European zoos throughout the ages

Why did monarchs display captive animals?

The royal menagerie of Versailles during the reign of Louis XIV (1643–1715). Illustration by Pierre D’Aveline.

Across Eurasia, individuals or private organisations have owned menageries of wild animals for hundreds, or perhaps thousands, of years. Zoos are another beast altogether.

To be classified as a zoo in the modern understanding of the word, a collection of animals needs to fulfil two criteria. First, it must be…