Paris Tourism - Paris Attractions - Paris, France Things to Do and See Arc de Triomphe - Paris, France Place du General de Gaulle - Paris, France 75008 This online resource was designed to provide you with attraction and sightseeing information for Paris, France. If you want to jump back to the home page, just click this link: the Paris Directory ARC DE TRIOMPHE The Arc de Triomphe is engraved with names of generals who commanded French troops during Napoleon's regime. Standing at the end of the Champs-Elys�es, it is now one of the most famous landmarks in Paris, together with the Eiffel Tower symbol of France's capital. 12 Streets radiate from the circular square. The streets are named after French military leaders. The design of the arch by Jean Chalgrin is based on the Arch of Titus in Rome. The Arc de Triomphe is higher but it has exactly the same proportions. The triumphal arch is adorned with many reliefs, most of them commemorating previous battles. HISTORY - It was not until the year 1730, when five streets radiated out from this "Etoile de Chaillot".

And in 1758, after several plans were drawn up, such as a bizarre one in the midst of the square - a gigantic elephant housing ballrooms and a theater. However, the plans appeared a bit too ambitious. And, Napoleon Bonaparte had other ideas, he built a monument for the glorification of his Grande Arm? a triumphal arch in classical style - the Arc de Triomphe. The Arch was finished for the inauguration in 1836, during the reign of Louis Philippe. However, the rest of the "Place de L'Etoile" was not finished until 1854. Haussman, responsible for redesigning Paris (1853-1870), added another seven avenuesto the existing five ones of them stretching up to the boulevard called after him. The Arc de Triomphe and its massive piers are decorated with bas reliefs depicting scenes trom the revolutionary era (including the First Empire).

To the right on the side facing the Champs-Elysees is the Marseillaise by Rude (the departure of the volunteers to the front in 1792); to the left is Napoleon's Triumph of 1810 by Cortot. The resistance of 1814 and the Peace of 1815 are on the other side, modestly facing away from the city. To get a closer look at the Arc de Triomphe, you can take an underpass on the Champs-Elysees or Avenue de la Grande Armee that leads you to the center of the plaza. Cultural centers, deluxe hotels and other activities that participate in the tradition and prestige of the Champs-Elysees are encouraged to return by the municipality. Metro : lines 1, 2 et 6 station Charles-de Gaulle-Etoile. RER : line A station Charles-de Gaulle-Etoile. Bus : lines 22, 30, 31, 52, 73, 92 and Balabus.

HOURS: From 1er april to 30 september from 9h30am to 11pm From 1er october to 31 march from 10am ?0h30pm Closed on 1st january, 1st may, 8 may (morning), 14 july (morning), 11 november (morning) and on 25 d?mber. Best Western Hotel Star Champs Elysees | Official Website Children Infants Rue de l'Arc de Triomphe: the very name inspires the imagination, evoking the excitement and prestige of the Champs Élysées and the Place de l'Étoile… Who would guess that the Best Western Star Champs Élysées***, located just a couple of steps away, is in fact a veritable oasis of tranquillity hidden away from the bustle of the main thoroughfares of the quartier? MORE ABOUT THE HOTEL The sixty-two rooms of the Best Western Star Champs-Élysées*** are distributed from the ground floor up to the fifth floor. All are non-smoking.

Gradually renovated since 2007, the rooms were decorated according to the wishes of Pierre Salles, in collaboration with the French fabric company Toiles de Mayenne, one of the last in France to still own a working loom. MORE ABOUT THE ROOMS The Best Western Star Champs Élysées*** is situated at the very heart of the most famous quartier in the capital. Just a few moments walk from the famous Place de l'Étoile, rechristened Place Charles-de-Gaulle, which was conceived by Emperor Napoleon I. From here twelve avenues branch outwards, forming a "star" shape, several of which are named after Napoleonic victories, with the Arc de Triomphe rising up in the centre. Arc de Triomphe | Wiki | Everipedia You can edit something on the page right now! Register today, it's fast and free.

Arc de Triomphe Arc de Triomphe de l'Étoile General information Wide: 45 m (148 ft) Deep: 22 m (72 ft) Design and construction The Arc de Triomphe de l'Étoile ( French pronunciation: [aʁk də tʁijɔ̃f də letwal] , Triumphal Arch of the Star) is one of the most famous monuments in Paris . It stands in the centre of the Place Charles de Gaulle (originally named Place de l'Étoile), at the western end of the Champs-Élysées . It should not be confused with a smaller arch, the Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel , which stands west of the Louvre . The Arc de Triomphe honours those who fought and died for France in the French Revolutionary and the Napoleonic Wars , with the names of all French victories and generals inscribed on its inner and outer surfaces. Beneath its vault lies the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier from World War I.

The Arc de Triomphe is the linchpin of the Axe historique (historic axis) – a sequence of monuments and grand thoroughfares on a route which runs from the courtyard of the Louvre to the Grande Arche de la Défense . The monument was designed by Jean Chalgrin in 1806 and its iconographic program pits heroically nude French youths against bearded Germanic warriors in chain mail . It set the tone for public monuments with triumphant patriotic messages. The monument stands 50 metres (164 ft) in height, 45 m (148 ft) wide and 22 m (72 ft) deep. The large vault is 29.19 m (95.8 ft) high and 14.62 m (48.0 ft) wide. The small vault is 18.68 m (61.3 ft) high and 8.44 m (27.7 ft) wide. Its design was inspired by the Roman Arch of Titus .

The Arc de Triomphe is built on such a large scale that, three weeks after the Paris victory parade in 1919 (marking the end of hostilities in World War I), Charles Godefroy flew his Nieuport biplane through it, with the event captured on newsreel. It was the tallest triumphal arch in existence until the completion of the Monumento a la Revolución in Mexico City in 1938, which is 67 metres (220 ft) high. The Arch of Triumph in Pyongyang , completed in 1982, is modelled on the Arc de Triomphe and is slightly taller at 60 m (197 ft). History The Arc is located on the right bank of the Seine at the centre of a dodecagonal configuration of twelve radiating avenues. It was commissioned in 1806 after the victory at Austerlitz by Emperor Napoleon at the peak of his fortunes. Laying the foundations alone took two years and, in 1810, when Napoleon entered Paris from the west with his bride Archduchess Marie-Louise of Austria, he had a wooden mock-up of the completed arch constructed.

The architect, Jean Chalgrin , died in 1811 and the work was taken over by Jean-Nicolas Huyot . During the Bourbon Restoration , construction was halted and it would not be completed until the reign of King Louis-Philippe , between 1833 and 1836, by the architects Goust, then Huyot, under the direction of Héricart de Thury . On 15 December 1840, brought back to France from Saint Helena , Napoleon's remains passed under it on their way to the Emperor's final resting place at the Invalides . [4] Prior to burial in the Panthéon , the body of Victor Hugo was displayed under the Arc during the night of 22 May 1885. The sword carried by the Republic in the Marseillaise relief broke off on the day, it is said, that the Battle of Verdun began in 1916. The relief was immediately hidden by tarpaulins to conceal the accident and avoid any undesired ominous interpretations. [5] On 7 August 1919, Charles Godefroy successfully flew his biplane under the Arc.

[6] Jean Navarre was the pilot who was tasked to make the flight, but he died on 10 July 1919 when he crashed near Villacoublay while training for the flight. Following its construction, the Arc de Triomphe became the rallying point of French troops parading after successful military campaigns and for the annual Bastille Day Military Parade . Famous victory marches around or under the Arc have included the Germans in 1871, the French in 1919, the Germans in 1940, and the French and Allies in 1944 [7] and 1945. A United States postage stamp of 1945 shows the Arc de Triomphe in the background as victorious American troops march down the Champs-Élysées and U.S. airplanes fly overhead on 29 August 1944. After the interment of the Unknown Soldier, however, all military parades (including the aforementioned post-1919) have avoided marching through the actual arch. The route taken is up to the arch and then around its side, out of respect for the tomb and its symbolism.

Both Hitler in 1940 and de Gaulle in 1944 observed this custom. By the early 1960s, the monument had grown very blackened from coal soot and automobile exhaust, and during 1965–1966 it was cleaned through bleaching . In the prolongation of the Avenue des Champs-Élysées , a new arch, the Grande Arche de la Défense , was built in 1982, completing the line of monuments that forms Paris's Axe historique. After the Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel and the Arc de Triomphe de l'Étoile, the Grande Arche is the third arch built on the same perspective. In 1995, the Armed Islamic Group of Algeria placed a bomb near the Arc de Triomphe which wounded 17 people as part of a campaign of bombings . [8] Design The astylar design is by Jean Chalgrin (1739–1811), in the Neoclassical version of ancient Roman architecture (see, for example, the triumphal Arch of Titus ).

Major academic sculptors of France are represented in the sculpture of the Arc de Triomphe: Jean-Pierre Cortot ; François Rude ; Antoine Étex ; James Pradier and Philippe Joseph Henri Lemaire . The main sculptures are not integral friezes but are treated as independent trophies applied to the vast ashlar masonry masses, not unlike the gilt-bronze appliqués on Empire furniture . The four sculptural groups at the base of the Arc are The Triumph of 1810 (Cortot), Resistance and Peace (both by Antoine Étex) and the most renowned of them all, Departure of the Volunteers of 1792 commonly called La Marseillaise (François Rude). The face of the allegorical representation of France calling forth her people on this last was used as the belt buckle for the honorary rank of Marshal of France . Since the fall of Napoleon (1815), the sculpture representing Peace is interpreted as commemorating the Peace of 1815 . In the attic above the richly sculptured frieze of soldiers are 30 shields engraved with the names of major French victories in the French Revolution and Napoleonic wars .

The inside walls of the monument list the names of 660 people , among which are 558 French generals of the First French Empire ; The names of those generals killed in battle are underlined. Also inscribed, on the shorter sides of the four supporting columns, are the names of the major French victories in the Napoleonic Wars. The battles that took place in the period between the departure of Napoleon from Elba to his final defeat at Waterloo are not included. For four years from 1882 to 1886, a monumental sculpture by Alexandre Falguière topped the arch. Titled "Le triomphe de la Révolution" (the Triumph of the Revolution), it depicted a chariot drawn by horses preparing "to crush Anarchy and Despotism". It remained there only four years before falling in ruins. Inside the monument, a permanent exhibition conceived by the artist Maurice Benayoun and the architect Christophe Girault opened in February 2007. [10] The steel and new media installation interrogates the symbolism of the national monument, questioning the balance of its symbolic message during the last two centuries, oscillating between war and peace.

Tomb of the Unknown Soldier Beneath the Arc is the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier from World War I . Interred on Armistice Day 1920, [11] it has the first eternal flame lit in Western and Eastern Europe since the Vestal Virgins ' fire was extinguished in the fourth century. It burns in memory of the dead who were never identified (now in both world wars). A ceremony is held at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier every 11 November on the anniversary of the armistice signed by the Entente Powers and Germany in 1918. It was originally decided on 12 November 1919 to bury the unknown soldier's remains in the Panthéon , but a public letter-writing campaign led to the decision to bury him beneath the Arc de Triomphe. The coffin was put in the chapel on the first floor of the Arc on 10 November 1920, and put in its final resting place on 28 January 1921.

The slab on top bears the inscription ICI REPOSE UN SOLDAT FRANÇAIS MORT POUR LA PATRIE 1914–1918 ("Here lies a French soldier who died for the fatherland 1914–1918"). In 1961, American President John F. Kennedy and First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy paid their respects at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, accompanied by French President Charles de Gaulle . After the 1963 assassination of President Kennedy , Mrs Kennedy remembered the eternal flame at the Arc de Triomphe and requested that an eternal flame be placed next to her husband's grave at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia. President Charles de Gaulle went to Washington to attend the state funeral, and witnessed Jacqueline Kennedy lighting the eternal flame that had been inspired by her visit to France. Details The four main sculptural groups on each of the Arc's pillars are: Le Départ de 1792 (or La Marseillaise ), by François Rude . The sculptural group celebrates the cause of the French First Republic during the 10 August uprising . Above the volunteers is the winged personification of Liberty.

This group served as a recruitment tool in the early months of World War I and encouraged the French to invest in war loans in 1915–16. Le Triomphe de 1810, by Jean-Pierre Cortot celebrates the Treaty of Schönbrunn . This group features Napoleon , crowned by the goddess of Victory. La Résistance de 1814, by Antoine Étex commemorates the French resistance to the Allied armies during the War of the Sixth Coalition . La Paix de 1815, by Antoine Étex commemorates the Treaty of Paris , concluded in that year. Six reliefs sculpted on the façades of the Arch, representing important moments of the French Revolution and of the Napoleonic era include: Les funérailles du général Marceau ( General Marceau 's burial), by P. H. Lamaire (SOUTH façade, right), On the inner façades of the small arches are engraved the names of the military leaders of the French Revolution and Empire . The names of those who died on the battlefield are underlined. The great arcades are decorated with allegorical figures representing characters in Roman mythology (by J. Pradier ).

The ceiling with 21 sculpted roses Interior of the Arc de Triomphe Access The Arc de Triomphe is accessible by the RER and Métro , with exit at the Charles de Gaulle—Étoile station . Because of heavy traffic on the roundabout of which the Arc is the centre, it is recommended that pedestrians use one of two underpasses located at the Champs Élysées and the Avenue de la Grande Armée. A lift will take visitors almost to the top – to the attic, where there is a small museum which contains large models of the Arc and tells its story from the time of its construction. Another 46 steps remain to climb in order to reach the top, the terrasse, from where one can enjoy a panoramic view of Paris. Arc de Triomphe Arc de Triomphe Paris , France Arc de Triomphe Triposo is Your Smart Travel Guide Discover and book hotels, restaurants and local experiences in 50,000 destinations worldwide. Triposo works offline so you can wander freely.

from Wikipedia by Norio NAKAYAMA from saitama, japan CC BY-SA 2.0 The Arc de Triomphe de l'Étoile is one of the most famous monuments in Paris . It stands in the centre of the Place Charles de Gaulle (originally named Place de l'Étoile), at the western end of the Champs-Élysées . It should not be confused with a smaller arch, the Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel , which stands west of the Louvre . The Arc de Triomphe honours those who fought and died for France in the French Revolutionary and the Napoleonic Wars, with the names of all French victories and generals inscribed on its inner and outer surfaces. Beneath its vault lies the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier from World War I. The Arc de Triomphe is the linchpin of the Axe historique (historic axis) – a sequence of monuments and grand thoroughfares on a route which runs from the courtyard of the Louvre to the Grande Arche de la Défense .

The monument was designed by Jean Chalgrin in 1806 and its iconographic program pits heroically nude French youths against bearded Germanic warriors in chain mail. It set the tone for public monuments with triumphant patriotic messages. The monument stands 50m in height, 45m wide and 22m deep. The large vault is 29.19m high and 14.62m wide. The small vault is 18.68m high and 8.44m wide. Its design was inspired by the Roman Arch of Titus. The Arc de Triomphe is built on such a large scale that, three weeks after the Paris victory parade in 1919 (marking the end of hostilities in World War I), Charles Godefroy flew his Nieuport biplane through it, with the event captured on newsreel. It was the tallest triumphal arch in existence until the completion of the Monumento a la Revolución in Mexico City in 1938, which is 67m high.

The Arch of Triumph in Pyongyang, completed in 1982, is modelled on the Arc de Triomphe and is slightly taller at 60m. History from Wikipedia by U.S. Army Air Service Public domain The Arc is located on the right bank of the Seine at the centre of a dodecagonal configuration of twelve radiating avenues. It was commissioned in 1806 after the victory at Austerlitz by Emperor Napoleon at the peak of his fortunes. Laying the foundations alone took two years and, in 1810, when Napoleon entered Paris from the west with his bride Archduchess Marie-Louise of Austria, he had a wooden mock-up of the completed arch constructed. The architect, Jean Chalgrin , died in 1811 and the work was taken over by Jean-Nicolas Huyot. During the Bourbon Restoration, construction was halted and it would not be completed until the reign of King Louis-Philippe , between 1833 and 1836, by the architects Goust, then Huyot, under the direction of Héricart de Thury.

On 15 December 1840, brought back to France from Saint Helena, Napoleon's remains passed under it on their way to the Emperor's final resting place at the Invalides. Prior to burial in the Panthéon , the body of Victor Hugo was displayed under the Arc during the night of 22 May 1885. The sword carried by the Republic in the Marseillaise relief broke off on the day, it is said, that the Battle of Verdun began in 1916. The relief was immediately hidden by tarpaulins to conceal the accident and avoid any undesired ominous interpretations. On 7 August 1919, Charles Godefroy successfully flew his biplane under the Arc. Jean Navarre was the pilot who was tasked to make the flight, but he died on 10 July 1919 when he crashed near Villacoublay while training for the flight. Following its construction, the Arc de Triomphe became the rallying point of French troops parading after successful military campaigns and for the annual Bastille Day Military Parade.

Famous victory marches around or under the Arc have included the Germans in 1871, the French in 1919, the Germans in 1940, and the French and Allies in 1944 and 1945. A United States postage stamp of 1945 shows the Arc de Triomphe in the background as victorious American troops march down the Champs-Élysées and U.S. airplanes fly overhead on 29 August 1944. After the interment of the Unknown Soldier, however, all military parades have avoided marching through the actual arch. The route taken is up to the arch and then around its side, out of respect for the tomb and its symbolism. Both Hitler in 1940 and de Gaulle in 1944 observed this custom. By the early 1960s, the monument had grown very blackened from coal soot and automobile exhaust, and during 1965–1966 it was cleaned through bleaching.

In the prolongation of the Avenue des Champs-Élysées, a new arch, the Grande Arche de la Défense , was built in 1982, completing the line of monuments that forms Paris's Axe historique. After the Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel and the Arc de Triomphe de l'Étoile, the Grande Arche is the third arch built on the same perspective. In 1995, the Armed Islamic Group of Algeria placed a bomb near the Arc de Triomphe which wounded 17 people as part of a campaign of bombings. Design Avenues radiate from the Arc de Triomphe in Place Charles de Gaulle, the former Place de l'Étoile. from Wikipedia by Gérard Janot CC-BY-SA-3.0 The astylar design is by Jean Chalgrin in the Neoclassical version of ancient Roman architecture (see, for example, the triumphal Arch of Titus). Major academic sculptors of France are represented in the sculpture of the Arc de Triomphe: Jean-Pierre Cortot; François Rude ; Antoine Étex ; James Pradier and Philippe Joseph Henri Lemaire .

The main sculptures are not integral friezes but are treated as independent trophies applied to the vast ashlar masonry masses, not unlike the gilt-bronze appliqués on Empire furniture. The four sculptural groups at the base of the Arc are The Triumph of 1810 (Cortot), Resistance and Peace (both by Antoine Étex) and the most renowned of them all, Departure of the Volunteers of 1792 commonly called La Marseillaise (François Rude). The face of the allegorical representation of France calling forth her people on this last was used as the belt buckle for the honorary rank of Marshal of France. Since the fall of Napoleon (1815), the sculpture representing Peace is interpreted as commemorating the Peace of 1815. In the attic above the richly sculptured frieze of soldiers are 30 shields engraved with the names of major French victories in the French Revolution and Napoleonic wars. The inside walls of the monument list the names of 660 people, among which are 558 French generals of the First French Empire; The names of those generals killed in battle are underlined.

Also inscribed, on the shorter sides of the four supporting columns, are the names of the major French victories in the Napoleonic Wars. The battles that took place in the period between the departure of Napoleon from Elba to his final defeat at Waterloo are not included. For four years from 1882 to 1886, a monumental sculpture by Alexandre Falguière topped the arch. Titled "Le triomphe de la Révolution" (the Triumph of the Revolution), it depicted a chariot drawn by horses preparing "to crush Anarchy and Despotism". It remained there only four years before falling in ruins. Inside the monument, a permanent exhibition conceived by the artist Maurice Benayoun and the architect Christophe Girault opened in February 2007. The steel and new media installation interrogates the symbolism of the national monument, questioning the balance of its symbolic message during the last two centuries, oscillating between war and peace. Tomb of the Unknown Soldier Tomb of the Unknown Soldier beneath the Arc de Triomphe, Paris from Wikipedia by Wagner51 CC BY-SA 2.0 fr Beneath the Arc is the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier from World War I .

Interred on Armistice Day 1920, it has the first eternal flame lit in Western and Eastern Europe since the Vestal Virgins' fire was extinguished in the fourth century. It burns in memory of the dead who were never identified . A ceremony is held at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier every 11 November on the anniversary of the armistice signed by the Entente Powers and Germany in 1918. It was originally decided on 12 November 1919 to bury the unknown soldier's remains in the Panthéon , but a public letter-writing campaign led to the decision to bury him beneath the Arc de Triomphe. The coffin was put in the chapel on the first floor of the Arc on 10 November 1920, and put in its final resting place on 28 January 1921. The slab on top bears the inscription ICI REPOSE UN SOLDAT FRANÇAIS MORT POUR LA PATRIE 1914–1918 ("Here lies a French soldier who died for the fatherland 1914–1918"). In 1961, American President John F.

Kennedy and First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy paid their respects at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, accompanied by French President Charles de Gaulle . After the 1963 assassination of President Kennedy, Mrs Kennedy remembered the eternal flame at the Arc de Triomphe and requested that an eternal flame be placed next to her husband's grave at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia. President Charles de Gaulle went to Washington to attend the state funeral, and witnessed Jacqueline Kennedy lighting the eternal flame that had been inspired by her visit to France. Access from Wikipedia by Steve CIMOLINO CC BY-SA 3.0 The Arc de Triomphe is accessible by the RER and Métro, with exit at the Charles de Gaulle—Étoile station. Because of heavy traffic on the roundabout of which the Arc is the centre, it is recommended that pedestrians use one of two underpasses located at the Champs Élysées and the Avenue de la Grande Armée. A lift will take visitors almost to the top – to the attic, where there is a small museum which contains large models of the Arc and tells its story from the time of its construction.

Another 46 steps remain to climb in order to reach the top, the terrasse, from where one can enjoy a panoramic view of Paris. Sources Arc de Triomphe, Paris - French Moments Arc de Triomphe © French Moments Arc de Triomphe, Paris By Pierre on 26 November 2012 16th Arrondissement of Paris , 17th Arrondissement of Paris , 8th Arrondissement of Paris , French History , Île-de-France , Monuments of France , Monuments of Paris , Paris Welcome back to the French Moments blog! As this is not the first time you are here, you may be interested in downloading the guide "10 Amazing Offbeat Places in Paris". Click here to get your free copy now! The Arc de Triomphe in Paris conveys a powerful historic symbol at the centre of the star-shaped “Place de l’Étoile”.

Majestically set on top of a hill, the Arc de Triomphe offers the best view of the Historical Axis which runs through some of Paris ’ most celebrated monuments and squares: from the Louvre and the gardens of the Tuileries to La Défense , passing through the Champs-Élysées . The Arc de Triomphe along the Historical Axis of Paris The Arc de Triomphe view from the Eiffel Tower © French Moments At the end of the Avenue des Champs-Élysées stands the mighty Arc de Triomphe, at the centre of a huge square in the shape of a ‘star’, accurately named the “Place de l’Étoile”. The huge arch was raised on the centreline of the Historical Axis of Paris, some 2.2km away from the Luxor Obelisk on the Place de la Concorde. This celebrated monument is the highest triumphal arch in Europe and stands 50 metres high.

The Avenue of Champs-Élysées and the Arc de Triomphe © French Moments The Neoclassical design of the Arc de Triomphe by Jean Chalgrin (1739–1811) was inspired by the triumphal Arch of Titus in Rome. This famous Parisian landmark was commissioned from Jean Chalgrin by Napoleon Bonaparte in 1806 who once said to his soldiers “When you come back home, it will be through these triumphal arches”. But Napoleon never saw the monument completed. During the Napoleonic Wars, the building was stopped and only resumed in the reign of Louis-Philippe in the 1830s. It was inaugurated on the 29 July 1836, only three months before the raising of the Luxor obelisk – another symbolic landmark – in the Place de la Concorde down the hill. The remains of Napoleon travelled under the arch on the 15th December 1840 on its way to his final resting place in the chapel of the Hôtel des Invalides.

On the 22nd May 1885, the corpse of Victor Hugo was allowed to rest the whole night under the arch before being buried at the Panthéon. The Arc de Triomphe: a strong historic connotation Ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier beneath the Arc de Triomphe © French Moments The Arc de Triomphe honours those who fought for France, particularly during the Napoleonic Wars. In the ground beneath the arch, the tomb of the Unknown Soldier (Soldat inconnu) of the First World War is interred. The eternal Flame of Remembrance placed on the grave echoes that of the Vestal Virgins in Rome which was extinguished in 394 by Barbarian raids. It remembers the soldiers killed in the war who were never identified. Since 1923, the flame has been rekindled every evening at 6.30pm by associations of war veterans. The Arc de Triomphe is certainly a symbolic monument with a strong historic connotation, and its alignment along the Historical Axis has been meticulously calculated to have the sun setting under the arches on some particular days.

Twice a year, around the 10th May and the 1st August, the sun sets on the Historical Axis. The sun rises towards the East under the arch around the 7th February and the 4th November. The façade of the Arc de Triomphe The four sides of the façade of the triumphal arch were decorated with impressive bas-reliefs, high-reliefs and friezes describing scenes from the Napoleonic Wars. The four high-reliefs at the base of the Arc de Triomphe are ‘The Triumph’ (Cortot, 1810), Resistance, Peace (both by Antoine Étex) and the ‘Departure of the Volunteers‘ (1792) by François Rude. This sculptural group showing the departure of citizens to defend the nation is probably the most renowned and is also known as ‘ La Marseillaise ’. The Amazon-type character charging forward with a sword symbolises the Revolution. Note the harsh expression on her face contorted in a fierce rallying cry.

Above the high-reliefs, on six sides of the façade of the Arc de Triomphe were set six bas-reliefs depicting important events of the French Revolution and the Napoleonic era: ❖ On the Champs-Élysées’ side – left: La bataille d’Aboukir (The Battle of Aboukir), by Seurre the Elder. ❖ On the Champs-Élysées’ side – right: Les funérailles du général Marceau (General Marceau’s burrial), by P.H. Lamaire. On the Champs-Elysées’ side – left: La bataille d’Aboukir (The Battle of Aboukir), by Seurre the Elder ; right: Les funérailles du général Marceau (General Marceau’s burrial), by P.H. Lamaire © French Moments ❖ On the Avenue de Wagram’s side: La bataille de Jemappes (The Battle of Jemappes), by Carlo Marochetti.

Arc de Triomphe, side of Wagram Avenue © French Moments ❖ On the Avenue de la Grande Armée’s side – left: La prise d’Alexandrie (The Fall of Alexandria), by J.E. Chaponnière. ❖ On the Avenue de la Grande Armée’s side – right: Le passage du pont d’Arcole (The Battle of Arcole), by J.J. Feuchère. On the Avenue de la Grande Armée’s side – left: La prise d’Alexandrie (The Fall of Alexandria), by J.E. Chaponnière ; right: Le passage du pont d’Arcole (The Battle of Arcole), by J.J. Feuchère © French Moments ❖ On the Avenue Kléber’s side: La bataille d’Austerlitz (The Battle of Austerlitz), by J.F.T. Gechter. Arc de Triomphe, side of avenue Kléber © French Moments The frieze above the bas-reliefs was executed by several artists of the 19th century: Rude, Brun, Jacquet, Laitié, Caillouette and Seurre the Elder.

The Champs-Élysées’ side depicts the departure of French soldiers to war campaigns and on the West side, (Avenue de la Grande Armée) their return. Between the frieze and the top of the monument are a series of thirty shields onto which are engraved the names of major Revolutionary and Napoleonic military victories. On the inner façades of the small arches are engraved the names of the military leaders of the French Revolution and Empire. Arc de Triomphe © French Moments The inside walls of the Arc de Triomphe feature the names of 660 people, mostly the French generals of Napoleon. The names of those killed in battle are underlined. The shorter sides of the four supporting columns contain the names of the major victorious battles of the Napoleonic Wars. The battle of Waterloo does not appear there as they do not include the battles which took place after the departure of Napoleon from Elba (1815).

The Place de l’Étoile or Place Charles de Gaulle View over Place de l’Étoile from the top of Arc de Triomphe © French Moments The Place de l’Étoile (since renamed “Place Charles de Gaulle”) is a symbolic place, with its configuration of 12 avenues radiating out from the Arc de Triomphe, each bearing the names of illustrious French military leaders: Foch, Marceau, Hoche or Kléber… it is often considered to be the most challenging roundabout for motorists to drive around. It was Baron Haussmann who approved the square’s design, the one that gave the square its particular star-like shape that we see today. The circular square, 120 metres in diameter, is the centre – the star – from where 12 avenues radiate out in a remarkable geometric pattern. The number 12 is traditionally known as a sublime number (a number that has a perfect number of divisors, and the sum of its divisors is also a perfect number).

The number is found in various symbolic places: the 12 apostles, the 12 signs of the zodiac, the 12 months in a year, the 12 hours in a day or night. To have a triumphal arch as a centre, from which 12 avenues form the radiating lines of a perfect star, set on a stunning historical axis on which various famous landmarks are aligned… what more could a national capital such as Paris ask for? The answer is that with Parisian and French leaders, anything is possible! President François Mitterrand wished to expand the great perspective beyond the Arc de Triomphe by erecting an even larger, taller and wider monument: the Grande-Arche de la Défense . Practical information on the Arc de Triomphe Pedestrian corridor under the Arc de Triomphe © French Moments On a practical note, the Arc de Triomphe is accessed through a pedestrian underground corridor which links the north corner of the Champs-Élysées to the Avenue de la Grande Armée. Visitors can either use the lift or climb the 284 steps to reach the panoramic platform.

The panoramic view from the platform is amazing as it displays the twelve avenues departing from the Place de l’Étoile. The viewing platform also offers a fine view over the whole Historical Axis, from the Louvre to the Grande Arche in the CBD of La Défense. The best time of the day to appreciate the fine view is to go up at dusk on a sunny day when most of Paris will then be illuminated with the light of the setting sun.

The view of Avenue de la Grande Armée to La Défense : View to La Défense from the top of Arc de Triomphe © French Moments The view of the Champs-Élysées to the Place de la Concorde (at Christmas): View of Avenue des Champs-Élysées from the top of Arc de Triomphe © French Moments The view of Avenue Kléber and of the Eiffel Tower : View to the Eiffel Tower from the top of Arc de Triomphe © French Moments Paris - Ile Saint-Louis | national capital, France | Britannica.com Île-de-France In 1627 Louis XIII granted a 60-year lease on two mudbanks behind the Île de la Cité to a contractor, Christophe Marie, and two financiers. It was 37 years before Marie was able to unite the islets, dike the circumference, lay out a central avenue with 10 lateral streets, and rent space to householders.

The church of Saint-Louis-en-l’Île was begun the same year, 1664, but one of the finest houses, by Louis Le Vau, had been completed as early as 1640. Another, the Hôtel de Lauzun, a few yards upstream on the Quai d’Anjou, was completed in 1657. The Marie Bridge to the Right Bank, which was completed as part of the contract, is the original span, although it has been modified for modern traffic. The Île Saint-Louis constitutes a tranquil neighbourhood in the centre of the busy city. The Louvre On the Right Bank, just north of the western tip of the Île de la Cité, stands the Louvre, one of the world’s largest palaces. Though it was completed only in 1852, it originated in the Middle Ages. Vikings camped on the site during their unsuccessful siege of Paris in 885, and in about 1200 King Philip II had a square crusader’s castle built on the same site, just outside the new city wall, to buttress the western defenses.

Over the following centuries many additions and renovations were made, and from the castle grew the present-day palace. From the original square, known as the Cour Carrée (Square Court), two galleries extend westward for about 1,640 feet (500 metres), one along the river and the other along the rue de Rivoli . In 1871, only 19 years after the huge oblong was completed, its western face, the Tuileries Palace (begun 1563), was destroyed by the insurrectionists of the Commune of Paris . Louvre Museum, Paris, with pyramid designed by I.M. Pei. John Lawrence—Stone/Getty Images Nice Two of the facades of the Cour Carrée had strong influence on French architecture. Pierre Lescot began his inner courtyard facade in 1546, adapting the Renaissance rhythms and orders he had observed in Italy and adding purely French decoration to the classical motifs. The physician and architect Claude Perrault collaborated with Louis Le Vau, architect to the king, to design the outer east face of the palace in 1673. It too employs classic elements, making especially graceful use of coupled columns and a pediment.

The Louvre Museum occupies the four sides of the palace around the Cour Carrée as well as portions of the two galleries. Among the treasures of the museum are the Victory of Samothrace, the Venus de Milo , and the Mona Lisa . The enormous collections contain works spanning at least 26 centuries, with a huge cultural and geographic spread. The north gallery, along the rue de Rivoli, houses a separate museum, the Museum of Decorative Arts (Musée des Arts Décoratifs), as well as the national finance ministry. Mona Lisa, oil on wood panel by Leonardo da Vinci, c. … © Everett-Art/Shutterstock.com Extensive remodeling has been undertaken throughout the Louvre to increase space for artworks. Construction in the 1980s created a new main entrance and underground reception hall in the vast Napoleon Courtyard, between the two galleries; the large glass pyramid designed by I.M. Pei to cover the entrance aroused both strong support and spirited criticism . The “ Triumphal Way” Northwest from the Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel (Carrousel Triumphal Arch), located in the courtyard between the open arms of the Louvre, extends one of the most remarkable perspectives to be seen in any modern city.

It is sometimes called la Voie Triomphale (“the Triumphal Way”). From the middle of the Carrousel arch, the line of sight runs the length of the Tuileries Gardens, lines up on the obelisk in the Place de la Concorde, and goes up the Avenue des Champs-Élysées (Avenue of the Elysian Fields) to the centre of the city’s famed Arc de Triomphe and beyond to the skyscrapers of La Défense, in the western suburbs. Alpha Jets of the French Patrol trailing the national colours over the Champs-Élysées … Mal Langston—© Reuters/Corbis Exploring Italy and France: Fact or Fiction? The Tuileries Gardens (Jardin des Tuileries), which fronted the Tuileries Palace (looted and burned in 1871 during the Commune), have not altered much since André Le Nôtre redesigned them in 1664. Le Nôtre was born and died in the gardener’s cottage in the Tuileries; he succeeded his father there as master gardener.

His design carried the line of the central allée beyond the gardens and out into the countryside by tracing a path straight along the wooded hill west of the palace. On this hilltop the famed Arc de Triomphe was completed in 1836. At the western edge of the gardens, Napoleon III erected a hothouse, known as the Orangerie, and the Jeu de Paume , an indoor court for tennis . Both eventually were adapted as museums: the Orangerie had a small permanent collection, including a group of 19 of Claude Monet ’s paintings of water lilies displayed as panoramas ; and the Jeu de Paume housed the Louvre’s collection of paintings by the Impressionists and their forerunners. The collections of the two museums —with the exception of the Monet panoramas—were moved to the Orsay Museum (Musée d’Orsay), which opened across the river in 1986, and the Jeu de Paume and the Orangerie were then reserved for occasional exhibitions.

Connect with Britannica Facebook Twitter YouTube Instagram Pinterest The formal exit gate from the Tuileries is flanked by two winged horses, and the entrance to the Champs-Élysées across the square is similarly adorned, only by earthbound horses. In the 18th century both pairs decorated the grounds of the royal Château de Marly (destroyed during the French Revolution ). The original winged-horse sculptures were moved to the Louvre in 1986; replicas now stand in their place. The Place de la Concorde was designed as a moated octagon in 1755 by Ange-Jacques Gabriel . The river end was left open, and on the inland side two matching buildings were planned. The ground floor was arcaded and the facade nimbly adapted from the Louvre colonnade , all with a refinement typical of the era. Although Gabriel built eight giant pedestals around the periphery of his place, they remained untenanted until the 19th century, when King Louis-Philippe gave them statues representing provincial capitals.

Viewed clockwise starting from the Navy Ministry (Ministère de la Marine), the statues symbolize Lille , Strasbourg , Lyon , Marseille , Bordeaux , Nantes , Brest , and Rouen . Louis-Philippe also had the Luxor Obelisk , a gift from Egypt , installed in the centre and flanked by two fountains. Later, the surrounding moat was filled in. King Louis XVI was decapitated on January 21, 1793, near the pedestal that now holds the statue of Brest. Four months later the guillotine was erected near the gates of the Tuileries, and the executions continued there for nearly three years. Place de la Concorde, Paris, designed by Ange-Jacques Gabriel, 1755. A. Boisuerd/Shostal Associates The Luxor Obelisk on the Place de la Concorde, Paris.

© ArTo/Fotolia Along the first 2,500 feet (750 metres) or so of the Champs-Élysées , between Concorde and the Rond-Point des Champs-Élysées (a roundabout, or traffic circle), the avenue is bordered by gardens. The pavilions in the gardens are used as tearooms, restaurants, and theatres. The Grand Palais (Grand Palace) and the Petit Palais (Little Palace), built for the International Exposition of 1900, sit on the south side of the avenue. The buildings are still used for annual shows and for major visiting art exhibits. Britannica Lists & Quizzes Editor Picks: Exploring 10 Types of Basketball Movies From the Rond-Point up to the Arc de Triomphe, the luxurious town houses that lined the Champs-Élysées in the 19th century were later supplanted by cafés, nightclubs, luxury shops, and cinemas, but the street retained its feeling of luxury, and the tree-shaded sidewalks (as wide as a normal street) offered promenades that were the pride of Paris.

Beginning in the 1950s, however, banks, automobile showrooms, airline offices, fast-food eateries, and chain stores (many of them well-known global brands) took over much of the space. Nevertheless, the avenue remains one of the most famous thoroughfares in the world. At the top of the Champs-Élysées is a circular place from which 12 imposing avenues radiate to form a star (étoile). It was called Place de l’Étoile from 1753 until 1970, when it was renamed Place Charles de Gaulle . In the centre of the place is the Arc de Triomphe , commissioned by Napoleon I in 1806. It is twice as high and twice as wide as the Arch of Constantine , in Rome, which inspired it. Jean Chalgrin was the architect, and François Rude sculpted the frieze and the spirited group The Departure of the Volunteers of 1792 (called “La Marseillaise”).

On Armistice Day in 1920, the Unknown Soldier was buried under the centre of the arch, and each evening the flame of remembrance is rekindled by a different patriotic group. Arc de Triomphe, Paris, designed by Jean-François-Thérèse Chalgrin, … © Corbis In the 1970s the largest concentration of tall buildings in Europe arose some 2 miles (3 km) beyond the arch, on the far side of the suburban wedge of Neuilly-sur-Seine . The quarter, called La Défense, was formerly just a place on the road adjoined by the suburban municipalities of Puteaux , Courbevoie , and Nanterre . Today tall office buildings, heated and air-conditioned from a central plant, are the hub of the complex. The “ground level” between buildings is a raised platform reserved for pedestrians, with roads and parking below. There are shops, restaurants, cafés, hotels, and apartment houses. Before the project was begun, the state had already constructed at La Défense its Centre for New Industries and Technologies (Centre des Nouvelles Industries et Technologies; CNIT), a large exhibition hall.

The three municipalities later benefited by the acquisition of low-rise public housing in park settings, a large park, day-care centres for children, and new schools. Nanterre also is the site of a branch of the University of Paris. Around the Eiffel Tower Open Door policy Back within the city limits, south of Place Charles de Gaulle, is the Chaillot Palace (Palais de Chaillot). Standing on a rise on the Right Bank of the Seine, where the river begins its southwestward curve, the palace is an impressive spot from which to view what is arguably the most recognized symbol of Paris, the Eiffel Tower. The palace, which dates from the International Exposition of 1937, replaced the Trocadéro Palace, a structure left over from the 1878 International Exposition. It is made up of two separate pavilions, from each of which extends a curved wing. Several museums, including the Museum of Mankind, the Naval Museum, the Museum of French Monuments, and the Cinema Museum, are located there. Under the terrace that separates the two sections are the National Theatre of Chaillot and a small hall that serves as a motion-picture house of the national film library.

The terrace, which is lined by statues, gives a splendid view across Paris. The slope descending to the river has been made into a terraced park, the centre of which is alive with fountains, cascades, and pools. The Trocadéro Aquarium (Cinéaqua) is a few steps away in the park. From the bottom of the slope the five-arched Jena Bridge (Pont d’Iéna) leads across the river. It was built for Napoleon I in 1813 to commemorate his victory at the Battle of Jena in 1806. On the Left Bank rises the Eiffel Tower itself, an unclad metal truss tower designed by Gustave Eiffel . The tower was built for the International Exposition of 1889, against the strident opposition of national figures who thought it unsafe or ugly or both. When the exposition concession expired in 1909, the 984-foot (300-metre) tower was to have been demolished, but its value as an antenna for radio transmission saved it. Additions made for television transmission added about 79 feet (24 metres) to the height.

From the topmost of the three platforms, the view extends for more than 40 miles (64 km). Eiffel Tower, Paris, designed by Gustave Eiffel, 1887–89. AbleStock.com/Jupiterimages From the 2-acre (0.8-hectare) base of the tower, the Champ-de-Mars (Field of Mars), an immense field, stretches to the Military Academy (École Militaire), which was built from 1769 to 1772 and later became the site of the War College (École Supérieure de Guerre). The Champ-de-Mars, which originally served as the school’s parade ground, was the scene of two vast rallies during the French Revolution: the Festival of the Federation (1790) and the Festival of the Supreme Being (1794). From 1798 there were annual national expositions of crafts and manufactures, which were followed by world’s fairs between 1855 and 1900.

The Military Academy (École Militaire), built by Ange-Jacques Gabriel, on the Champ-de-Mars … © Tupungato/Fotolia Behind the Military Academy stands the headquarters of UNESCO ( United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization ). The building, erected in 1958, was designed by an international trio of architects and decorated by artists of member nations. Paris - Student Encyclopedia (Ages 11 and up) For generations of sophisticated urbanites, Paris has been the city against which all others are measured. The capital of France, Paris is sometimes characterized as the "City of Light." It is acknowledged the world over as the perfect example of cosmopolitanism-raising city life almost to an art form. In Paris a pervasive elegance threads through the city, stamping the most mundane urban scenes with a quality that can only be defined as Parisian.

This flair is exhibited in scores of familiar monuments and landmarks but equally-and more poignantly-in a thousand simple moments: the bicyclist weaving down a cobbled side street; the day’s baguette (a long, thin loaf of bread) tucked under the arm; the languor of patrons rustling newspapers at a sidewalk cafe; the clipped steps of confident, well-dressed men and women; toy sailboats rippling the waters of the basin in the Tuileries Gardens. Article Contributors

Question: On which place in Paris is the Arc de Triumphe from which several thoroughfares radiate?
Answer: PLACE CHARLES DE GAULLE