Exhibition Resources and Archives
"1725. Native American Allies at the Court of Louis XV" at Versailles (2025)

Go behind the scenes of the exhibition "1725: Native American Allies at the Court of Louis XV" through a selection of objects, archival documents, historical maps, and resources highlighting the research and collaborations that shaped its development.

In the autumn of 1725, representatives of the Otoe, Osage, Missouria, and Illinois Nations crossed the Atlantic to meet King Louis XV as part of a diplomatic mission organized by the French East India Company. Received in Paris, Versailles, and Fontainebleau, these leaders took part in official audiences, met members of the French elite, and were introduced to court life at a time when the Mississippi Valley occupied a strategic position in France’s ambitions in North America.

Through an exceptional selection of diplomatic objects, historic maps, archival documents, and Indigenous artworks —most of them preserved at the Musée du quai Branly – Jacques Chirac—the exhibition explores the political, military, and cultural alliances forged between France and several Native Nations of the Mississippi Valley in the 18th century. It also highlights the vitality of these societies, their diplomatic practices, artistic traditions, and the exchanges that developed between Indigenous communities and the French.

Visitors will discover:

diplomatic and ceremonial objects presented or exchanged as part of Franco-Indigenous alliances;
historic maps of French Louisiana and the Mississippi River;
rare Native American regalia, weapons, and artworks, recently restored;
archival documents documenting the 1725 diplomatic mission;
works illustrating the impact of this encounter on French culture, notably through Les Indes galantes by Jean-Philippe Rameau.

Developed in collaboration with the Choctaw, Miami, Osage, Otoe-Missouria, Peoria, and Quapaw Nations, the exhibition also invites visitors to reflect on the contemporary significance of these collections held in France, as well as their role in research, the transmission of cultural knowledge, and the cultural revitalization efforts carried out today by Indigenous communities.