Timeline

Key figures

Origin and history

Marly-le-Roi National Estate, located in Marly-le-Roi in the Yvelines, was a royal park designed as a resort for Louis XIV. Built by Jules Hardouin-Mansart, his castle was destroyed in the early 19th century under the First Empire. Only waterworks, classified in 1862, remained a long time as a witness to this heritage, before the entire estate was protected in 2009. Until 2009, he even served as a presidential residence, mixing monarchical and republican history.

Marly's machine, a hydraulic system supplying the fountains of Marly and Versailles, was installed in Bougival. The park, sloping towards the Seine, preserves traces of its original layout: alignments of trees, location of the castle, and pools decorated with copies of the Horses of Marly (the originals are at the Louvre). Elements such as the royal gate or the doors of the castle (honour door, door of the Lighthouse) still mark access to the estate.

The Musée du Domaine Royal de Marly traces its peak under Louis XIV, as well as its evolution under Louis XV and Louis XVI. He also evokes figures close to the court, like Madame du Barry, or artists who marked the place, such as François Boucher, Élisabeth Vigée-Lebrun and Claude-Nicolas Ledoux. Archaeological remains, such as a pavilion of baths or tiled pools for carp, recall the luxurious uses of the site.

The estate has also served as a setting for historical films, such as Jean Delannoy's La Princesse de Clèves (1961), or more recently, Un peuple et son roi (2018) by Pierre Schoeller and Mademoiselle de Joncquières (2018) by Emmanuel Mouret. These film productions bear witness to the lasting appeal of this historic place.

Today managed by the public establishment of Versailles, the estate offers a walk between heritage and nature, with its adjacent state forest and its prospects towards Louveciennes. The scattered sculptures (notably at the Louvre) and the archives allow to partially reconstruct the former splendor of this intimate Versailles, designed for the pleasure of the Sun King.

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