History of the Palace of Versailles round towers. The vignette also shows a garden on the western side of the château with a fountain on the central axis and rectangular planted "parterres" to either side. Louis XIV had played and hunted at the site as a boy. With a few modifications, this structure would become the core of the new palace. Louis XIII's successor, Louis XIV, had a great interest in Versailles. He settled on the royal hunting lodge at Versailles, and over the following decades had it expanded into one of the largest palaces in the world. Beginning in 1661, the architect Louis Le Vau,
Versailles Orangerie Orangerie is under the flowerbed known as "parterre du midi". Its central gallery is 155 metres in length, and its frontage is directed towards the south. The “Parterre Bas” is bordered on its south side by a balustrade overlooking the Saint-Cyr-l'École. This separates it from the Swiss Pond. Versailles Orangerie The Versailles Orangerie (French: L′Orangerie du Château de Versailles) was built by Jules Hardouin-Mansart between 1684 and 1686, replacing Le Vaus design from 1663 - that is to say, before work on the palace had even begun. It is an example of many such prestigious extensions of grand gardens in