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Le Grand Divertissement Royal in Versailles
On July 18th 1668, Louis XVI organized one of the biggest events of his reign in order to celebrate the annexion of the Flandres and his victory over the kingdom of Spain. This luxurious celebration gathered the Court of Versailles and symbolized noble entertainment at the time. Le grand divertissement royal, 18 juillet 1668. Illumination du Palais et des Jardins de Versailles, Jean Le Pautre (1618-1682), Versailles, châteaux de Versailles et de Trianon -
Discovery of The Electrical Conduction by Stephen Gray
Discovered by Stephen Grey in 1730 (shown against), the electrical conduction and many other electricity tools, were the origin of a new form of entertainment: the "electrical soirées" in England. The polite British society and others european societies enjoyed during those evening different types of electrical body shocks. -
The Great Exhibition of 1851
On May 1st 1851, the doors of the first Great Exibition of the world opened in the British capital, London. Symbolized by the Crystal Palace (shown against), the exhibition welcomed six million visitors and a quarter of the entire British population. The visitors were entertained by the modernity of the achitectures which represented the Golden age of Victorian's era. -
Inauguration of "Au Bon Marché" in Paris
On April 2nd 1872, one of the world's first departement store was inaugurated. This store created another type of consumption and induced another type of leisure: the conspicious leisure. Very appreciated by the middle-class Parisian women, the "Au Bon Marché" became a symbol of mass consumption, a new leisure in the middle of the Industrial era.
This etching illustrates the Bon Marché after its opening. -
Demonstration of The Bioscop by Emil and Max Skladanowsky in Berlin
The end of the 19th century was a turning point in mass entertainment for Germany. The Bioscop (film projector) developed by the Skladanowsky brothers became the source of a new leisure for the working class in Imperial Germany. Film projections became so popular among the workers that it even competed with drinking places and circuses. They are an example of mass consumption and the popularisation of leisure. -
Birth of the Opera Nazionale Dopolavoro, an Italian Fascist association for worker's leisure
With this association, Mussolini was able to follow his agenda: creating a new Man for a new Italy. The program included sport, tourism, popular culture: all of thing controled by the Fascist government. Poster of the Opera Nazionale Dopolavoro from 1944, before the decline of Fascist regime.
