Video recorded on September 1, 2020. Weather (when recorded): 14° C / 57.2 °F

The Swiss pond is part of the park of the Palace of Versailles, built between 1679 and 16821. It owes its name to the fact that it was dug by a regiment of Swiss Guards2. It was created to drain the king's vegetable garden.


This body of water 682 meters long and 234 meters wide for an area of ​​13 hectares1, has an average depth of 1.70 meters.

It is located at the southern end of the north-south axis of the gardens of Versailles. This axis includes from north to south the Neptune basin, the water alley and the north parterre, the water parterre (starting point of the east-west axis), the south parterre (located at above the Orangerie) and the Orangerie parterre and finally the Suisses pond, which is in fact outside the current perimeter of the castle, from which it is separated by the Saint-Cyr road. Towards the south, it is bypassed by the Paris-Chartres railway line and dominated by the Satory plateau.

This piece of water was dug in a marshy area, in the extension of the Orangery which dominates it and from which it creates the perspective, in several stages from 1665. Initially octagonal, it was enlarged around 1678 by the Swiss Guards in the service of King Louis XIV. A final extension in 1682 endowed it with its rounded ends.

At its southern end an equestrian statue had been installed by Le Bernini, representing Louis XIV then transformed into Marcus Curtius by François Girardon (since replaced by a copy, the original is in the Orangery). The pond runs alongside the King's vegetable garden, which he could access from this side by the “royal gate”. It is bordered by a double alley of bicentennial plane trees, many of which were damaged in the storm of 1999.

Under the Ancien Régime, this piece of water was often the scene of nautical festivals. Nowadays, it is open to everyone and has become a place for a Sunday picnic.

It is also the scene of the swimming event during the Versailles Triathlon Festival4 which takes place every year in May and organized on a voluntary basis by the Versailles Triathlon club.




The Gardens of Versailles occupy part of what was once the Domaine royal de Versailles, the royal demesne of the château of Versailles. Situated to the west of the palace, the gardens cover some 800 hectares of land, much of which is landscaped in the classic French formal garden style perfected here by André Le Nôtre. Beyond the surrounding belt of woodland, the gardens are bordered by the urban areas of Versailles to the east and Le Chesnay to the north-east, by the National Arboretum de Chèvreloup to the north, the Versailles plain (a protected wildlife preserve) to the west, and by the Satory Forest to the south.

Administered by the Public Establishment of the Palace, Museum and National Estate of Versailles, an autonomous public entity operating under the aegis of the French Ministry of Culture, the gardens are now one of the most visited public sites in France, receiving more than six million visitors a year.

In addition to the meticulous manicured lawns, parterres, and sculptures are the fountains, which are located throughout the garden. Dating from the time of Louis XIV and still using much of the same network of hydraulics as was used during the Ancien Régime, the fountains contribute to making the gardens of Versailles unique. On weekends from late spring to early autumn, the administration of the museum sponsors the Grandes Eaux – spectacles during which all the fountains in the gardens are in full play. Designed by André Le Nôtre, the Grand Canal is the masterpiece of the Gardens of Versailles. In the Gardens too, the Grand Trianon was built to provide Sun King with the retreat he wanted. The Petit Trianon is associated with Marie-Antoinette, who spent her time there with her closest relatives and friends.

In 1979, the gardens along with the château were inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List, one of thirty-one such designations in France.


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