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Place Vendome Paris
A vast architectural complex dating from the time of Louis XIV, its name derives from the fact that the residence of the Duke of Vendome was here. It was created between 1687 and 1720 as a setting for the equestrian statue by Girardon dedicated to Louis XIV and destroyed during the Revolution. The square, octagonal in form, simple and austere, is surrounded by buildings which have large arcades on the ground floor and skilfully distributed pediments higher up, crowned on the roofs by the dormer windows typical of Paris. Today at no. 15 is the famous Hotel Ritz and at no. 12 the house where Chopin died in 1849. In the centre of the square is the column erected by Gondouin and Lepere between 1806 and 1810 in honour of Napoleon I. Inspired by the Column of Trajan in Rome,. it is 145 feet high, and a round its shaft is a spiralling series of bronze bas reliefs, cast from the 1200 cannon captured at Austerlitz. On the top of the column, Chaudet erected a statue of the Emperor dressed as Caesar, but it was destroyed in 1814 and replaced with a statue of Henri IV. It was replaced in 1863, this time in the military dress of the Little Corporal, but eight years later, at the time of the Commune, it was once more pulled down. It was finally replaced three years later by a copy of the original by Chaudet.
From Place Vendome, we walk along Rue cle la Paix, which was previously called Rue Napoleon. Today it is one of the most splendid streets in the city, lined by famous and expensive shops: at no. 13 is the jeweller Cartier. At the end of the street on the right we reach the Avenue de I'Opera, which was opened at the time of the Second Empire. |
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