Places of enduring beauty

Places of enduring beauty

Venice, St Mark's Square and the little canals, bridges, gondolas and ambience

of a beautiful city. The shining water and reflections, the magnificence of the

art and architecture and beautiful old churches and Doges Palace. A place I wish

to return to for its wonderful atmosphere and beauty. A trip to the colourful villages

of Murano and Burano where the glassblowers do their craft so well would also be nice

to revisit. It is awhile since I visited this beautiful and inspiring city.

St Sergiyev Monastery, Posad, Russia

Wonderful architecture of the trinity cathedral and bell tower.

Splendid! Memorising and so beautiful! Wonderful colours of blue and

white and magnificent domes in a peaceful and rural setting. I loved visiting this

place which is not far distant from Moscow.

River Seine, Paris

So beautiful and enchanting, by daylight and the setting sun.

A wonderful place to stroll along the banks of this mesmerising river

which winds its way through the city of Paris.

The Isle de la Cite is wonderful with the flower markets, the scents and

colours.

Beautiful Notre Dame Cathedral by the river setting is beautiful.

I love Paris.

The beautiful gardens of Versailles:

Not far from the Paris, the magnificence of the baroque era of the seventeenth

century is on show. The chateau of Louis XIV, the Hall of Mirrors, art works

and sculpture and magnificent salons. The views of the gardens are spectacular

in all of their wonder and glory.
 

Beautiful flowers, colours and fountains give a sense of wonder and beauty.

Geometrical patterns of the flower beds, the hornbeam, the hedges and groves

with pretty fountains and rock pools give an air of serenity, peace and tranquillity.

The baroque music of the era complements the fountain displays and gives a sense

of the seventeenth century during the time of Louis XIV in all of its splendour.

Tuileries Gardens, Paris

Beautiful in the spring time and summer with the magnificent varieties of colours

and flowers. The gardens are beautiful and peaceful.

Statues and fountains add charm and beauty.

Luxembourg Gardens, Paris

 

Wonderful in the autumn with the varying colours of the leaves. I often used to enjoy

wandering around the Luxembourg Gardens where I could sometimes purchase a waffle.

Paris is a magnificent place to be in autumn with the many tree lined boulevards

which make the city so attractive and the temperatures begin to cool with lovely

breezes along the banks of the River Seine.

More to follow at a later date.

Versailles- The dream and the court (continued)

Hall of Mirrors at Versailles:

Versailles - the Dream and the Court (continued)

Wandering around the great chateau and the Hall of Mirrors -

to relive and imagine the experiences of the

courtiers and people who once lived there.

The king, Louise de la Valliere, Madame de Montespan, Princess Henriette;

There in a long chamber before coming out of the chateau into the gardens

there is a long gallery of statuary of characters from earlier centuries -

generals, poets, soldiers, writers. I found this display of statues of characters

from another time fascinating.

To visit the gardens in all of their splendour, so much

magnificence and beauty all in one place!

Some writers have the talent to bring another place and time alive.

I particularly enjoyed reading Sandra Gulland's evocative novel of Louise de la

Valliere, “Mistress of the Sun.”

Louise, the love of the king's early years; a beautiful story to read.

The story of Louise is different. She found grace and beauty in a convent and wrote

religious writings after her time at Versalles.

Louise, who was young and innocent fell in love with the wordly king. Louise, who came from a provincial town of the Loire seemed out of place at Versailles, and yet, she was a magnificent horse woman. Also, a dancer. She got on well with the king in his early years. His love for Louise was and inspiration when the gardens at Versailles were created.

The book follows Louise's love and also her suffering during her time at the court of the king. It is a wonderful book to read. It was uncanny that the author could depict the life of Louise and her love for the king so graphically and describe her world and her feelings of love, so authentically,

from the little towns of the Loire valley, the places of Paris of the seventeenth century and the

magnificence of the court of Versailles in all of its splendour.

A difficult situation for the long suffering Queen Marie Therese of Spain who came as a young bride to marry Louis XIV. This wedding was supposed to act as a peace settlement between the two countries, which in a way it did. Subsequently, the king's second grand-son, the Duc d'Anjou

became King of Spain.

The king never did receive the dowry received in full which was promised at the time of the

marriage negotiations. This may have been a pre-text for one of his earlier campaigns. In his later

years it has been noted that he did regret some of his earlier campaigns.

The book reflects the purity of the love and innocence of Louise against a background of wantoness which does later seem to become apparent at the court when Madame de Montespan, a rival for the king's affections, also becomes a mistress of the king.

Being an idealistic person, Louise was not

happy with this situation; three queens in a coach as was once described of one of the king's journeys when Madame de Montespan, Louise de la Valliere and the queen, Marie Therese, were escorting the king during one of his campaigns in his early days.

It does seem unfortunate that Louise was not chaperoned at the court.

Being a lady of honour on

Princess Henriette's retinue it may have been appropriate for Louise to have been chaperoned. Being young and impressionable at the time that a position was found for her at court perhaps her

mother should have arranged this.

Louise later found her calling in a religious life and entered a convent,

subsequently writing religious works. Her children remained at court and Louise turned her back on a worldly existence as she then perceived the court of Versailles. Louise is one of the more appealing characters at the royal court from the time of the Sun-King.

Louise was a popular person at court and people did speak to her about her decision to enter a convent.

The beauty of the love of Louise and the king has been mentioned in previous books regarding the king's early years at Versailles and was described as beautiful in the book “Princesss of Versailles” by Charles Elliott, which told the story of Princess Marie-Adelaide of Savoy, who came to live at the court of Versailles in the king's later years and married his grand-son, the Duke of Bourgogne.

This book also was a fascinating tale giving wonderful descriptions of the royal court and insights into the life of the king.  The Duke and Duchess of Bourgogne sold their jewellery in times of hardship.

At one time there was silver furniture placed in the Hall of Mirrors which would have been quite beautiful.  Louis XIV had this silver melted down in later years to pay for the soldiers' wages.

Versailles

picture of palace in 1675 before the Hall of Mirrors was constructed from wikipedia:

I quite like this image as with the muted colours it is evocative of an earlier time
of beauty and depicts an image with the fountains playing giving a magical quality
to the setting.

Poetry Page,

Versailles

Silken furbelows of fashion

Designed on gowns of colourful creation;

The flounces, the tresses,

the elegant dresses

And a world

beribboned in lace;

The wonders and splendours of this grace-

The stories of old

These fables of gold

Laced in the frame-work

of a Labyrinthe -

Cupid with a Ball of String

Dare the Nymphs and Angels sing,

The Tales which La Fontaine would bring

into the Splendour of the Day.

And so it was

On the Shifting Sands

That Le Notre with his Geometric Plans

designed a Landscape,

wondrous and new,

parterres and hornbeam

and trees of clipped yew:

of beauteous statues

bosques and elves

the groves, the fountains and elms

Rays of sunlight shimmered through

gleaming green and gold;

I see tranquillity in other places

Between high banks where the carp and bream do flow.

Across time, there are so many spaces and places

Though the wondrous glory of an age not forgotten

lingers still.

Time plays tricks

In old-fashioned garb

and costumes of old

A once forgotten time, enlightened,

And once more,

a Dream foretold.

Destiny unfolds,

We are in the mists of time.

The broderies and grass parterres of Grand Trianon

Memories of La Maintenon

The coloured marble and temples of old.

The theme of Versailles lingers on,

A palace glimmering in the sun,

The fascination, imagination,

For travellers,

so much an inspiration.

Wondrous gardens, terraces and flowers

So bright and bold,

In colours of purple and gold.

As also at Marly, where once

was told

Of the fairies who also spun their gold;

In its frame of magnificence

the rising and setting sun

dim ochered falls over the valley

in patterns of gold and light

and to the people would give delight

at such a wondrous sight;

which gave Apollo brilliance in its beam

As showers of water streamed

Casting rainbows and prisms of colour

In sprays of mist amongst magical fountains-

Versailles, and the king,

with songs, poems and quatrains

which would give a wondrous ring.

As the Seasons do change

A pale light glimmers

And the leaves doth fall from your trees

Dappled in green and gold.

The flickering rays dance in majestic greenery

The flower scented groves

Of statues and perfumed Orangerie.

And once in a dream

with children I've seen

The Lady of Maintenon.

The beauties of Heaven will find their trace

the banquets are over

the leaves do fall

Yet, ever and after,

Your Majesty stands tall.

I think and I dream of this wondrous abode

For here is my nemesis

and the story an ode

To find life's truth

and beauty in ode

Of a labyrinthe and

grottoes of old,

The stories to be told-

Of enchantment and places to behold-

Across a magnificence of splendour

Versailles calls out its name-

The jet streams of yesterday,

given from mists of watery fountains

in gardens of riotous splendour

come calling through-

In woods, the breezes

scented with jasmine and thyme

through rustling and whispering leaves

echoing through centuries of time-

the names are weaved;-

“Marie, Marie” I'm calling to thee-

The lady in a long white gown,

And even today,

remembered still, in

Old Versailles town.

And whispering still,

The loss of Louis's crown.

From far away places

the people of many faces

All come to see the show

A squire and a knight

once came into sight

of Versailles and its splendour and light

Said one t'other (squire to the knight)

Do you not know, did sayeth of the king-

“Versailles for courtiers,

Marly for family,

Trianon was for me!”

Why for? Why for?

Versailles is no more

With a king and glorious court?

No, not at all,

The people rebelled

A king tried too late,

and fell short.

O Versailles, Versailles,

what happened to thee-

Your old world came tumbling down,

The vestiges of a time once past,

cleverly raise from the ground

with sign posts all around

and now we visit you anew.

No more are the courtiers, king and queen,

but now it is as though,

we always have been

entranced by your wondrous dream.

A royal court no more

the glittering triumphs

the spectacles all unfold

The stories, the glories

of wonders to uphold.

And so through the ages

the splendour of sages

and a place in the sun.

Composed by Sandra