Who's buried in Napolean's Tomb?
Trip Start
Jun 27, 2009
1
15
17
Trip End
Jul 13, 2009
Paris,
Île-de-France,
France
Saturday, July 11, 2009
Louis XIV,The Sun King, ruled for 72 years, from age 5 to 77. He didn't need a PR agent -- he WAS one. If ever there was a man who epitomized the pomp and glory of France, Louis XIV would win with no contest. In 1670, Louis decided to create a place to house and care for the veterans of his wars and the Hotel de Invalides was born. It is classical in style, with a 643 foot facade that, when approached from the equally imposing Pont Alexandre III bridge, gives one the sense of its grandeur and importance. Its gilded dome rises into the sky. This dome, inspired by St. Peter's Basilica in Rome, is part of the Église du Dôm, or royal chapel.
Part of Les Invalides is still used as a hospital to this day
Les Invalides
. The rest is an Army Museum housing, among other things, a Renault tank, a dragon mask, the sword and armor of Francois I and, believe it or not, Napoleon's stuffed horse,Vizir. Under the dome, are tombs of some famous French generals and Napoleon's brother. The highlight, though, is the tomb of Napoleon Bonaparte. He is buried in his favorite uniform and he rests in five successive coffins - made of tin,mahogany, lead,lead again and ebony. These are within a sarcophagus made of red quartzite and resting on a green granite base. His 8 famous victories are inscribed on the floor around the tomb.He is guarded by 12 statues. Nearby, under a statue of Napoleon in his royal robes, lies his son, Napoleon II. Maybe I'm jaded, but I couldn't help but think it was a bit TOO much. After all, George Washington is buried in Mount Vernon, in a gated tomb --simple, really, considering his importance to our country. Jefferson has a small obelisk. I'll leave it to you to decide.
After our visit here (we walked through the WWI and WW2 display), we walked back to the Pont Alexandre Bridge and headed for the Place de la Concorde. Change the traffic noise to crowd noise and you can get a sense of the place where people went to witness the beheadings during the French Revolution
Doors
. Today, a 3,000 year old Egyptian gold capped obelisk stands in the center. Normally, you can take a close up look at it, but with Bastille Day looming, there was a temporary stadium erected, which was a shame, as it blocked the famous view of the Champs- Elysses and the Arc de Triomphe at one end, and the Louvre at the other. We took a photo and then turned into the Tuileries Gardens, where we had lunch. After lunch, we took the walk of the Rive Droit recommended in our Fodor's guide and went and saw the Opera House. The walk took us back to the Place de la Concorde, so we took the Metro up a few stops to the Arc de Triomphe.The Arc wasn't built by Loius XIV, but by Napoleon as a symbol of his military might. No one can say that Napoleon had a self esteem problem. It was actually finished by Loius Phillipe. There is a nice view from the top, but we didn't do it for several reasons -1) You had to pay and we had already seen some nice views, 2) there was a long line and 3) we were tired of climbing stairs. There is a neat statue on one pillar called La Marsailles, which has the winged figure of Liberty calling on the French to defend nation. There is also a tomb of the Unknown Soldier and an eternal flame under the Arc. We then walked down the famous Champs-Elysses. I'll tell you Elizabeth's opinion of it. "It is just like New York City." Unfortunately, she is right. Walking down the Champs-Elysses on a July Saturday afternoon is like walking down 5th Avenue in NYC.
We were tired at this point and our feet hurt, so we went back to the hotel for dinner.
Comments
geography question, kind of
What's the difference between le Rive Droit and le Rive Gauche? As I recall, the Left Bank is/was kind of bohemian and artsy. What does that make the other side? Is it still that way, or did you not get to see it at all?
Quite the amazing tour you have had, and great photos to keep with your memories.
Geography
Rive Droit=Right Bank
Rive Gauche= Left Bank
The left bank used to be bohemian, the right culture and sophistication. Now it is more the Left bank is more educational, then right more commercial.