Bird's-eye view of the Palais-Cardinal

Jacques Lemercier was Richelieu’s architect. Around 1633, he designed the Palais-Cardinal (now Palais-Royal) in Paris, which featured spaces for Richelieu’s collections.

France’s first minister Cardinal Richelieu (1585-1642) built this stately complex to serve as his Parisian home. Located in the heart of Paris just a short distance from the Louvre, the Palais-Cardinal was under construction throughout the height of Richelieu’s career. Its large theatre, completed just before his death, was the best-equipped performance space in the city. Richelieu left his palace and its theatre to the royal family upon his death, making the Palais-Cardinal the Palais-Royal. It transferred hands several times and underwent numerous renovations, remaining one of the key performance sites in Paris for more than a century. Perhaps most notably, it served as the site of the public performances of Moli�re’s plays between 1661 and 1673. After 1673, the theatre became the site of the Paris Op�ra under the management of Moli�re’s rival Jean-Baptiste Lully.

Suggested listening (streaming mp3, 17 minutes):

Jean-Baptiste Lully: Le bourgeois gentilhomme, suite