On 25, 26 and 27 September, the Palace of Versailles is organising three days of meetings based on the theme of equestrian culture. In conjunction with the “Horse in Majesty” exhibition, participants have been invited to discuss the role of the horse at the heart of civilisations.
September 25, 26 and 27 International Meetings - Versailles and equestrian culture, from the past to the present
© EPV / Thomas Garnier
International Meetings
The International Meetings are organised by the Palace of Versailles, in partnership with the Centre de recherche du château de Versailles, the Network of European Royal Residences, the Equestrian Academy of Versailles, Campus Versailles - Heritage and world-class art & crafts and the Institut français du cheval et de l’équitation. Conferences in the auditorium will be offered in French and English.
Wednesday 25 September: Horse in Majesty. At the Heart of a Civilisation
- 9am: Reception in the auditorium of the Palace of Versailles
- 9.15am: Welcome by Laurent Salomé, Director of the Musée National des Châteaux de Versailles et de Trianon
Cours et diplomatie (The Court and Diplomacy)
Chair of the meeting: Hélène Delalex, curator at the Musée National des Châteaux de Versailles et de Trianon, co-curator of the exhibition Horse in Majesty - At the Heart of a Civilisation
- 9.45am: Jockeying for Position: Horses, Politics and Court Culture in England, 1600-1800, Dr Oliver Cox, head of Academic Partnerships, Victoria and Albert Museum, London
- 10.15am: Domino servire grato: The Equestrian Portrait of Governors and Viceroys during the Reign of Philip IV, Almudena Ruiz del Arbol, PhD in Art History
- 10.45am: Toujours prêts pour la joute et le combat. Les chevaux naturalisés de l'Armeria Reale de Turin (Always Ready for Jousting and Fighting: The naturalised horses of the Armeria Reale in Turin), Giorgia Corso, curator of the Armeria Reale collections, Musei Reali, Torino
- 11.30am: L’armure équestre d’apparat en Europe : outil politique et diplomatique (Equestrian Ceremonial Armour in Europe: A Political and Diplomatic Tool), Marina Viallon, PhD in Art History
- 12pm: De la Cour aux Ecuries : la comtesse de Brionne, Grande Ecuyère de France (From the Court to the Stables: The Countess of Brionne, Grande Ecuyère of France) Hélène Delalex, curator of the Musée National des Châteaux de Versailles et de Trianon, co-curator of the exhibition Horse in Majesty - At the Heart of a Civilisation
- 12.30pm: Le cheval, cadeau diplomatique : les cas de Jacques VI d’Angleterre et de Charles XI de Suède (The Horse as a Diplomatic Gift: The Cases of James VI of England and Charles XI of Sweden), Vincent Haegele, Director of the Versailles Municipal Library
Le cheval, animal symbolique (The Horse: A Symbolic Animal)
Chair of the meeting: Matilde-Maria Cassandro-Malphettes, art historian, head of the “Meetings” project, Cultural Development Department, Palace of Versailles
- 2.30pm: Chevaux et chevaliers de légende, plus encore que des compagnons (Legendary Horses and Knights : More Than Just Companions), Myriam White Legoff, Senior Lecturer, Université d’Artois
- 3pm: La Chevauchée des Walkyries de Richard Wagner : un romantisme de la puissance (Richard Wagner’s Ride of the Valkyries: A Romanticism of Power), Jérôme Delaplanche, art historian, French Centre of National Monuments
- 3.30pm: D’une civilisation à l’autre : le cheval et la vitesse (From One Civilisation to Another: The Horse and Speed), Christophe Studeny, historian
Thursday 26 September: Equestrian art at Versailles, history and influence in Europe
- 9.15am: Reception in the auditorium of the Palace of Versailles
La place du cheval dans la société de Cour (The Place of the Horse in Court Society)
Chair of the meeting: Mathieu da Vinha, Director of the Centre de Recherche du Château de Versailles.
- 9.30am: Les fondements culturels de l’art équestre (The Cultural Foundations of Equestrian Art), Karine McGrath, Head of Archives at the Palace of Versailles.
- 10am: Rois et chevaux entre faste et fuite : de Louis XIV à Charles X (Kings and Horses Between Pomp and Flight: From Louis XIV to Charles X), Philip Mansel, President of the Scientific Board of the Centre de recherche du Chateau de Versailles, member of the Society for Court Studies and of the Institute of Historical Research (University of London)
- 11.10am: Les femmes et l’équitation (Women and Horse Riding), by Marie-Laure Peretti, project manager for the World Horse Library, University of Caen, MRSH
- 11.40am: L’éducation équestre des Enfants de France (The Equestrian Education of the Princes and Princesses of the Realm), Pascale Mormiche, Associate Professor at Cergy-Paris-Université and PhD in Modern History
Cultures équestres en Europe (Equestrian Cultures in Europe)
Chair of the meeting: Alain Francqueville, Chairman of the Mission française pour la culture équestre
- 2.30pm: L’Ecole équestre de Versailles de l’Ancien Régime à la Restauration (The Versailles Equestrian School from the Ancien Régime to the Restoration), Guillaume Henry, riding instructor, writer and horse historian
- 3pm: Le rayonnement à l’étranger de l’équitation à la Française aux XVIIème-XVIIIème siècles (The Influence of Equitation in the French Tradition Abroad in the 17th and 18th Centuries), Anne-Sophie Rieth, PhD in history from the University of Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne, associate member of the IHMC (CNRS, ENS-PSL, University of Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne) and Honorine Tellier, PhD in French Language and Literature, head of the heritage and archive collection at the Institut français du cheval et de l'équitation (IFCE)
Round table 4pm-5.30pm: European riding schools in 2024
Moderators: Karine McGrath and Alain Franqueville
Participants:
- João Pedro Rodrigues, Master Horserider of the Portuguese School of Equestrian Art, Parques da Sintra
- Raphael Olvera Porcel, Director of the Royal Andalusian School of Equestrian Art, Jerez de la Frontera
- Patrick Pratlong, Horserider, Cadre noir de Saumur
- Helmut Oberhauser, Horserider at the Spanish Riding School in Vienna
- Laure Guillaume, Head Horserider at the Versailles Equestrian Academy
- Colonelle Marie-Audrey Leheup Commander of the Republican Guard cavalry regiment
- 6pm: Equestrian demonstrations by European riding schools on the Palace Water Garden. Access to the garden to watch this equestrian demonstration is included in the conference ticket.
Wednesday 27 September: Heritage and transmission of equestrian culture
- 9am: Reception in the auditorium of the Palace of Versailles
Les écuries de Résidences royales européennes (The Stables of European Royal Residences)
Chair of the meeting: Denis Verdier-Magneau, Director of Cultural Development, Palace of Versailles
- 9.15am: Les écuries royales à Turin et dans les résidences de chasse et de loisir. Un patrimoine de la ville et de la région entre abandon et restauration (The Royal Stables in Turin and the Hunting and Leisure Residences: A Heritage of the City and Region Between Abandonment and Restoration), Paolo Cornaglia, Professor at the Politecnico di Torino
- 9.45am: Royal Palace of Naples. Reuse and Valorisation of Spaces for the Royal Cavalry, Stefano Gei, architect of the Royal Palace of Naples
- 10.30am: Le Haras du Pin, de l’élevage royal au développement du patrimoine équestre (The Haras du Pin: From Royal Breeding to the Development of Equestrian Heritage), Muriel Meneux, head of the Haras du Pin cultural centre
- 11am: Chevaux et écuries du Patrimonio Nacional au XXIe siècle (Horses and Stables at the Patrimonio Nacional in the 21st Century), Leticia García de Ceca Sánchez del Corral, Curator of carriages and saddlery at the Patrimonio Nacional, Madrid
- 11.30am: The Royal Mews, Sally Goodsir, curator of decorative arts, Royal Collection Trust, Londres
Aujourd’hui, autour du cheval, des savoir-faire d’excellence (Around the horse, know-how and excellence)
Chair of the meeting: François Huot-Marchand, Assistant to the Chief Horserider of the Cadre Noir de Saumur, Institut français du cheval et de l'équitation
- 2pm Histoire contemporaine de la Grande Ecurie du château de Versailles - l’Académie du spectacle équestre fondée par Bartabas (Contemporary History of the Great Stables at the Palace of Versailles - the Academy of Equestrian Arts Founded by Bartabas), Bartabas, creator of the Equestrian Academy of Versailles and Karine McGrath, head of archives at the Palace of Versailles
- 2.30pm: La transmission des savoir-faire d'excellence (Passing down Expertise and Excellence), Guillaume de Seynes, Managing Director of Hermès International, Charly Palmieri, Hermès International harness saddler, Marc Stoltz, head of the Hermès creations conservatory and Jean-Louis Ermine, Professor Emeritus at the Institut Mines-Télécom (Paris-Saclay), founder and Honorary Chairman of the Club gestion des connaissances and of the Association pour la gestion des connaissances dans la société et les organisations AGeCSO.
Round table discussion 3.30pm - 5pm: shared perspectives
Moderator: Nicolas Chaudun, writer and art historian
Participants:
- Gaspard Koenig, philosopher
- Thierry Lhermitte, actor
- Sophie Nauleau, writer
- Juliette Nothomb, writer
- 5pm: The Equestrian Academy of Versailles Carrousel
- 5.30pm: Tour of the stables
At the same time, throughout the day, the Great Stable will be the venue for meetings and demonstrations organized by the IFCE and the Versailles Campus: saddlery, carpentry, Poursin buckling, and equestrian demonstrations by European riding schools on the Palace of Versailles water garden.
events open to the public
During the meetings, events are organised for the general public in various iconic locations at the Palace of Versailles
Thursday 26 September
10-minute equestrian demonstrations by European riding schools
- Thursday 26 September at 10.30am-11.30am-12.30pm-2.30pm-3.30pm-6pm on the Water Garden in the Palace Gardens. A ticket is required for access to the Gardens.
Friday 27 September
Meetings and demonstrations on the grounds of the Great Stables, organised with the IFCE and Campus Versailles on saddlery, wheelwrighting and Poursin buckles.
- Friday 27 September from 10am to 6pm at the Great Stables and Campus Versailles - Heritage & world-class art & crafts.
10-minute equestrian demonstrations by European riding schools
- Friday 27 September at 10.30am-11.30am-12.30pm-2.30pm-3.30pm-5pm on the Water Garden in the Palace Gardens. A ticket is required for access to the Gardens.
PRACTICAL INFORMATION
- Conferences in the auditorium will be offered in French and English.
- Registration required. Book your tickets on the Palace’s online ticket office.
- You will need a ticket for each half-day you wish to attend. Tickets will be checked at the entrance.
patron
These meetings are made possible thanks to the support of McArthurGlen.
mobile app
To plan your visit, please download the free app before you arrive.
