Description of the attraction
The Arc de Triomphe rises on the Place Charles de Gaulle (formerly it was called the Place of the Stars). The monument is located exactly on a straight line connecting two other famous arches of Paris - on the Place de la Carousel near the Louvre and the Grand Arch of the La Defense district.
The initiative to create the Arc de Triomphe in honor of the victories of the Grand Army belongs to Napoleon. He ordered to build the arch immediately after the victory at Austerlitz (1806). The huge structure (height - almost 50 meters, width - 45) was built slowly. In 1811, the architect Chalgren died, and Napoleon himself did not live to see the end of construction. The work was completed only in 1836 under the Emperor Louis Philippe.
The construction turned out to be extremely impressive. The arch is decorated with four sculptural groups, symbolizing the outstanding deeds of France. On special boards the names of 128 battles that brought victory to the republican and imperial armies are listed. The names of 558 prominent French generals are listed here. The arch is surrounded by hundreds of granite pedestals connected by cast-iron chains - according to the number of the heroic "hundred days" of Napoleon. Inside there is a museum dedicated to the history of the construction of the arch.
In December 1840, a funeral cortege with the ashes of Napoleon Bonaparte, brought from the island of St. Helena, solemnly moved under its arches. In the following decades, a state funeral ceremony with a stop under the arches of the Arc de Triomphe was awarded to Victor Hugo, Lazare Carnot, Marshals Foch and Joffre, heroes of the Liberation General Leclerc and Marshal de Lattre de Tassigny.
Since 1921, a memorial fire has been burning under the arches at the grave of the Unknown Soldier who died in the First World War. The Paris Memorial Flame was the first eternal flame in Western Europe since the Roman emperor Theodosius extinguished the fire of Vesta in 394.
The façade of the Arc de Triomphe overlooks the Champs Elysees. On Bastille Day, July 14, an impressive military parade takes place on the Champs Elysees - armored units pass against the background of the arch, combat aircraft fly over it, the contrails of which are painted in the colors of the French flag.
Description added:
i 2012-02-05
Towering in the center of the Star Square, the Arc de Triomphe is the largest in the world, and no tyrant has surpassed it since. The building by Jean François Chalgrin is the same official symbol of the city as the Eiffel Tower or Notre Dame.
To create a monument, a cat
Show full text The Arc de Triomphe (Arc de Triomphe), towering in the center of the Plaza of the Stars, is the largest in the world, and no tyrant has surpassed it since. The building of Jean François Chalgrin is the same official symbol of the city as the Eiffel Tower or Notre Dame.
The creation of the monument, which, according to Napoleon's plan, was to symbolize the strength of the imperial army and power, took more than 10 million francs and 30 years of work: the construction was completed only in 1836, when the customer was already lying under a heavy stone on St. Helena. But in 1840, the funeral chariot with the ashes of Napoleon passed here to the place of his last rest in the Cathedral of the House of Invalids.
In 1920, under the Arc de Triomphe, the Eternal Flame was lit in memory of the unknown soldier who died during the First World War. In 1970, after the death of General de Gaulle, the square received a double name: place Charles de Gaulle - Etoile.
It is worth going around the arch in a circle, fighting off the sellers of the worst baked chestnuts in Paris. From the outside, it is decorated with sculptures, from the inside, the names of the places of battles and the names of generals are engraved. The two main sculptural groups facing the center are the famous Marseillaise by Ruda (The departure of the volunteers in 1792 and the underrated but amusing Triumph of 1810 by Corto with Napoleon in the center. The bas-reliefs on the sides of the arch are scenes of the most triumphant victories of the imperial army. Ours are beaten on the right, from the side of Wagram Street (victory at Austerlitz).
It is worth going under the arch (preferably along the numerous underground passages) just for the sake of a glance - back and forth. Back towards the Louvre and the Carousel arch, forward towards the Grande Arche de la Défense, in order to make sure that the French city planners did not deceive you. If you are not lazy, you can climb the arch. A good panorama of the city opens from a height of 50 meters, and the easiest way to appreciate the impeccable geometry of the Triumphal Way is from here.
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