Louis XIII’s Bath Tub

Louis XIII didn’t spend a lot on bathing compared to other kings in France. 

He used an ordinary wooden tub for most of his lifetime. In his last days, he replaced the wooden tub to a marble one. The marble tub is grander with a cold reception to the rump,  which gave a totally different using experience with wooden tubs. 

Moreover, the submerged cushions and drapings trimmed with lace that Louis XIII used became the popular outfits in the court circles. (Wright 98)

Louis XIV’s Bathroom

As the incarnation of the Sun God, Louis XIV showed his interest and passion for bathing. From 1677 to 1679, Louis XIV renewed the bathroom for three times. In 1679, there were six tubs in the bathroom. Some of them were made of marble, and the others were with bronze ornaments. At the same time, he enlarged the suite of the bathroom and made a monumental rose-pink octagon bath tub. (Wright 98)

The delight of bathing seems like a symbol of status. Not only the gorgeous ornaments in the bathroom, Louis XIV also spent a large number of labour on bathing. When he was taking a bath, there were a number of staff to take care.

Fortunately for the staff, most of the time, he didn’t use this monumental bathroom. Instead, he had a little bath in his bedroom.

Louis XV Moved The Bathtub To The Garden

Louis XV removed the great bath to the garden as a garden fountain.

That is not an easy job. Twenty-two men were needed to move the bath on the level and rollers. And this might become a seed of the Revolution that day among the sweating workers. (Wright 98)

The great bath, firstly built interior, and then moved to the exterior as a garden fountain, and then returned to the Versailles and set up in the Orangery. These workers were too tired to satisfy the delights of bathing. 

Enthusiasm of Bathing In The Court

There are a lot of rumors that royal members didn’t like taking a bath, and they took a bath every month. However, the court was much cleaner than people thought. There were more than a hundred bathrooms at Versailles. (Wright 99)

River bathing is also a popular way to take a bath. Even when taking a river bath, the court still was concerned with the using experience. The Duchess of Burgundy built a leafy screen along the bank and two pavilions as well, with a banquet and music. And if the river was too cold, staff would pour boiling water into the river to raise the water temperature.

During the Louis XV period, another trend is the bathroom with two baths, one for washing and one for rinsing. (Wright 100)

Distinguishing Gender of  Garderobes

In the report of a great Ball in Paris in 1739, people started to distinguish “ladies” and “gentlemen” on the garderobes. There were ladie’s garderobe and gentlemen’s garderobe separately with inscriptions over the doors of the cabinets. Moreover, chambermaids and valets cleaned ladies’ and gentlemen’s separately as well. (Wright, 103)