Bedchamber of History: The French Queen's Bedchambers and Boudoirs

We have talked about what was happening in Marie Antoinette's bedchambers (or maybe what wasn't happening) but we haven't talked about the rooms themselves, how they were decorated, by whom, for what purposes and how they were used by their owners. Let's take a closer look into Marie Antoinette's private spaces.

Let's start with the most important one, her official bedchamber among the state rooms in Chateau de Versailles. Her state rooms in the court were in fact firstly produced for the previous French Queens, wives of Louis XIV and Louis XV, Marie Therese and Marie Leszczinska respectively. Marie Antoinette did not touch her rooms' decoration as she first arrived to the palace as a fledgling ( and a foreign!) dauphine. She accepted what was imposed on her (all the court etiquette and obligations that she saw as ridiculous). The only thing she added to her official bedchamber were the two medallion portraits of her beloved mama and brother, namely Austrian Empress Maria Theresa and Emperor Joseph II.

The ostentatious royal bed had a rich fabric with floral patterns which was so matchy-matchy! with that of the walls. Its canopy was decorated with gilding, an eagle which has extended its wings and a bouquet of large a bird's feathers ( You should note that these feathers were exotic items at the time, hard to find and expensive. So they were a symbol of luxury and privilege).

You are curious about what were the ridiculous things that she had to accept right? (No??) These were traditional ceremonies such as lever and coucher that became parts of the daily routine of the French Kings (and the Queens) especially since Louis XIV. Lever is the french equivalent of 'getting up' or 'rising' whereas 'coucher' meant 'laying down' or 'sleeping'. Although the succeeding French Kings were not as enthusiastic as Louis XIV himself, they respected the tradition and they continued to 'entertain their audience'. Their morning ablutions, dressing ceremony or the handing of the nightgown were all taking place in front of courtiers and with their participation to this theatrical scene.

Coming from a completely different courtly atmosphere all this theatrical non-sense was so irritating and uncomfortable for Marie Antoinette. The Austrian Royal Palace was a place of 'courtly family bliss'. The royal couple Maria Theresa and Francis Stephen were taking care of their children's education (they had 16!) and they could enjoy their own private and intimate time together where they could lead an informal lifestyle ( at least compared to the French Court!). So, after a while Marie Antoinette was looking forward to escape from all of that etiquette and enjoy quality time on her own or with her close circle of friends (which she chose apparently not according to their ranks or merit but simply how much she enjoyed their company). Becoming the French Queen, then being the mother of Madame Royale, but especially after 'fulfilling France's wishes' ( that is giving birth to a health baby-boy, a Dauphin!) she was able to buy that relative freedom by either adding new rooms to her apartments (and decorating them according to her own taste), or by ordering the construction and redecoration of separate buildings such as the Hamlet (Hameau) or the Petit Trianon.

She not only hated the strict and ridiculous rules of the French Court but also the decoration of the State Rooms with its dark colors and flashy ornaments. In fact, Marie Antoinette enjoyed very much decorating her private rooms situated at the back of her official state rooms. She employed very famous and successful cabinet makers Riesener and Jacob, also other gifted artisans and craftsmen to be able to share her private moments in a delightful place. It seems to me from what I've seen in these places and read from the sources that she liked soft pastel colors especially light blue and green with the accompaniment of white and gold. The private rooms Cabinet Doré (The Golden Room), the Cabinet de la Meridienne (Meridian Room) at the back of her State Rooms in Versailles and the Sliding Mirror Room in the Petit Trianon are surviving examples of her good taste(Personally I adore the latter, like the second one, but the first one eeh not so much!). These private rooms adjacent to her official bedroom by secret passages were called boudoir ( it does not necessarily mean something sexy! Don't think immediately about boudoir photography :) it means private rooms for ladies which were used for different purposes such as a dressing room or a drawing room).

After one of the pain-in-the-ass aunties of her husband Louis XVI has died she added her apartments to hers and as you may well expect redecorated them. Her famous bathroom is infact here in the ground floor apartment that she took the possession at the death of Madame Sophie. The Queen's bathroom was again simple but elegant with its light blue paneling and black&white marble tiles. It was the first time that a Queen was given double apartments in a French court where she could live undisturbed, alone or with her close friends. The three private rooms I have talked about in the previous paragraph could be locked from inside which gave her absolute privacy. The keys of the Petit Trianon was also given to the Queen by her husband as a symbol which meant that she was now the owner of that chateau! This practice of making a Queen the owner of a royal palace has never been seen in French History. ( Let alone a foreign queen, the Autrichienne!) All of these private places, this freedom came at a cost. They created a discontent among the courtiers, the high aristocracy who has been accustomed to be entertained by the King and the Queen ( by watching their daily routine such as when they were having their lunch or eating their macarons! ) Louis was staying at Versailles, even he could only enter Queen's private rooms or her domain with her invitation only. Living on her on terms, by herself or with her friends (with a reputation!) made people think that she was leading a scandalous life. But hey let's admit that they were not too unfair if you consider that she was giving closed parties, inviting young good-looking gentlemen like Count Fersen etc... If you are still not satisfied take this event into consideration:

Once she has fallen ill with chicken pox and decided to stay in at her beloved Petit Trianon until she recovered. During her illness she chose four of her close friends to look after her: Messieurs Besenval, Coigny, Guines and Estherazy! Enough reason to raise some eyebrows I think! ;))

By the way I must add that although it was officially accepted to have mistresses for French Kings and it was quite fashionable even for married women to have affairs, Louis XVI has never had a mistress. There was only one woman for him: Marie Antoinette...

Marie Antoinette's royal bed

covered by a huge canopy with gilding, eagle and feather bouquets

Cabinet Doré

Cabinet Meridienne

Sliding Mirrors Room inside Petit Trianon

The room had a special mechanism which allowed the mirrors to slide upwards or downwards. These mirrors were closing up the two windows with a view of her

garden and the Temple of Love. This complex exquisite system of sliding mirrors was commissioned from renowned engineer Mercklein.