Macron hosts Trump at Versailles for 250th anniversary dinner
Emmanuel Macron will host Donald Trump at versailles on Wednesday night, with the U.S. president as guest of honour at a dinner in the Palace of Versailles. Macron’s office said the meal will mark the 250th anniversary of the independence of the US.
Versailles and Franco-American ties
The Palace of Versailles was chosen as a historic symbol of Franco-American friendship, and Trump will be shown around the palace’s temporary exhibition on the history of French-US relations before the dinner. He is also scheduled to tour the Hall of Mirrors, which was built under Louis XIV in the 17th century.
The setting gives Macron a way to mark France’s role in American independence using one of the country’s most symbolic state venues. It also places Trump inside a space tied both to monarchy and to the French Revolution of 1789, a contrast that adds weight to the invitation without changing the purpose of the dinner itself.
French left attacks Macron
French political rivals read the invitation as a test of Macron’s judgment. Fabien Roussel called the move “very naive” and “obsequious,” while he also said, “He’s rolling out the red carpet while we’re being fleeced.” Mathilde Panot said, “The flattery is not working,” and accused Trump of having “insulted France and Europe multiple times.”
Éric Coquerel also criticised the invitation, calling it “grovelling” to a US that was “increasingly aggressive and very imperialist.” Nathalie Loiseau took a softer line, describing the approach as “flattery” and saying, “He’s not someone who is easy, it’s true. But I’m not sure the more you bo”
Trump, Macron and the G7
The dinner was also seen in French political circles as a way to encourage Trump to stay the full length of the G7 summit in Évian-les-Bains. Macron said, “I’m pragmatic. It’s by firm and respectful discussion that one gets results.” Trump, for his part, said, “Versailles is not gold leaf, Versailles is the real deal,” and added, “I’m a fan of beautiful places.”
The invitation comes after earlier clashes between the two men, including Trump’s warning that the US would have no choice but to apply 100% tariffs on French wine unless Paris scrapped a digital services tax on technology firms. The dinner now puts Macron’s chosen symbolism, Trump’s public criticism, and the summit agenda into the same room at Versailles.
Before the evening meal, Trump’s tour of the exhibition and the Hall of Mirrors will give the visit its public frame, while the dinner itself is the part that French critics have seized on most sharply. The next fixed moment in the story is the Wednesday night dinner at Versailles, where Macron’s invitation and Trump’s presence will be judged together.
