Grand Tour '26
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video 🇫🇷 Paris

The Rise and Fall of Versailles

by BBC documentary series

Three-part drama-documentary on the kings, queens, and intrigues that built Versailles — and the revolution that brought it down.

Part 1 — The Reign of Louis XIV

Part 1 — The Reign of Louis XIV 59 min

The life and loves of France's most famous king, Louis XIV, who conducted many affairs and dazzled contemporaries with his lavish entertainments.

Part 2 — The Palace of Pleasure

Part 2 — The Palace of Pleasure 59 min

Louis XV ruled France for 60 years, but war, scandal and lavish excess helped bring his empire into decline.

Part 3 — Countdown to Revolution

Part 3 — Countdown to Revolution 50 min

The final days of the Bourbon dynasty under the ill-fated Louis XVI and his Queen, Marie Antoinette.

Symbol of France's glory, Versailles is probably the most splendid royal palace in Europe. From 1643 to 1792 it was the stage on which the most glorious period of the French Monarchy played out, until the darkest days, at the fall of the Bourbon dynasty.

This three-part series offers a sensitive and endearing portrait of the monarchs and recreates their life, loves, and political willpower — through the Sun King's grandeur, his great-grandson's slow decline, and the doomed reign that ended on the guillotine.

All three parts are hosted on Jason's own PeerTube instance.