An Erotic History Of Versailles This book tells how a small hunting lodge became the most luxurious palace in Europe and what role women played in this. The Sun King Louis XIV created a new city 20 km from Paris – a symbol of the absolute power of the monarch, surrounded be parks, fountains and forests. A real setting for a fairytale, because, according to Charles Perrault, in Versailles “all the wonders of the universe are united”. The main characters of the book are kings: Louis XIV, who left 21 bastards, Louis XV and Louis XVI, who could not conceive children for four years. Their wives: Maria Theresa of Spain, Maria Leszczynska, and Marie Antoinette. And, of course, mistresses and favorites: "blonde, tender and in love " Louise de La Valliere, the Marquise de Montespan ("perfection of mind and beauty"), marquise de Maintenon (A beautiful Indian woman — the daughter of a counterfeiter and the widow of a crippled poet), light-haired Madame de Pompadour, the charming Countess Du Barry and others. The reader will learn how the Palace of Versailles was built, how the adherents of the "Italian sin" were treated, what kind of flies there were and how many skirts the ladies wore. In their story, the authors rely on memoirs and diaries, letters and anonymous pamphlets. Historical facts alternate with romanized fantasies from court life. All this revives the real people of the Great Age and their nonfictional passions. Michel Verger-Franceschi is a French historian, lecturer at the Sorbonne, and three-time laureate of the French Academy. Author of more than 70 books. Anna Moretti is a Doctor of Art History and Aesthetics, a researcher of biographies of famous women. 18+