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a time when he wanted some wine to accompany some
bread he had stolen and yet, even in his penury believing
that he was too elegantly dressed to go into an ordinary
bakery, Rousseau recalled the words of a "great princess":
Finally I recalled the stop gap solution of a great princess
who was told that the peasants had no bread, and who
responded: "Let them eat brioche
."
He never named the princess in question, Antonia Fraser
attributes it to Marie-Thérèse, Queen to King Louis XIV
who lived one hundred years before Marie Antoinette
(who was just six years old when Rousseau wrote his book
in 1765). This callous anecdote wasn't ever cited by
opponents of the monarchy at the time of the French
Revolution so in all probability it has been the result of
historical spin in the years afterward. It wouldn't have
been hard to make the words fit. During her marriage to
the King she was nick-named
Madame Déficit
in reaction
to her perceived extravagance at a time of dire national
finances. And let’s be clear here, Versailles does rather
knock the odd duck house into a cocked hat!
When the château was built, Versailles was a country
village some 12 miles south of Paris - about the same
distance and alignment as Croydon is to as Charing Cross.
Today Versailles is a wealthy suburb of Paris as Croydon
is a suburb of London. The court of Versailles was the
centre of political power in France from 1682, when Louis
XIV moved from Paris, until the beginning of the French
Revolution forced him to return to Paris in October 1789.
Versailles has become the symbol of absolute monarch in
France - the
Ancien Régime
. Louis ordered Versailles to be
emptied and the furniture moved to the Tuileries Palace
which stood next to the Louvres Palace on the Right Bank
of the Seine. It wasn't to be and on 21 June 1791 King
Louis XIV was arrested and all possessions of the royal
family were declared abandoned. Most of the furniture,
paintings and decorative objects from Versailles were sold
at a series of auctions between 1793 and 1795, many in
London through Sothebys and Christies. After the French
Revolution London established itself as the leading city
for the sale of international art and in the years to come
objects from Versailles were snapped up by avid collectors
like the Marquises of Hertford, whose London home,
tucked behind Selfridges on Oxford Street, we know today
as The Wallace Collection.
Enjoy the
All Our Waterloos
day trip with a guided tour
of The Wallace Collection which holds one of the world’s
most important collections of French furniture. For a more
intimate experience we will divide your group into two.
This gives each half free time to enjoy other rooms at this
extraordinary house as well as joining a guided tour with
our Blue Badge Guide focusing on the opulence of the
Court of Versailles from the time of Louis XIV to the time
of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette.
The Rococo is vividly represented by the great commode
delivered by Antoine-Robert Gaudreaus for Louis XV's
bedchamber at Versailles in April 1739, with swirling,
organic gilt-bronze mounts by Jacques Caffiéri, and the
chandelier, also by Caffiéri, given by Louis XV to his
eldest daughter in c.1752. Sumptuous pieces once owned
by Marie Antoinette include a desk decorated with truly
exquisite floral mounts, formerly in her rooms at the Petit
Trianon, and a perfume burner from her private apartments
at Versailles.
There is a café on site where folk can buy refreshments
(or you can opt to include a cream tea) before heading
home at 4.45pm.
The afternoon option visiting the new
Europe Galleries at The V&A is described overleaf.
All Our Waterloos with the Let them Eat Cake
tour
at The Wallace Collection is available daily all year and
is a very good choice for a potentially rainy day from
September 2015 to the end of March 2016. It is available
beyond these dates and throughout 2016 (booking is open
for all 2016 dates) but please note that the price will
change from 1 April 2016.
Adults & Seniors: £12.00.
The day trip as described with the morning coach tour
and afternoon visit to The Wallace Collection
including
the two-course Anglo-French lunch of Rosbif (what else! )
followed by brioche & croissant bread and butter pudding
laced with French Brandy and served with a with a
Crème Anglaise
and
coffee is:
Adults & Seniors: £28.00.
The day trip as above with free time to buy your own
lunch but including a one-scone cream tea in the elegant
Wallace Restaurant is:
Adults & Seniors: £20.00.
Coach Mileage: 15
The Olympic Track Symbol
containing the number one means
that this day trip includes a total of
400 metres (440 yards) of walking
spread out throughout the day.
What a wonderful day we had today (11 May 2015)
- another great City & Village tour. As always the day
was made by our Guide, Sarah. We met her (on time!)
and from then on the day just got better and better.
We all enjoyed our coffees …. and then the talk, in the
bright sunshine, set the scene, and once back on the coach
we covered so much of London and learned so much too.
Lunch .. was better than could have been expected.
The only complaint I had was that the portions were rather
large ... It was all so tasty and beautifully cooked, and the
beef was just so tender. Congratulations were expressed
to the chefs. The brioche B & B pudding was great too
(almost as good as mine!) and much appreciated by all...
This afternoon at the Wallace Collection - well what can
I say. The collection is set out so much more invitingly
than it was years ago. We all loved our time there each
spending time in the areas that appealed most. So much
to see - we all felt befuddled when we came out! And most
did go to the cafe there, but mostly for a cold drink!
So, once again Gyll, you have a really enjoyable,
informative day on your books. I was asked by the
coach to thank you - so Many Thanks.
With all good wishes,
Judith Terry, Judith’s Group, Potters Bar
Judith has been booking days out with City & Village Tours for
over 20 years and brought her group for the All Our Waterloos -
Let Them Eat Cake option on Monday 11 May 2015.
