Hameau de la Reine
The Hameau de la Reine, also Hameau of the Queen or the German hamlet of the Queen, is an idealized village, which was built in the late 18th century for the French queen Marie Antoinette. It is located in the park of the Palace of Versailles in Versailles, France. Today, the village is part of the Museum of Versailles and can be visited.
The village of Queen
Historical Background
1774 was the queen of her husband Louis XVI. the pleasure palace Petit Trianon as a gift, in which Marie -Antoinette could withdraw from the label and the severity of the Versailles court life. In the coming years, the building was adapted to their wishes. They also changed the garden area of the small castle by who converted it into a park after English models. In the late 18th century by philosophers such as Jean -Jacques Rousseau a life close to nature propagated, and life on the land was transfiguring connected with freedom and beauty: In Marie -Antoinette as was the desire to be part of this "simple life " to have or to be able to at least occasionally take refuge in this. A small village, hamlet French - - As a so-called hamlet was east of the Petit Trianon 1783-1788 by Richard Mique built for them. The idea for such a Masked village was not new, the rural idyll was in fashion, and in another castle park - eg in Chantilly castle - there were already similar ferme ornées; but here in the vicinity of the residence Versailles the most perfect of its kind, was created.
With the hamlet, the Queen made her unpopular with the people. Their alleged extravagance had already taught her a bad reputation, and the idea that Marie- Antoinette gave with silver rake or small buckets of porcelain the " rural life " snubbed not only the country people, in reality a very different life to had lead. In addition, were about the upkeep of the village of various rumors in circulation; it is expensive and devour any amount of money for the operation. Versailles accounts, however, could be seen that the little good to have even achieved a positive balance.
Marie- Antoinette was executed during the French Revolution, the architect Richard Mique met the same fate. The hamlet fell in the subsequent period; however, he was restored by order of Napoleon I. in 1810.
Buildings of the Hameau
Around an artificial lake an ensemble that should unite the different aspects of a farming village was born. Removes remember the building of farmhouses from Normandy, but a precise stylistic classification is not possible and probably was a realistic representation not intended. The hamlet consisted of a dozen buildings, the perceived range of functions; the main house was that of the Queen, the Maison de la Reine. The exterior of this and the other houses was decidedly kept simple, but the interior was surprised with a high quality, luxurious décor, the course had nothing to do with the reality of deprivation of country life. So the Queen's house was equipped with a sumptuous boudoir, had a billiard room and was connected to the wooden gallery with a ball house. Next, there were, among others, a farm, a mill, a fishery, a dairy and a lookout, the Marlborough Tower. From 1785 Marie- Antoinette was even a family from Touraine are holding the peasant economy in operation and should complete the evocative image of their village.