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On Saturday 4 July, the Palace of Versailles will unveil a brand-new gallery to mark the 250th anniversary of United States independence. Located in the apartment where King Louis XVI received Benjamin Franklin and where France officially recognised American sovereignty in 1778, the gallery will also highlight relations between Paris and Washington.
Versailles was also the place where, in 1783, one of the treaties helping to bring an end to the War of Independence and secure international recognition for the young American republic was signed.
The exhibition brings together paintings, sculptures and portraits from the palace’s collections to shine a light on the political, diplomatic and military figures of Independence, among them Benjamin Franklin, the Marquis de La Fayette and George Washington.
“It makes perfect sense to create a visitor route dedicated to the independence of the United States at Versailles, since from the time of Louis XVI there was already a wish to underline the link between France and those events, not least through the commission of the great candelabrum by Louis XVI, which stood in his private apartment and celebrated the American War of Independence”, explains Clara Terreaux, a curator at the Palace of Versailles.
“This desire to celebrate goes back to the aftermath of the First World War. The museum director at that time wanted to acknowledge the role played by the Americans in helping Europe during the conflict”, says Laurent Salomé, director of the Palace of Versailles museum.
“So, just after 1918, we created galleries devoted to the American Revolution to pay tribute to America’s presence in Europe. They also tell the story of how France supported the insurgents in the 18th century. It is therefore a two-way history. These galleries have existed in various forms and then disappeared. Today we are recreating them to coincide with the 250th anniversary”, he continues.
Versailles writes history
The Palace of Versailles is surely one of the most powerful instruments of “soft power” available to the French president, with the Hall of Mirrors, the Sun King’s gardens and several centuries of carefully maintained national grandeur.
“It creates a different atmosphere for discussion. And I think that was already Louis XIV’s idea from the outset”, says Laurent Salomé. “This place was designed to prompt people to think differently. Of course it is a diplomatic tool, so it has to be dazzling, impressive and show that France is a great country. But it is not only that: it is also about beauty and the harmony of the world.”
This opening comes just a few days after Emmanuel Macron hosted his American counterpart Donald Trump at Versailles, a first for him. “He was very impressed. He loved it”, confides the museum director. “I don’t think there is anything better in the world”, the Republican president even remarked.
Last week history repeated itself, as it was here that Donald Trump unexpectedly signed the memorandum aimed at bringing an end to the war in Iran, before the actual negotiations began four days later.