Places of interest in Versailles
Parner Sites
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History of Versailles
In this article we take a look at the history of Versailles. This city has experienced so many ups and downs that any visitor should know this so that they will understand the city better. The city of Versailles started out as a simple French town that was under the rule of the King of France. Because of it’s proximity to Paris, it really doesn’t need another representative or overlord. The main occupation of the people then was farming. The people dedicated themselves to farming and that industry established the name of Versailles in the city of France. The town was buzzing with activities and the people seemed to like they way of living. It was the 13th century and people are so happy with the condition. But that happiness really didn’t last long in the history of the Versailles. Black plague hit the place really hard and the Hundred Years War even added to the misery of the people. Believe it or not, at the end of all of these the town was left only 100 people. The luck of the city started when Louis XIV decided to establish the seat of power in Versailles. Louis wanted to build something that will eventually protect him even if something will really happen. During these times, the court was eventually built in Versailles and then the government’s center was officially transferred in 1682.
There was just one problem: there weren’t enough inhabitants in this town. It was still the place that experienced devastation for more than 200 years and people don’t want to go back. But Louis the XIV devised a perfect plan to attract the people into this place: give the land that’s virtually free. You just have to pay an annual land tax that when transferred to our time, it’s less than a dollar. The only condition is that you don’t have the right where you’ll be placed in the city and you don’t have any say on what will be the design of your house. From the very sleepy town of 1,000 inhabitants, it blossomed to more than 30,000 in less than 30 years. The city even grew further in the middle of the 18th century but now it didn’t really follow the plan that’s laid out by the city and the prices is not that free anymore. Real estate is now lucrative business in this area. The population is now 60,000.
The city was then left again in ruins when Napoleon virtually demolished everything at the start of the 19th century. And the population drastically declined to 27,000. It will be this way for the rest of the 19th century as the town experienced continuous political struggle. It was only in 1911 that the city eventually went back on its feet. Even with two World Wars, there city continued to flourish. As of 1970, it’s now the home of the judicial and administrative seat of power of France. With its proximity to Paris, it also has become another tourist destination because of its extensive history and its role to the national development of France. |
