The Sun King, Louis XIV, moves his court to Versailles
Well-heeled aristocrats, gilded halls, manicured gardens – the Court of Versailles is remembered for its opulence.
But the reality of French court hygiene, revealed that life at Versailles was likely dirtier and smellier than most people imagine.
Thousands of people lived crowded close together, in a 17th-century palace without the convenience of modern plumbing.
Although Versailles was gorgeous to look at, living there was another story.
Aristocrats at Versailles kept as clean as they could, based on the practices and knowledge of the time.
Some of the most intimate acts a person could perform – like cleaning their bodies or producing waste in Versailles toilets – were also social and political acts.
This demonstrated that there was little distinction between a public and private life, at the elite court of the Sun King.
Folks in the 17th century didn’t see hot water baths as a pleasurable indulgence, or hygienic necessity.
In fact, many of them believed that bathing in hot water was bad for one’s health.
The common belief was that warm water weakened the body and widened the pores, thus allowing diseases to enter.
People everywhere, not just in France, found it much safer and better for the health to have a quick wash, than soaking in a tub.
The Sun King was no exception.
Historians believe he only had two baths over the course of his entire life.
That’s not to say he never cared about hygiene – he wiped himself down with a towel, scrubbed his body with perfume and alcohol, and washed his hands every morning.
Answering nature’s call wasn’t always a private experience at Versailles.
Louis XIV often took visitors while on the commode, as did other members of his court.
Nonetheless, all inhabitants would have had chamber pots or commodes in their private rooms.
The higher-ranking you were at court, the more likely you would have been to have a small closet in your chambers in which to do your business.
The first flush toilet didn’t arrive at Versailles until Louis XV installed one for his personal use in 1738.
Although Versailles inhabitants had commodes and chamber pots in their private chambers, Versailles also had public-use latrines.
Considering the sheer number of people on the estate, this was a woefully inadequate supply.
The combination of minimal toilets and high demand meant the latrines were under a tremendous strain.
They often overflowed, and sewage seeped through the walls and floors into neighboring rooms.
One eyewitness described Versailles as –
“The unpleasant odors in the park, gardens, even
the chateau, make one’s gorge rise.
The communicating passages, courtyards,
buildings in the wings, corridors, are full of urine
and faeces.
The pork butcher actually roasts his pigs at the
bottom of the ministers’ wing every morning.
The avenue Saint-Cloud is covered with stagnant
water and dead cats”
So what did courtiers do to counteract the stomach-churning smells that filled the air?
They doused themselves with perfume….
To use excessive amounts of perfume was to protect oneself and to purify the surrounding air.
But the prevalence of perfumes only made things worse, since it added yet another fragrance to the already unbearable stench.
When Louis XIV got too sweaty, he would simply change his shirt.
Louis and his courtiers changed shirts multiple times per day, a move that signaled their wealth and status.
Though perfumes allowed users to display their wealth and mask unpleasant smells, body odor was still a problem.
After all, underarm deodorants weren’t widely used until the 20th century.
Due to the limited plumbing, chamber pots were unceremoniously dumped out of the windows.
Passersby would have to move with caution – even Marie Antoinette was said to have been hit by flying waste.
If the pots weren’t dumped out the window, they would have to be transported to one of the nearby cesspools that collected waste.
Given the lack of adequate plumbing, and the density of people at the palace, many courtiers answered nature’s call whenever and wherever it was most convenient.
Seeing someone in the act of relieving him or herself wasn’t an uncommon sight.
In 1702, German-born Princess Elizabeth Charlotte recoiled at the behaviours she saw at the French court.
“The people stationed in the galleries in front of our
room piss in all the corners.
It is impossible to leave one’s apartment without
seeing somebody pissing”
Versailles wasn’t just the seat of royal authority in France, it was also a hotbed of liaisons amongst all the classes.
After Louis XIV moved his court to Versailles on 6th May 1682, workers and nobles alike descended on the town.
The forest surrounding the palace grounds became a kind of “open-air brothel,” since s3x workers could be solicited there.
In light of what he deemed to be the immoral licentiousness of his court and kingdom, Louis vigorously policed the s3x workers and marked them as sinners.
Contrary to Louis’s public stances on morality, he maintained numerous mistresses!
Louis XIV helped popularize wigs in France, in an alleged bid to conceal thinning hair.
Wigs also had another effect…
Lice often infested them instead of a person’s scalp.
Boiling a lice-covered wig was an easier way to control an infestation than picking the lice out of hair.
Though men shaved their heads in order to wear wigs – and control lice – women by and large did not.
The hygienic conditions at Versailles also impacted food.
The plumbing problems, for example, made life difficult for the palace’s cooks.
On at least one occasion, sewage seeped into Marie Antoinette’s private kitchens and poisoned everything!
Though hand-washing was part of Louis XIV’s dining ritual, there is evidence that food was not always prepared or handled properly.
As a result, intestinal parasites lived within courtiers at Versailles.
Even the king wasn’t spared; he had several bouts of tapeworm.
During one bout, Louis XIV is said to have relieved himself of a worm that was nearly six inches long!
Feral cats also used the palace grounds as a litter box….
Any visitor to Versailles would have seen cats – both domestic and feral – throughout the palace estate.
Some members of the court brought pets, while the heaps of food waste attracted rodents as well as the cats that hunted them.
The presence of so many cats led to even more sanitary problems.
Feline excrement could be spotted all over the grounds.
Worse, the remains of deceased cats could be found along the town’s main thoroughfare.
After Louis XIV passed in 1715, his 5-year-old great-grandson inherited the throne as Louis XV.
Recognizing the state of the palace, Louis XV began renovation projects.
He saw to it that sewage pipes were extended.
This put a greater distance between the palace and its cesspools of human waste.
