Main monuments in Paris
National Assembly
The National Assembly form, with the Senate, Parliament of the Fifth French Republic. Its members are the députés, whose primary role is to debate, amend and pass laws. The National Assembly is located in the Palais Bourbon in Paris.
The Palais Bourbon is on the Quai d'Orsay in the 7th arrondissement of Paris. It was built for Louise Françoise de Bourbon, Mademoiselle de Nantes, legitimate daughter of Louis XIV and Madame de Montespan, who had married Louis III de Bourbon-Condé, 6th Duke of Bourbon and the Prince de Condé. Built between 1722 and 1728, he became the property of the Prince of Condé in 1764, which enlarged it as a vast palace.
It was under Napoleon in the early 19th century that stood twelve columns. The triangular pediment is in the form of a horse, giving to the Legislature the flags taken at Austerlitz. It was modified under the July Monarchy in France between Liberty and Public Order. At the foot of the stairs, four statues are erected, representing: Maximilien de Sully, Jean-Baptiste Colbert, Henri François d’Aguesseau and Michel de l'Hospital.
National Library of France
National Library of France (BNF) contains the royal collections since late Middle Ages. Its activities are spread over seven sites, the main one being the library François Mitterrand site, situated in the 13th arrondissement of Paris, on the left bank of the Seine.
It is characterized by four corner towers of 79 meters each corresponding symbolically to four open books:
Palais Brongniart – (former Palais de la Bourse)
The Palais Brongniart is a building of Corinthian style. It was the headquarters of Paris Stock Exchange until 1987 and is in the second arrondissement of Paris. Its construction began in 1807 under Napoleon, by Alexandre Théodore Brongniart, and symbolizes the power of French commerce. However, the architect does not have the opportunity to see his work completed, dying prematurely in June 6th, 1813.
Fontaine wrote in an editorial in his journal:
"Death of the architect of the Bourse building: Brongniart architect responsible for building the edifice of Bourse has just died. He leaves to complete one of the finest and most important buildings of this kingdom. "(June 8, 1813)
Champs Elysées – Triumph Arch
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Pere Lachaise Cemetery
The Pere Lachaise Cemetery is the largest cemetery in Paris, but also one of the most famous in the world. Located in the 20th arrondissement, it attracts hundreds of thousands of visitors every year on the graves of many famous people. It is also has three World War I memorials.
Field-called successively Champ-l’Evêque, Mont-aux-Vignes then Mont-Louis, the land was occupied in the 17th century by François d'Aix de La Chaise, said Father La Chaise, confessor of King Louis XIV. After Jesuit father's death, his brother the Comte de La Chaise gave many parties there, which contributed to its expansion and beautification. At that time, a law of 1765 forbade the cemeteries in town. Napoleon Bonaparte, then consul, thereafter decreed that "every citizen has the right to be buried regardless of race or religion." Alexandre Théodore Brongniart was responsible for the design of the cemetery, which opened in 1804.
Among those buried: Guillaume Apollinaire, Francois Arago, Honore de Balzac, Henri Barbusse, Alexandre Théodore Brongniart, Maria Callas, Frédéric Chopin, Alphonse Daudet, Eugene Delacroix, Jean de la Fontaine, Paul Eluard, Felix Faure, Molière Yves Montand, Jim Morrison, Jean Moulin, Edith Piaf, Marcel Proust, Marie Trintignant, Oscar Wilde.
Disneyland Paris
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Invalids
The Hotel National des Invalides is a complex of buildings in the 7th arrondissement of Paris. It was built under Louis XIV in 1677 to house invalids of his armies. Today, it includes museums and monuments and , a hospital and a retirement home for war veterans. Museums: the Army Museum, the Military Museum of the army of France, the Musée des Plans-Reliefs and the Museum of Contemporary History. Les Invalides also host the graves of several war heroes of France. Napoleon was buried there on December 15, 1840. His ashes were placed in a red quartzite sarcophagus of Finland, based on a black marble base from Sainte-Luce, his coffin being placed in an open circular crypt made in the center of the Saint-Louis, under the dome.
La Défense
La Défense is the first European business district with 2,500 companies and 180,000 employees in 71 towers. Built in the 1960s, the area is easily identifiable thanks to its large buildings. It also houses the Quatre Temps shopping center. It covers 160 hectares and is divided into four main areas (North Ark, South Ark, North Esplanade and South Esplanade).
Louvre
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Madeleine
The Church of the Madeleine is a Roman Catholic Church located in the 8th arrondissement of Paris. It was created in 85 years from 1763, as a temple to the glory of Napoleon's army. The building has a length of 108 meters, a width of 43 meters, a height of 30 meters. It is surrounded by 52 Corinthian columns. South of the church is the Place de la Concorde, East is the Place Vendome, and west is St. Augustine Church.
Montmartre
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Moulin Rouge
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Notre Dame
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Opéra – Palais Garnier
The Palais Garnier was built from 1861 to 1875 for the Paris Opera. It was originally called "Salle des Capucines" because of its location on the Boulevard des Capucines in the 9th arrondissement of Paris. It was soon known as "Palais Garnier" in memory of his architect Charles Garnier. The palace was the residence of the Paris Opera until 1989, when the Bastille Opera House was built. Today, the Paris Opera Palais Garnier is mainly used for ballet.
The Palais Garnier is "probably the most famous opera in the world, a symbol of Paris, as Notre Dame, the Louvre, or the Basilica of the Sacred Heart" (Hanser). It was made famous in the novel The phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux in 1911, then the musical in 1986.
Palais Royal
The Palais-Royal, originally called the Palais-Cardinal, is a palace located in the 1st arrondissement of Paris, opposite the north wing of the Louvre. And its famous forecourt (cour d'honneur) screened with columns and, since 1986 containing Daniel Buren's site-specific Artpiece, Les Deux Plateaux, known as The Columns Buren.
Panthéon
The Pantheon is a building in the Latin Quarter in Paris. It was originally built as a church to house the reliquary of St. Genevieve, but after many changes, it is now hosting a secular mausoleum the ashes of prominent French citizens. Built in the 18th century by Jacques-Germain Soufflot, the Pantheon is a monument of neo-classical style, with a facade similar to the Pantheon in Rome.
In 2012, there were 75 persons buried in the Pantheon in Paris, including Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Voltaire and Jacques-Germain Soufflot, Jean Moulin, Andre Malraux, Jean Monnet, Pierre Curie, Victor Hugo, Alexandre Dumas, Emile Zola, Jean Jaures . Marie Curie is the only woman admitted to the Pantheon.
Place de la Bastille
Place de la Bastille in Paris is a plaza where stood the old fortress destroyed between 14 July 1789 and July 14, 1790 during the French Revolution. There is no vestige remains.
A guillotine was installed on the square until 1808 when Napoleon decided to build a fountain in the shape of an elephant carrying Howdah, to remind the Arc de Triomphe in the west of Paris. But this monument did not stay long, and Louis Philippe erected the current column of July, commemorating the events of the July Revolution (1830).
The plaza also hosts a part of the Canal Saint Martin and the Opera Bastille. It is often the scene of major public events and concerts.
Place de la Concorde
The Place de la Concorde is the largest square in Paris located between the Champs Elysees and the Tuileries Gardens, in the 8th arrondissement of Paris. Hotel de Crillon, the Hotel de la Marine, two fountains and in the center, a 22 meter high obelisk are on this square.
During the French Revolution, named it was one of the places of large gatherings. There was a guillotine as well. During this period of terror between 1792 and 1793, 2,498 people were guillotined in Paris with 1,119 on this site, including Louis XVI, Marie Antoinette, Charlotte Corday, Philippe d'Orleans, Danton, Lavoisier and Malesherbes. At the end of the Terror, the Directory renamed this place as a Place de la Concorde. In 1836, Louis Philippe decided to erect an obelisk offered by the vice-King of Egypt, Mehemet Ali. Thus, he wishes that this wouldn’t "recall any political event."
Sacré Cœur
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Stade de France
The stadium of France is the largest French stadium to accommodate up to 81,338 seats for football or rugby. It is located in the north of Paris, in the district of La Plaine Saint-Denis. It was built by Michel Macary, Aymeric Zublena, Michel Regembal and Claude Costantini, and opened in 1998. The roof is the most impressive structure, with its elliptical shape of 13 000 tonnes, 46 meters high.
The Stade de France hosts many sporting events (World Cup soccer, rugby world cup), but also of great shows (Ben-Hur) and concerts (Rolling Stones, Johnny Halliday, Celine Dion, Tina Turner, Police, Muse, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Coldplay, Lady Gaga, Madonna)
Quartier latin – parc du Luxembourg
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Tour Eiffel
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