0:54:22I think Louis was a tragic figure in his final days.
0:54:22 > 0:54:29I think the tragedy began with the sudden deaths of so many of his nearest and dearest.
0:54:29 > 0:54:34Louis had Maintenon by his side, but she said about him that sometimes he
0:54:34 > 0:54:36would be alone with her, he'd shut the doors
0:54:36 > 0:54:39and then he would just weep about the way things had gone.
0:54:39 > 0:54:41I think it was a very sad old age, you know,
0:54:41 > 0:54:45outliving his descendents, and having led France into these wars,
0:54:45 > 0:54:50which seemed wonderful when he was winning them and became ghastly when he wasn't.
0:54:59 > 0:55:03Aged 76, and after 72 years on the throne,
0:55:03 > 0:55:07Louis was once again taken seriously ill.
0:55:07 > 0:55:09TRANSLATION:
0:55:11 > 0:55:15No-one expected Louis XIV to live as long as he did.
0:55:15 > 0:55:19When Louis finally weakens in the last year of his life,
0:55:19 > 0:55:23it's the result of a gangrenous infection which gradually spreads
0:55:23 > 0:55:25from his leg to the rest of the left side of his body.
0:55:27 > 0:55:31Even Louis' own death became a public performance.
0:55:33 > 0:55:34TRANSLATION:
0:55:51 > 0:55:54In spite of their long intimacy,
0:55:54 > 0:55:57Maintenon wasn't actually at the King's side when he died.
0:55:57 > 0:55:59That was not the practice.
0:55:59 > 0:56:02By her own wish she went off to a
0:56:02 > 0:56:07convent to be among ladies who would sucker her and sympathise with her,
0:56:07 > 0:56:11leaving him to priest and, ultimately, to God.
0:56:15 > 0:56:21He died rather slowly, and so she came back once I think, twice,
0:56:21 > 0:56:22to be with him again.
0:56:22 > 0:56:25But ultimately, it was time for her to go.
0:56:34 > 0:56:37The heir to the throne was a really tiny child,
0:56:37 > 0:56:40a little five-year-old boy, and he's brought in to see his
0:56:40 > 0:56:43grandfather, and his grandfather sort of
0:56:43 > 0:56:47tells him to be a good king but says, "I have loved war too much."
0:56:47 > 0:56:50Very sad dying words from Louis XIV, certainly true.
0:57:00 > 0:57:02TRANSLATION:
0:57:15 > 0:57:17Throughout his long reign,
0:57:17 > 0:57:21Louis sought to bring glory to himself and his country.
0:57:23 > 0:57:26That lifelong devotion, expressed in the extraordinary
0:57:26 > 0:57:28palace he built at Versailles,
0:57:28 > 0:57:32is the reason he's become part of the very essence of France.
0:57:37 > 0:57:40He didn't just leave glorious monuments, beautiful
0:57:40 > 0:57:43buildings, fabulous paintings,
0:57:43 > 0:57:47he left a sense of identity which has endured until today.
0:57:49 > 0:57:53Louis certainly embodies, I think, the idea of the greatness of France.
0:57:55 > 0:57:57He was the king and you were the subject,
0:57:57 > 0:58:00and there was never any doubt about that.
0:58:02 > 0:58:07He imposed his will on the world so splendidly in every respect.
0:58:10 > 0:58:13He wanted to impress everybody, and I think he succeeded.
0:58:15 > 0:58:19The scale of the vision is breathtaking.
0:58:21 > 0:58:22No-one did it like Louis.
0:58:49 > 0:58:52Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd
0:58:52 > 0:58:55E-mail subtitling@bbc.co.uk