Royal Affairs in Versailles

This film retraces the history of the Palace of Versailles from its origins until the French Revolution. Produced in the aftermath of WWII, from which France was struggling to recover, it was also designed to reunite the French people around a historical panorama.

The casting matched the political aims behind the project, with Claudette Colbert as Mme de Montespan, the mistress of an aging Louis XIV played by Sacha Guitry. Jean Marais played the role of Louis XV, with Micheline Presle as Mme de Pompadour. Other well-known figures also featured in the film, including Gérard Philippe, Brigitte Bardot and even Edith Piaf.

The film’s success paved the way to a period of cinematographic popularity for the Palace of Versailles, from Jean Delannoy’s Marie Antoinette played by Michèle Morgan in 1955 to the likes of Kirsten Dunst in the same role with Sofia Coppola as director more than half a century later. Many film actors and actresses have trodden the Palace’s alleys, galleries and halls.