Versailles was the grandest and most influential palace and garden complex in Europe, and arguably the most lavish and luxurious and most beautifully embellished too.

It was much more than a building to house the monarch, his family and his court. It was conceived as the seat of government when France was at the apogee of her power, and as a structure to demonstrate and magnify the power of Louis XIV, to subdue his subjects and to overawe foreigners. A study of Versailles encompasses not only architectural history and garden history but also political science and the psychology of power.

Versailles is several palaces. This is well disguised by its overwhelming homogeneity and symmetry, but even during Louis XIV’s reign elements changed constantly, reflecting not so much changes of taste but also political realities as they changed from decade to decade. Indeed, at its core remains a small-scale hunting lodge built by his father (surely meant to be demolished in due course), and apartments were refurbished and parts added right up until the Revolution.

Enlarging the understanding of Versailles and to set it in context there are also visits to the Château de Vaux-le-Vicomte, in many ways its inspiration, the Louvre, principal royal palace before and after Louis XIV’s reign, and to the grounds of Marly-le-Roi, a demolished palace constructed to allow the Sun King to retreat from the formality of Versailles.

Particular attention is paid to the park and gardens at Versailles, with a visit to the extraordinary vegetable garden, and the tour is timed to coincide with the occasional functioning of the fountains with musical accompaniment.