Description of the attraction
The famous Sorbonne, the center of the University of Paris and a remarkable architectural monument, is located in the Latin Quarter. The university is almost 800 years old - it is the oldest higher educational institution in Europe.
In 1215, the ecclesiastical colleges of the left bank of the Seine merged into the general University of Paris. Forty years later, on the advice of his confessor Robert de Sorbon, King Louis IX the Saint founded the Theological College Sorbonne for children from poor families. This name was gradually transferred to the entire university.
In the 17th century, Cardinal Richelieu, who himself studied at the Sorbonne, rebuilt the buildings of the university. Instead of Gothic buildings, a powerful ensemble in the style of classicism appeared. Its center was the Church of St. Ursula - one of the first domed buildings in Paris. It is here that the tomb of Richelieu is located.
During the revolution, the Sorbonne was dissolved, the church turned into a temple of Reason. Napoleon founded the Imperial University here in 1806 with five faculties - Science, Philology, Theological, Law and Medicine. Outstanding scientists taught here - Gay-Lussac, Lavoisier, Pasteur, and the Curies. Later, Marina Tsvetaeva, Nikolai Gumilyov, Maximilan Voloshin studied at the Sorbonne.
In the middle of the 19th century, the complex of buildings of the university underwent another large-scale reconstruction - the previous buildings, except for the church, were demolished and by 1901 a new building was built.
In 1968, Sorbonne students became the main driving force behind the May Revolution, which led to a massive reform of the entire French higher education system. The giant university was divided into 13 independent universities, included in three Academies. Four of them are located today in the historic buildings of the Sorbonne in the Latin Quarter.
Time played a strange joke with the Sorbonne: the university, which was born as a school of theology, had already become a center of anti-clerical thought by the middle of the 19th century. Created by the king, it was the main reason for the resignation of the recognized leader of the nation, General de Gaulle. But at all times he remained the pride and glory of France.
On a note
- Location: 1, rue Victor Cousin, Paris
- Nearest metro station: "La Sorbonne" line M10.
- Official website:
