Having toured Versailles (and other chateaux of a similar vintage such as Schonbrunn in Vienna), one of the notable facts was that there seemed to be very few places (in the original plans, not the modernizations that have come when the buildings were opened to the public for tourism) where a visiting noble could “go potty”. Yes, the King had a closet in his private rooms where he could relieve himself (part of the “royal chambers” tour we went on), but I saw no evidence of abundant facilities for the lords and ladies to do likewise.
With chamber-pots few and far between, it’s not surprising that Milord would get “caught short” while waiting for his Royal Audience and have to find a quiet corner behind the tapestries where he could… meditate. :eek:
What is it about Versailles that creates so many misconceptions about its sanitation facilities? Has it got something to do with North American stereotypes about French hygiene?
The fact of the matter is that there were public toilets for the use of those visiting Versailles. They were located next to the main gate. True, the palace drains failed on a regular basis, but that was because there were toilets and because people did use them. In any case, any nobleman grand enough to be having an audience with the king would probably have had his own apartment and therefore his own personal toilet within the palace.
It might be objected that there were no public toilets within the central block of the palace, but then the same is pretty much the case even today. Most of the visitor routes round the palace don’t have toilets located at convenient intervals. The assumption now, as then, is that visitors will have enough sense to go before making what might be a lengthy visit to the royal apartments. And those tourists who do get caught short at a great distance from the toilets don’t just use the nearest corner, do they? Remember also that there are still many jobs in which taking toilet breaks is less than easy and, let’s be honest, most people, with some foresight and/or a bit of discomfort, can usually cope without instant access to toilet facilities at every possible moment. French courtiers were no different.
What is more, when the drains were working, what struck visitors about the smell of Versailles was actually how pleasant it was. Whenever possible, Louis XIV’s gardeners made daily deliveries of freshly-cut, strongly scented flowers to the public rooms. This was partly to cover any body odours but also because fragrant rooms were the height of luxury. The smell, no less than the decoration, was intended to impress.
i laughed at the question about odor’s and when people in europe began bathing. i was in europe in 1972 in december with my friend murphy. we were skiing in kitzbuhl, bo and flatulence at a disco incredible. we were in zurich doing our laundry, run by a swiss lady, two washing machines and two dryers in the store and her. she smelled so bad we stood outside in the snow while our clothes were washing and drying. in london we couldn’t get the heater in our room started. the young girl who came up to show us how smelled so bad we couldn’t stand next to her and look over her shoulder as she lite the heater.