THE KING IS DEAD EXHIBITION from 27TH October 2015 to 21ST February 2016
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THE KING IS DEAD EXHIBITION FrOM 27TH OCTOBEr 2015 TO 21ST FEBrUArY 2016 Press Contacts Hélène Dalifard, Aurélie Gevrey, Elsa Martin, Violaine Solari +33 (0)1 30 83 75 21 / [email protected] 3 CONTENTS Press release 5 Foreword by Béatrix Saule 7 The exhibition 11 exhibition layout 12 curators 16 scenography 18 1st septembre 2015 at the Palace of Versailles 19 organ concerts in the royal chapel 20 in connection with the exhibition 23 publications 24 a MOOC on the life of Louis XIV in the court of Versailles 26 a dedicated programme of shows at the Palace of Versailles 28 appendices 31 practical information 32 Press rELEASE THE KING IS DEAD EXHIBITION FrOM 27TH octobEr 2015 TO 21ST FEBrUArY 2016 africa and crimea rooms the public institution of the palace of versailles has dedicated a major exhibition to commemorating the death of Louis XIV in Versailles 300 years ago, on 1st september 1715. The death of the king, both as a man and an institution, was a key moment in the construction of the public perception of the monarchy, combining religion (the death of a Christian) and politics (the death and resurrection of the king, who never dies). From his final death throes to the burial it resembled a performance, a great Baroque show of huge significance to courtly society, which was affected more than ever by it. The exhibition – the first on the subject – will look back on the details of the death, autopsy and funeral of Louis XIV, which strangely are little known, and to situate them in the funeral context of European sovereigns from the Renaissance period to the Enlightenment. It also discusses the survival - often paradoxical - of this ritual from the French Revolution to the contemporary era. exhibition The exhibition will bring together works of art and historical documents of major curators importance from the largest French and foreign collections, including ceremonial portraits, Béatrix Saule funeral statues and effigies, gravestones, the manuscript for the account of the autopsy of the Director and Head Curator of the Musée National des king, coins from the Saint-Denis Treasury, gold medals, emblems and ornaments, and furniture Châteaux de Versailles et of funeral liturgy. Some of the pieces on display have never been exhibited in public. de Trianon Assisted by Hélène Delalex Exhibiting these masterpieces Conservation Officer at has required grand scenography effects. Scenographer Pier the Musée National des Luigi Pizzi was asked by Béatrix Saule, the exhibition's Head Curator, to design the layout for this Châteaux de Versailles et de Trianon great Baroque show. Across the nine sections, visitors will discover a veritable funeral opera and conducted by the artist. Gérard Sabatier Emeritus Professor The subject of the exhibition will not fail to surprise, and is scientifically rigorous. It is based on an international research program on royal ceremonies in European Courts, scenography undertaken over the course of three years at the Palace of Versailles Research Centre under the Pier Luigi Pizzi leadership of Professors Gérard Sabatier and Mark Hengerer and with the participation of a team representing a range of disciplines, from coroners to liturgists, from medieval to contemporary historians. 7 foreword The sheer scale of the exhibition titled 'Louis XIV, man and king', held in Versailles five years ago, was proof of the wealth of heritage in terms of art collections, institutions, monuments and royal palaces, but there was nothing relating to the grave of the great king, nor depitcting the grand funeral ceremony held in Saint-Denis. This was not without reason. Only three facts had been retained from the death of the monarch: the rigidity of the king right up to his final breath, the famous funeral oration beginning with Dieu seul est grand mes frères (only God is great, my brothers) by Jean-Baptiste Massillon, and the funeral procession crossing the forest of Saint- Germain by night. All in all, the funeral ceremonies had been somewhat forgotten. However, for its 300th anniversary, the event had to be commemorated for what it was: the end of the longest, and no doubt most glorious, reign of the French monarchy, one which had brought about radical changes in the history of Versailles. Moreover, 1715 also constituted a turning point for both France and Europe. Although it has been known since the masterful work by Paul Hazard that the ideas of the Enlightenment period started taking root in 1680, the fact remains that Louis XIV, Protector of order and stability within his kingdom, represented the final barrier against the development of these new ideas which, following his death, could finally develop unhindered. There would therefore seem to be a paradox between the historical influence of the event and the scant attention given to the ceremony by historians. Of course, a feeling of relief, the desire to turn a new page and the urgency of organising the Regency may be an initial explanation, but the death of a king has always been a major ceremonial moment for the monarchy as well as an important one for courtly society, which was marked more than ever by the death. Would it have been any different for the death of Louis XIV? the message of the exhibition The exhibition aims, firstly, to show how well-established the sequence of events was and how well tradition was observed. It is based on concurring accounts from the era: - the Diary and Memoir of Dangeau, offering an account of the sovereign's final days from the initial onset of illness on 10th August to his death on 1stSeptember. It gives such a detailed report on the succession of events that Desgranges, the Director of Ceremonies, recommended trusting the chronicler's work, saving himself from having to write another one. -the Register of the Premiers Gentilshommes de la Chambre which describes each process in the ritual from the first mortuary vigil in the room of the deceased, to preparation of the body in the Bull's Eye Antechamber, its exhibition in the Chambre des Honneurs (Mercury Room), the procession of the heart, entrails and body, and the three ceremonies held at Saint-Denis, Notre-Dame and Sainte- Chapelle. - The Journal of Anthoine, which concords with the two preceding texts, includes personal opinions here and there, notably on the pomp and ceremony of the service at Saint-Denis which "surpassed everything of the kind we had seen until now". 8 In spite of their value and although they have been the subject of historical study, these documents leave questions unanswered and leave room for additional investigations. Research has cast light upon areas of uncertainty thanks, in particular, to the discovery of new documentation including a file concerning a dispute involving the Chamber, Stables and Directors of Ceremonies, which provided lists of the incredible amount of provisions required for the occasion; a more detailed ceremonial document than the Register of the Premiers gentilshommes offered a highly detailed description of the great bier, whose appearance was until then unknown; a copy of the plan of the layout of the choir in Saint-Denis, made at the time of the Restoration, compensated for the loss of the original one, and the exact position of the cavity once containing the entrails was revealed in a plan by Viollet-le Duc during restoration of Notre-Dame cathedral. New studies were begun in order to address or shed more light upon such diverse subjects as how the division in three parts was carried out, the itinerary of the funeral procession, the music played during the funeral service, the scale of the expenses incurred within the parish economy, the image held by those at the time of Saint-Denis, the behaviour of the Court in the face of the king's death and, especially, the highly complex question of mourning rules. With a wider chronological and geographical scope, the theme of the exhibition is also largely based on work carried out between 2007 and 2009 as part of a programme by the Palace of Versailles Research Centre, led by Professors J. A. Chroscicki, M. Hengerer and G. Sabatier, and on the three volumes of Funérailles princières en Europe XVIe-XVIIIe siècle (Princely funerals in Europe between the 15th and 18th centuries), which supported the discoveries. Thanks to these sources, the theme has been enriched by different points of view; some, focusing on the past, help understand the customs and rites observed in 1715 and determine whether they were in accord with or broke with tradition, while others, offering a broader perspective, allow us to appreciate the actual effect of the great King's funeral in France and abroad, as well as the conformity or originality of funeral practices used in other courts in Europe. Lastly, we have also taken investigations right up to modern times, briefly going over the periods affected by changes of ideas and political regime, in order to show that these monarchical rites lived on after the sovereigns, constituting elements of appropriation or deviation. The sections of the exhibition were defined accordingly: 1. The loss of a King; 2. Louis is dying; 3. Operation and embalming 4. Exhibition and effigies; 5. The Court in mourning; 6. The funeral procession; 7. At Saint-Denis ; 8. Graves and mausoleums; 9. From monarchic to national funeral ceremonies. The exhibits Although the number of exhibits directly linked to the event include a large number of manuscripts – including the king's will and its touching codicil, from the stronghold of the National Archives – there are few depictions and even fewer relics. A brilliant yet little-known painting, conserved in the English Royal collections since 1799, seemed to show the funeral procession of Louis XIV descending towards the plains of Saint-Denis, constituting the only painted portrayal of the king's funeral.