Les Invalids

Sunday, June 14, 2009

Louis XIV initiated the project in 1670, as a home and hospital for aged and unwell soldiers. The architect of Les Invalids was Libéral Bruant. By the time the enlarged project was completed in 1676, the river front measured 196 meters and the complex had fifteen courtyards, the largest being the cour d'honneur ("court of honor") for military parades.
Soon after a veterans’ chapel was built by Jules Hardouin Mansart and was finished in 1679. The chapel is known as Eglise Saint-Louis des Invalids.
Shortly after the veterans' chapel was completed, Louis XIV had Mansart construct a separate private royal chapel, often referred to as the Église du Dôme from its most striking feature. Inspired by St. Peter's Basilica in Rome, it is one of the triumphs of French Baroque architecture. The domed chapel is centrally placed to dominate the court of honor. It was finished in 1708. The ashes of the greatest French military genius, Napoleon, rest under the dome of Les Invalides and attract many visitors to Paris.

By: Whitney Ebert