Palace of Versailles almost all of his courtiers. After the death of Maria Theresa of Spain in 1683, Louis XIV undertook the enlargement and remodeling of the royal apartments in the original part of the palace, within the former hunting lodge built by his father. He instructed Mansart to begin the construction of the Royal Chapel of Versailles, which towered over the rest of the palace. Hardouin-Mansart died in 1708 and so the chapel was completed by his assistant Robert de Cotte in 1710. Louis XIV died in 1715, and the young new King, Louis XV, just five years old, and his government
History of the Palace of Versailles of Marie de Médicis" by Peter Paul Rubens were placed on display. The museum, which included the sculptures in the garden, became the finest museum of classic French art that had existed. With the advent of Napoléon and the First Empire, the status of Versailles changed. Paintings and art work that had previously been assigned to "Muséum national" and the "Musée spécial de l’École française" were systematically dispersed to other locations, and eventually the museum was closed. In accordance with provisions of the 1804 Constitution, Versailles was designated as an imperial palace for the department of the Seine-et-Oise. While Napoléon