A royal passion

A Royal Passion is the first in-depth study of the Sun King as a patron of architecture. Surveying such monuments as the Louvre, Versailles, the Invalides, and other buildings that are closely identified with Louis XIV, Robert Berger demonstrates why these buildings, gardens, urban spaces, and their decorations were so important to him. Serving as functional necessities, objects of aesthetic delight, and as political statements, his architectural enterprises collectively underscored his absolutist authority. Moreover, by adopting the guise of "builder-prince," Louis XIV reasserted his kinship with the Roman emperors, whose grandeur he sought both to emulate and surpass.

First sentence: This book is about a king who loved to build.

Year

1994

Language

English

Publisher

Cambridge University Press

Editions

1

Pages

224

ISBN

9780521586443

Data source: Wikidata