Michael Meehan’s An Ungrateful Instrument is a vivid, lively novel drawing on the history of French music.
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Articles on Louis XIV
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The first Duke of Montagu was a a Francophile through and through. After spending time with Louis XIV, he dreamed of a Versailles of his own.
In claiming the election was “stolen” from him and using the office of the president to the benefit of his family, Trump dips into the authoritarian playbook to convert power into property.
Today’s beds are thought of as bastions of privacy. But not long ago, they were the perches from which kings ruled and places where travelers hunkered down with complete strangers.
Pamphlets, songs and posters were the 17th-century equivalent of social media and just as effective at spreading falsehoods.
At the Versailles court, a well-directed glance could decide a person’s fate. Imagine if Donald Trump were so subtle.
Yellow-gold, swagged curtains have appeared in the Oval Office. But if Donald Trump wants to emulate the Sun King, he would be advised to look to contemporary artists and designers for inspiration.
Donald Trump has a Versailles-inspired apartment. There’s a popular TV series and now, a new exhibition of treasures from the palace. A glittering symbol of aristocratic frivolity, Versailles was, in fact, a place of awesome royal power.
From the halcyon days of Louis XIV, the French global seat of power was soon pulled down by corruption, elitism and arbitrary rule. Sound familiar?
Top contributors
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Lecturer in French History, Trinity College Dublin
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Associate professor, Australian National University
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Distinguished Professor Emeritus in Anthropology, University of California, Santa Barbara
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Honorary Fellow of the School of Languages and Linguistics, The University of Melbourne
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Professor of Law, American University
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Professor of History, University of St Andrews
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Professor of Public Law, Legal Philosophy and Comparative Law, Goethe University Frankfurt am Main
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Emeritus professor, History, The University of Melbourne
