Mesdames’ Apartments

The Mesdames’ apartments are symmetrical to the apartments of the Dauphin and Dauphine. Like them, they were turned into museum rooms by Louis-Philippe and recently restored to their state of princely apartments. Mesdames, as the six daughters of Louis XV were referred to, settled there in 1752, but only two of them, Adelaide and Victoire – who did not marry and lived a long life – lived there until the revolution.

Show

Madame Victoire’s First Antechamber

It was the former bath chamber of Louis XIV: the walls and floor were then covered with a mosaic of polychromatic marble, and there was a large octagonal swimming pool made of Rance marble, which can now be found at the Orangery. It was the interior chamber of the Count of Toulouse from 1692 to 1724, the Countess of Toulouse from 1724 to 1750 and lastly Madame Adelaide from 1752 to 1753. The bedroom of Madame Sophie from 1755 to 1767, it then became the princess’ first antechamber, then in 1769 that of Madame Victoire.
Above the doors there are portraits of two of Louis XV’s ministers: the Duke of Choiseul-Stainville by Louis-Michel Van Loo, and the Duke of Choiseul-Praslin, by Alexandre Roslin. The Martin’s varnish chest of drawers was delivered in 1756 for Madame Adelaide.

Show

Madame Victoire’s Second Antechamber

It was the former bath chamber, whose floor and walls were covered with marble; at the far end, in an alcove framed by marble columns, there was a couch. Window shutters date back to that period, with their beautiful decors of dolphins and congelations.
It then became the room of the Count of Toulouse, the Countess of Toulouse, Madame Adelaide and lastly Madame Victoire when she shared the apartment with her sisters Sophie and Louise. In 1767, the alcove was removed and the room became the second antechamber.
The woodworks were probably made for Madame Victoire. The overdoor paintings, representing La Fontaine’s Fables, were painted by Oudry for the Dauphin. The Riesener chest of drawers comes from the Nobles room of the Countess of Artois in the South Wing. A folding screen from the Savonnerie according to Blain de Fontenay and a “Chinese-style” Martin’s varnish wall clock complete the furnishings.

Show

Madame Victoire’s Large Chamber

Originally, it was the octagon chamber of Louis XIV’s Bath apartment, one of the Sun King’s most original creations, whose wealth of marble, sculptures and paintings, exceeded that of the State Apartment. In 1763, the Mesdames succeeded in having its old-fashioned decor replaced; of that transformation only the cornice, woodwork in the corners of the room and the beautiful chimney remain. A harpsichord by Blanchet recalls that Madame Victoire admirably played that instrument and that Mozart dedicated his first six sonatas for harpsichord to her.

Show

Madame Victoire’s Bedchamber

It was the ionic antechamber of the Bath apartment, so named because of the twelve marble columns that decorated it. It was the second antechamber of the Count of Toulouse, then the Countess of Toulouse, followed by Madame Adelaide and lastly the youngest Mesdames, in 1767 it became the bedroom of Madame Sophie and in 1769 that of Madame Victoire.
The beautiful woodworks are the work of Antoine Rousseau and the alcove coverings in mottled taffeta reproduce Madame Victoire’s “summer furniture”. In 1769, Péridiez delivered the two corner cupboards, which were sold during the Revolution, and passed into Russia then England, where they were bought back in 1982.

Show

Madame Victoire’s Interior Chamber

This elegant small room and the two rooms next to it were originally only one single room: it was the Doric hall of the Bath apartment, separated in three sections by two rows of Rance marble columns, which still exist behind the woodwork. This hall was partitioned in 1724 to form two antechambers for the count and the countess of Toulouse; the antechamber of this princess was in turn divided in 1767 to form this small living room and the library next to it.
Antoine Rousseau is the creator of the admirable woodworks of which certain elements were restored, as well as the Serancolin marble chimney.
The chest of drawers was delivered in 1768 by Foullet for the apartment of Madame Victoire; it supports an alabaster dish that belonged to the princess. The writing desk was created by Levasseur for Mesdames at Bellevue palace.

Show

Library of Madame Victoire

This room was initially a part of the apartment next to it, then it was attached to this one, it has a mezzanine, and, in the mezzanine, there is an extra library.
The cupboards house a few bound books bearing Mesdames’ coat of arms, a box containing a collection of geographical maps having belonged to Madame Elisabeth, niece of Mesdames, pieces of a Chinese decor Sevres china coffee set, created in 1775 for Madame Adelaide, and a vermeil table bell bearing the monogram and coat of arms of Madame Victoire.
The small slanted desk was created for Madame Sophie or Madame Louise in 1760, on their return from Fontevrault Abbey. The chairs belonged to Madame Victoire’s furniture at Bellevue castle

Show

Interior Chamber of Madame Adelaide

This small room was famous in its time as Madame de Pompadour’s red lacquer cabinet chamber. Indeed, the mistress of Louis XV, once she had become the king’s “friend” in 1750, occupied what would subsequently become the apartment of Madame Adelaide; she also died there in 1764. With its highly refined furniture and souvenirs from Bellevue castle, the preferred residence of Mesdames, the current layout of Madame Adelaide’s interior chamber evokes this princess who, according to the Countess of Boigne “had an extreme need for the studied elegance invented by luxury”.

Show

Madame Adelaide’s Bedchamber

It was bedroom of the Count of Toulouse, legitimate son of Louis XIV and Francoise-Athénaïs de Montespan, from 1724 to 1737, the duke of Penthièvre, son of the latter, from 1737 to 1744, and the Duchess of Penthièvre from 1744 to 1750. It then became the bedroom of the Marquise de Pompadour, who died there on April 15, 1764. The room of Marie-Josèphe of Saxony in 1766, but the Dauphine passed away, on March 13, 1767, before being able to settle there; however, after her death, she was exposed there on a ceremonial bed. It was the room of Madame Victoire from 1767 to 1769, and lastly, Madame Adelaide from 1769 to 1789.
The woodwork was probably carried out for the Dauphine in 1766, except for the frames of the overdoors, which are undoubtedly a “reuse” of the decor from Madame de Pompadour’s room: they frame four paintings by Natoire representing allegories of Painting, Sculpture, Architecture and Music.
In the alcove, whose wall covering evokes Madame Adelaide’s “summer furniture”, hang the portraits of Louis XV by Carle Van Loo and of Mesdames Sophie and Louise by Drouais. On the chimney, sits a beautiful bust of the Dauphin, brother of Madame Adelaide, by Augustin Pajou. The admirable seats were created circa 1770 by Nicolas-Quinibert Foliot and are from the old royal furniture.

Show

Madame Adelaide’s Large Chamber

It was Madame de Pompadour who gave this room its current form, and the chimney made of Serancolin marble was installed for her. The rich woodwork that adorned it has entirely disappeared, but the cornice made for Madame Adelaide has been restored. The small organ probably belonged to the princess, as well as the violin which “she played exceptionally well”.
Nattier painted the portraits of her older sisters: Madame Elisabeth, Duchess of Parma and Madame Henriette playing the bass viol: Madame Adelaide had placed that painting in her large chamber. There is an overdoor of Mesdames Victoire, Sophie and Louise by Drouais. On the chimney there is a bust of Madame Elisabeth, sister of Louis XVI and niece of Madame Adelaide.

Show

Hoquetons Salon

The guards of the provostship, who were in charge of the palace police, were called “hoquetons” because of the tunics they wore. This room, which they usually occupied, received a décor done in trompe-l’oeil in 1672 representing weapons trophies and statues in false niches.
Madame de Pompadour had divided the room to form two antechambers, which were then used for the Dauphine, Madame Victoire and lastly Madame Adelaide, but which were not restored.
In the niches there are two statues: a Moor made of polychromatic marble from the collections of the Borghese princes, and an admirable figure of a draped woman, whose body is ancient, but whose bronze head and arms are the work of Algarde, a famous 17th century Roman sculptor.
The extraordinary clock of the Creation of the world was commissioned by Joseph-François Dupleix, managing director of the French trading posts in India, who wanted to offer it to an Indian prince: designed by Passemant, it was created in 1754 by clockmaker Joseph-Léonard Roque and bronzesmith François-Thomas Germain.