A Short History of The Hall of Mirrors

Having enjoyed the fictional TV series set during the construction of the Palace of Versailles it was great to finally visit the famous Hall of Mirrors.

Designed by Jules Hardouin-Mansart and built between 1678-1684 the mirrors celebrate the political, economic and artistic successes of France during the 18 years reign of Louis XIV or “Sun King” as he is known.

357 mirrors make up the 73mts of the hall and show the prosperity of France at this time as they were considered the height of luxury. In the 17th century, Venetian glassworkers had the monopoly on glassmaking techniques and the Venetian government ordered the assassination of artisans defecting to France. This is why sometimes the Hall of Mirrors is also referred to as “The Bloody Mirrors”.

A number of important treaties have been signed in the Hall including The Treaty of Paris which ended the Revolutionary War between Britain and the United States. In 1871 Kaiser Wilhelm I was hailed as the Emperor of Germany following Frances defeat in the Franco-Prussian War. Almost 50 years later The Treaty of Versailles was signed on 28 June 1919 which ended the First World War.

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