Why orange tree in Versailles
Oranges originally come from Burma. They spread well before our era to China, India and Persia (media), which were at the time
,leading centres of scientific and cultural achievement.
As for the Roman, Pliny refers to the fact that orange-flower water was used for its sedative powers and that from orange skin it was
customary to extract « neroli » which served as a base for parfumes.
In the IV° century AD ,orange trees acclimatised to Sicily and then ultimately to the whole of the peninsula.
Genoans and Venitians, who spearheaded the fashion for feasting and merriment, made sur that the orange became well-known in Europe .
This pleasant tree, admired for its appearance,the parfume of its flowers and the delicious taste of its fruit,became the most
sought-after and fashionable tree for ornament ,by the end of the XIII°century
Unfortunately ,about 1333,since he did not succeed in growing the tree in open ground in Northern Italy, Hubert Veinese
dauphin was forced to resign himself to kept it in tub.
In 1421, Léonore de Castille had an orange tree brought to Pampelune .The longevity of this tree was to prove amazing…
Already 100 years old, it graced the gardens of Charles of Bourbon but when his property was confiscated in 1523 his orange tree was
relocated to Chantilly by order of François 1°. It was then moved to Fontainebleau under Louis XIII, and finally in Versailles in 1684,
where people use to come and gaze « the Bourbon » until its death in 1895 at the age of 474 years old.
Fruits very prized by kings Louis XIII and Louis XIV were the centrepiece of every feast and collation s;
La Quintinie ,authour of learned works on orchards and vegetable’s garden ,grew fig trees, apricots, peach trees and ultimately,as
the fashion for exotic gained a hold with the advent of the East India company in 1664 , even Pineapple and melons could be seen ,as
well Café ,and Chocolate.
Under Louis XV and Louis XVI, what had started as mere pleasure became the subject of serious collections
and scientific study with Carl Linné and Bernard Jussieu who gave theirs first nobility letters to Botany.
Versailles through all its varied experiences ,has always remained a centre where botany and horticulture are highly regarded .
Fruit from Hespéride gardens the « Golden Apples » can be enjoyed cold and frehly squeezed in the gardens of Versailles.
