Salle du Jeu de Paume

Versailles

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In May 1789 Louis XVI convened the États-Généraux, made up of more than 1118 deputies representing the nobility, clergy and the Third Estate (‘common people’), to moderate dissent. Denied entry, the Third Estate’s reps met separately on this 1686-built royal tennis court, formed a National Assembly and took the Serment du Jeu de Paume (Tennis Court Oath), swearing not to dissolve it until Louis XVI accepted a new constitution.

Less than a month later, a mob in Paris stormed the prison at Bastille.

Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

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Nearby Versailles attractions

1. Petites Écuries

0.13 MILES

Versailles' School of Architecture and restoration workshops fill the Petites Écuries (Little Stables).

2. Louis XIV Statue

0.17 MILES

This soaring statue of Louis XIV guards the gates to the Château de Versailles.

3. Château de Versailles

0.18 MILES

Amid magnificently landscaped formal gardens, this splendid and enormous palace was built in the mid-17th century during the reign of Louis XIV – the Roi…

4. Versailles Stables

0.21 MILES

The Grandes Écuries are the stage for the prestigious Académie du Spectacle Équestre. It presents spectacular Reprises Musicales equestrian shows, for…

5. Académie du Spectacle Équestre

0.25 MILES

Versailles' Grandes Écuries (Greater Stables) are the stage for the prestigious Académie du Spectacle Équestre. It presents spectacular Reprises Musicales…

6. Grandes Écuries

0.25 MILES

The Grandes Écuries (Great Stables) house the Académie du Spectacle Équestre.

7. Orangerie

0.26 MILES

On the southwestern side of the palace, the Orangerie, built under the Parterre du Midi (Southern Flowerbed), shelters tropical plants in winter.