Shutter Myths – King Louis XIV and Lady Godiva

There have been some interesting myths surrounding window shutters over the years. Some of these involve the French monarch King Louis XIV, who was the French King in the late 1600’s and early 1700’s. The first suggests the invention of shutters. Back in his time, the King’s headquarters was the Louvre in Paris. King Louis XIV decided that a change was needed and moved to nearby Versailles. It is rumoured, although not widely accepted as likely, that upon this move, shutters were designed for him by Philipe Louvrier.

This brings up another two myths about Shutters, both with regard to where the name Louvered Shutter came from. Where shutters came from is obvious, as they open and ‘shut’. There is more debate, though, around the term louvered. One possibility is that the term was already used in other areas. The are two suggesting it came about in connection with Shutters though, both of which involved Philipe Louvrier and King Louis XIV. One suggestion is that they are named after the (alleged) inventor Louvrier. The other is that they were name after the King’s previous residence, the Louvre.

There is another, more likely story surrounding shutters and King Louis XIV. After he moved to Versailles, some of the women of the royal court used to bathe in the garden ponds within the grounds. This put the King’s guards off their work, as they spent time watching the women out of the windows of the Castle instead of performing their duties. This frustrated the King, and to prevent this problem he had shutters installed throughout the Castle. Of course he put louvers on his window so he could still watch, something he did not do with the other windows. This had the added advantage of the women being unable to see the King as he did this.

There is a famous story about shutters and the origins of the term ‘Peeping Tom’, dating back to the eleventh century and Lady Godiva. Lady Godiva was the wife of Leofric, the Earl of Mercia. She was unhappy with her husband plans to charge high taxes to the people of Coventry, England. He agreed to scrap this idea if she was willing to ride a white horse naked through the streets of Coventry, something he never thought she would do. He was wrong though and she did perform this task. Before she did, she asked the people of the City to stay indoors and not watch her as she did. Most of them did with one exception, Tom. Tom pierced a whole in his Shutters and watched Lady Godiva as she rode past his home and this is where ‘Peeping Tom’ apparently came from. The story goes that he was blinded from the heavens as he did this.

Andrew Marshall ©

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