About the Louis XIV: Paris of the Sun King Walk in Paris
Many think Louis XIV, known as the Sun King, completely abandoned Paris for Versailles and thus had little impact on the capital and its surroundings. However, during his 72-year reign (one of the longest in French history), he imposed a distinct mark on the art and architecture of the city. Even today, after centuries of modernization and reworking of the city plan, Paris still bears the imprint of Louis XIV. On this three-hour walking seminar, led by a historian, We will explore this influence visiting the key sites he impacted by touring the exteriors of Louvre, Place Vendome and finally Les Invalides.
We will begin our walk by discussing with the Louvre. First built as a fortified castle at the end of the 12th century, the Louvre was then converted into a royal residence, altered slightly to suit the luxurious tastes of each incumbent monarch. Louis XIV's Minister for the Arts, Jean-Baptiste Colbert, saw the remodelling of the Louvre as a way to reassert the monarchy's presence i
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Many think Louis XIV, known as the Sun King, completely abandoned Paris for Versailles and thus had little impact on the capital and its surroundings. However, during his 72-year reign (one of the longest in French history), he imposed a distinct mark on the art and architecture of the city. Even today, after centuries of modernization and reworking of the city plan, Paris still bears the imprint of Louis XIV. On this three-hour walking seminar, led by a historian, We will explore this influence visiting the key sites he impacted by touring the exteriors of Louvre, Place Vendome and finally Les Invalides.
We will begin our walk by discussing with the Louvre. First built as a fortified castle at the end of the 12th century, the Louvre was then converted into a royal residence, altered slightly to suit the luxurious tastes of each incumbent monarch. Louis XIV's Minister for the Arts, Jean-Baptiste Colbert, saw the remodelling of the Louvre as a way to reassert the monarchy's presence in the capital. From this came the great Colonnade, an affirmation of the Sun-King's newly acquired power and a future reference for many of France's architects, including Garnier and Soufflot.
Passing by I.M. Pei's 1989 Glass Pyramid and Napoleon I's 1806 Triumphal Arch, we'll stop in the Tuilerie gardens. A trademark layout of André Le Nôtre, Louis' royal landscape architect, the Tuileries are a prime example of the Classical "French garden." A concept created largely by Le Nôtre, the French Garden places importance on the manipulation of space rather than horticulture, with the aim of projecting an impression of power, majesty, and prestige.
We'll continue on to the Place Vendôme, first named "Place Louis Le Grand." Designed by Jules Hardouin-Mansart, one of the main architects of Versailles, the Place was a lavish homage to the King, today it's a mecca of Parisian jewelers. The first of the city's "royal squares", designed solely to surround a royal statue, the Vendôme became an important model for the many squares that followed in the 17th and 18th centuries.
After passing through the 18th century Place de la Concorde, modeled after the Place Vendôme, we'll hop on the metro for a quick ride to the Invalides. First built by Louis XIV (and later refashioned at the talented hands of Jules Mansart) as a hospital and accommodation for the wounded veterans who fought in his many foreign campaigns, the building is still today home to those wounded in battle. The building's golden-domed majesty was later appropriated by another 'royal,' becoming the site of Napoleon's tomb in 1840.
