The Grande Écurie (, ) is a building located in Versailles (Yvelines), on the

Place d'Armes Place d'Armes () is a Town square, square of the Old Montreal quarter of Montreal, in Quebec, Canada anchored by Maisonneuve Monument, a monument in memory of Paul Chomedey de Maisonneuve, Paul de Chomedey, founder of Montreal. Buildings that s ...

, opposite the

Palace A palace is a large residence, often serving as a royal residence or the home for a head of state or another high-ranking dignitary, such as a bishop or archbishop. The word is derived from the Latin name palātium, for Palatine Hill in Rome whi ...

, between the avenues of

Saint-Cloud Saint-Cloud () is a French commune in the western suburbs of Paris, France, from the centre of Paris. Like other communes of Hauts-de-Seine such as Marnes-la-Coquette, Neuilly-sur-Seine and Vaucresson, Saint-Cloud is one of France's wealthie ...

and

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

. Together with the

Petite Écurie The Petite Écurie () is a monument located in Versailles, on the Place d'Armes, opposite the Palace of Versailles, between the Avenue de Paris and the Avenue de Sceaux. Together with the Grande Écurie, it formed the Écuries royales (an instit ...

(literal French for "The Small Stable"), it formed the Royal Stables (an institution that employed around a thousand peopleSquires, pages, footmen, coachmen, grooms, blacksmiths, cartwrights, saddlers, doctors, surgeons, chaplains, musicians, etc under

Louis XIV LouisXIV (Louis-Dieudonné; 5 September 16381 September 1715), also known as Louis the Great () or the Sun King (), was King of France from 1643 until his death in 1715. His verified reign of 72 years and 110 days is the List of longest-reign ...

), and was built under the direction of architect

Jules Hardouin-Mansart Jules Hardouin-Mansart (; 16 April 1646 – 11 May 1708) was a French Baroque architect and builder whose major work included the Place des Victoires (1684–1690); Place Vendôme (1690); the domed chapel of Les Invalides (1690), and the Gra ...

and completed in

1682 Events January–March * January 7 – The Republic of Genoa forbids the unauthorized printing of newspapers and all handwritten newssheets; the ban is lifted after three months. * January 12 – Scottish minister James Ren ...

. Equipped with a

riding hall A riding hall, indoor arena, indoor school (UK English), or indoor ring (US English) is a building (part of an equestrian facility) that is specially designed for indoor horse riding. Smaller, private buildings contain only space for riding, w ...

, it housed the king's hunting and war horses.

History

The Grande Écurie replaced the King's stable, which then became the Queen's stable. Identical to the

, from which it is separated by the Avenue de Paris, under the

Old Regime Old or OLD may refer to: Places *Old, Baranya, Hungary *Old, Northamptonshire, England *Old Street station, a railway and tube station in London (station code OLD) *OLD, IATA code for Old Town Municipal Airport and Seaplane Base, Old Town, Mai ...

, the Great Stable was under the orders of the

Grand Squire of France The Grand Écuyer de France or Grand Squire of France or Grand Equerry of France was one of the Great Officers of the Crown of France and a member of the Maison du Roi ("King's Household") during the Ancien Régime. The name "écuyer", the French ...

and housed the school for the King's Pages. Between

1680 Events January–March * January 2 – King Amangkurat II of Mataram (located on the island of Java, part of modern-day Indonesia), invites Trunajaya, who had led a failed rebellion against him until his surrender on Decem ...

and

1830 It is known in European history as a rather tumultuous year with the Revolutions of 1830 in France, Belgium, Poland, Switzerland and Italy. Events January–March * January 11 – LaGrange College (later the University of North Alabama) ...

, the Grande Écurie was also home to the École de Versailles (literal French for "the Versailles School"), the cradle of French learned horsemanship. Between 1793 and 1794, the emblem on the pediment was removed. From 1854, the stables were occupied by the army. By decree of 20 August 1913, the facades overlooking the main courtyard and the avenues of Paris and Saint-Cloud, the facades of the two pavilions, and the gates bordering the Place d'Armes were classified as historic monuments. For the first time, the Palace of Versailles organized an international show jumping competition from 5 to 7 May 2017 in the courtyard of the Grande Écurie.

Establishments housed at the Grande Écurie

* Galerie des Carrosses (Gallery of Coaches): In 1978, the museum was transferred from the

Petit Trianon The Petit Trianon (; French for 'small Trianon') is a Neoclassical architecture, Neoclassical style château located on the grounds of the Palace of Versailles in Versailles, Yvelines, Versailles, France. It was built between 1762 and 1768 ...

to the Grande Écurie. It was closed for expansion in 2006 and reopened in 2016. * Equestrian Academy: in 2002, the Palace of Versailles returned these premises to their original function by choosing

Bartabas Bartabas (born Clément Marty, 2 June 1957) is the performing name of a French horse trainer, film producer and impresario. He created his first theater company at age seventeen, and later founded the performing troupe, Cirque Aligre. In 1984, h ...

, horseman and founder of the Zingaro equestrian show. The architect Patrick Bouchain was commissioned to refurbish the rectangular riding arena, where the Académie Équestre Nationale du Domaine de Versailles was inaugurated in 2003. * Versailles municipal archives. * From 1957 to 2003: Department archives of Yvelines. * From 2024, a campus for arts and crafts will be created here in partnership with ENSAD.

Architecture

The buildings are arranged around five courtyards: * The main courtyard, bordered by a semi-circular

colonnade In classical architecture, a colonnade is a long sequence of columns joined by their entablature, often free-standing, or part of a building. Paired or multiple pairs of columns are normally employed in a colonnade which can be straight or curv ...

and two

symmetrical Symmetry () in everyday life refers to a sense of harmonious and beautiful proportion and balance. In mathematics, the term has a more precise definition and is usually used to refer to an object that is invariant under some transformations ...

wings. * The two middle courtyards framed at the rear. * The two small side courtyards known as the "manure courtyards". Behind the main gate, there was a rectangular riding arena, which is now home to the Académie Équestre Nationale du Domaine de Versailles. The galleries are single in the Great Stable, while the Small Stable has double galleries separated by colonnades. The ceilings of the galleries are vaulted. The visible walls of the Palace are made of stone, while the less visible walls are made of red brick with stone facing. The building has rectangular windows on the first floor and dormer windows in the

attic An attic (sometimes referred to as a '' loft'') is a space found directly below the pitched roof of a house or other building. It is also known as a ''sky parlor'' or a garret. Because they fill the space between the ceiling of a building's t ...

. Sculptures can be seen on the

pediment Pediments are a form of gable in classical architecture, usually of a triangular shape. Pediments are placed above the horizontal structure of the cornice (an elaborated lintel), or entablature if supported by columns.Summerson, 130 In an ...

, tympanum, and

jamb In architecture Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and cons ...

s of the main gate. Side entrances look out onto Avenue de Saint-Cloud and Avenue de Paris. In 2016, to mark the reopening of the Gallery of Coaches, the "King's Stable" sign was installed on the gate.

Gallery

File:Jean-Baptiste Martin - The Stables Viewed from the Château at Versailles - WGA14144.jpg, Perspective view of the Petite and Grande Écurie from the Place d'Armes in 1688. File:Grille de la Grande Ecurie Versailles.jpg, The "King's Stables" gate. File:Colonnade de la Grande Ecurie Versailles.jpg, The colonnade. File:Ecurie dans la Grande Ecurie à Versailles.jpg, The stable of the Versailles Equestrian Academy. File:La Cour de la Grande Ecurie Versailles.jpg, One of the courtyards at the rear. File:Derriere du théâtre de l'Académie équestre.jpg, Behind the theatre of the Equestrian Academy, The trompe-l'œil File:Galerie des Carrosses Versailles.jpg, The gallery of coaches

The Grande Écurie in Culture

* '' La Mission'', volume 7 of the comic book series '' L'Épervier'' by Patrice Pellerin published by Soleil, 2009

Notes

References

Bibliography

* * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Grande Ecurie Buildings and structures in Versailles Buildings and structures completed in 1682