Summer 2022: Rediscovering the estate of Trianon

This summer, the Palace of Versailles is inviting visitors to come and explore the estate of Trianon as they’ve never seen it before. The Queen’s Hamlet polished to a shine, with renovation works on Marie-Antoinette’s Boudoir, the Working Dairy, and the Great Lake now complete. Members of the public are also free to stroll around the Grand Trianon’s animal-themed ephemeral garden, contemplate the L’Abondance sculpture in the Pavillon Frais, and track down the estate’s ‘admirable trees’.

restoration works on the queen’s Hamlet now complete

Like a palace of receptions rooms that are broken up and scattered across a bucolic landscape, the Hamlet is comprised of a dozen rustic-feeling working buildings, where Marie-Antoinette was able to reconnect with nature in line with Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s vision.

Following on from the Queen’s House in 2018, three additional restorations now immerse visitors in this pastoral village as it was designed in the 18th century.

One of the Hamlet’s central components is the Great Lake, the shores of which have been entirely restored to their original landscaping thanks to the patronage of the Fondation Malatier-Jacquet, under the aegis of the Fondation de France.

The Working Dairy has also been reunited with all the original finesse of its faux white marble interiors and rustic external architecture thanks to the support of a private patron.

Finally, the Boudoir was an exclusive reception space used for the Queen’s few visitors, and was fully restored to reinject this iconic Hamlet building with all its sense of refinement, thanks to the patronage of the Fondation La Marck.

A whole new world of plants at the Grand Trianon’s parterres

This summer, visitors to the Grand Trianon will be treated to a temporary animal-themed garden sponsored by Van Cleef & Arpels. Following on from the African-inspired garden of 2020 and 2021’s monochromatic full green immersion, this year’s parterres have been turned into a fantastical menagerie in a nod to The King’s Animals exhibition.

The Trianon’s ‘admirable trees'

Visitors will also be able to take in the thirteen trees labelled ‘admirable’ for their beauty, history, or botanical rareness, from giant sequoia to Japanese Pagoda tree and Cypress oak. This audio walk was developed with the patronage of Maison Rémy Martin, and is available free of charge on the Palace of Versailles app.

L’Abondance on display at the Petit Trianon’s Pavillon Frais

Hot on the heels of Recovered Masterpieces, the hit exhibition dedicated to the two sculptures recovered by the Palace of Versailles from the Angolan embassy in Paris, L’Abondance, the sculpture commissioned by Louis XV, will be on permanent display at the Petit Trianon’s Pavillon Frais from 1 July 2022.

New for 2023

The restored Buffet d’Eau

This little-known yet spectacular fountain in the Grand Trianon gardens is currently undergoing full restoration thanks to the patronage of the Fondation Bru. Due to run for eighteen months, the works will draw on a range of different fields of expertise to bring the Grand Trianon gardens’ water features back to life, restoring them to the splendour Louis XIV had envisaged for his country home.

The Perfumer’s Garden

Thanks to patron Maison Francis Kurkdjian, the Palace of Versailles is bringing its Perfumer’s Garden to life. This new garden in the Châteauneuf Orangery will be home to hundreds of different perfume-making plants, in keeping with the spirit of the 17th-century Trianon gardens. It will also help build awareness of the history of fragrance at the court of Versailles.