The Palace of Versailles was the principal royal residence of France from 1682, under Louis XIV, until the start of the French Revolution in 1789. Originally a humble hunting lodge, Louis XIV transformed it into a sprawling symbol of absolute monarchy. The most famous room is the Hall of Mirrors, which contains 357 mirrors—an immense luxury at the time when Venice held a monopoly on mirror manufacturing. The palace is surrounded by the Gardens of Versailles, which cover 800 hectares and feature 50 fountains and over 200,000 trees. The fountains were a marvel of engineering, though the water supply was so limited that they were often only turned on when the King was nearby. Versailles was not just a home but a political tool, designed to keep the nobility close to the King and away from their own power bases in the provinces.