The Place Vendome looks like an open precious casket from above. Octagonal in layout, decorated in the middle of the column, it impresses with thoughtful symmetry and luxurious style of the mansions around. And this magnificence is understandable. After all, they built the square on the orders of the connoisseur of all the luxuries of the “King-sun” Louis the Fourteenth. The pillar in the middle was conceived to perpetuate the monarch himself, whose sculpture depicted him proudly riding a horse and was supposed to testify to the numerous victories of the sovereign. But this attraction did not stand the test of time, or rather, the revolution. It was demolished along with the Bastille. But the square itself remained. But who is now depicted in the center? We will talk about this in our article.
Place Vendome in Paris: Address
Do not think that a haphazard walk through the capital of France itself will lead you to this attraction of the city. Despite the fact that Place Vendome is located in the very center of Paris, in the first district, it is not easy to find. It is as if hidden, and among the dense city buildings stands apart. Through it passes only one large street - Rue de la Paix (Mira). If you look for Place Vendome on the tourist map of Paris, then you need to focus on the Opera Garnier. This attraction is very close. By the way, if you prefer to move around the city quickly and not depend on eternal traffic jams, then use the subway. Exit should be at the station "Opera". Lines 3, 7 and 8 of the Paris subway pass through it. If branch No. 1 is closer to you, then you should leave at the Tuileries station. Next you need to walk north. You can come to the square and from the church of San Madeleine. If you are on the streets of St. Ann and Saint-Roche (they are easy to recognize by the abundance of Japanese restaurants and eateries), move to the west.
Background
Not even all Parisians know that Place Vendôme owes its existence to banal land speculation. At the end of the 17th century, a group of financiers, including Arduen-Mansart, also bought the residence of the Duke of Vendome, one of the sons of Henry IV, where he lived with his beloved Gabriel d'Estre. Buyers planned to demolish buildings on the entire area of the quadrangular square, completely convert it, and then resell the land for their own benefit. But this area of Paris was for some reason unclaimed, and there were no buyers. And the money spent somehow had to be returned. The matter was decided by a bribe given to the Superintendent of Royal Residences by the name of Louvois. He managed to persuade the king to acquire a land plot in order to perpetuate his victories with an equestrian monument. And the frame of the great monarch was to become a new square. The "Sun King" has long been haunted by the laurels of his ancestor, Henry IV, who did a lot to equip Paris. And then there was a wonderful opportunity to immortalize a loved one in bronze. Therefore, money from the royal treasury migrated into the pockets of financiers. Construction has begun.
Place Vendome in Paris: history, description
The king himself benefited from this land fraud. In 1698, he sold the land to the city authorities, but under the condition that Arduen-Mansard would be engaged in the improvement of the square, and that the center of this building would be decorated with an equestrian monument to the monarch. Moreover, the king wanted to see the result of work in a year. Therefore, the Place Vendome (in those days it bore the name of Louis the Great) was built in an unprecedentedly short time. To satisfy the whim of the monarch, the architect first of all erected a monument. And the houses that served him as the background had only facades by 1699. Everything else was completed quite a long time - until 1720. But the main thing was achieved. A quadrangular parade ground with dark extremities was replaced by a graceful octagon. The approach of the square according to the layout to the circle shifted the viewer's attention to the center, where the equestrian statue towered. The softening of sharp corners gave the whole complex elegance and sophistication.
Modern view of the square
Alas, we will no longer see the statue of the “Sun King”, who in ancient robes proudly mounted a horse. It was swept by revolutionary winds as a symbol of absolute monarchy. Only a fragment of the monarch’s left leg miraculously survived and is now exhibited in the Louvre. However, the center of the square did not remain empty for long. In honor of Napoleon's victory near Austerlitz, a column was erected there, a copy of Trajan in Rome. It was cast from melted military trophies - Austrian and Russian cannons. At the top of the column was a statue of Napoleon Bonaparte. During the Restoration, it was demolished and the royal oriflamme with lilies installed. But later, the monument to the great commander was restored. Now the work of the sculptor Surre decorates the top of the column. The organic ensemble, which is the Place Vendôme in Paris, is surprising. The photo shows how the surrounding houses of the same type with colonnades are like a frame of a giant pillar with a statue of the emperor.
sights
It would seem, except for the monument to Napoleon, the Place Vendome is of no interest to tourists. The sights of this corner of Paris, meanwhile, are in the surrounding houses. At number 11 was the house of Poisson. In order not to fall into the Bastille, this rich man handed over his luxurious mansion to the state, and the Ministry of Chancellery is now located there. The facade of the building is decorated with a marble plate, which is a standard meter, which was introduced as a measure of length in 1795. House number 12 became the death site of Frederic Chopin. On the Place Vendome there is also the notorious Ritz Hotel, where Charlie Chaplin, Coco Chanel, Ernest Hemingway, Scott Fitzgerald, Marcel Proust and other celebrities lived. It was from this hotel that Dodi al-Fayed's car with Princess Diana left on the day of their tragic death.
Connection with Russia
Tourists from the Russian Federation will be especially interested in the Place Vendome. At number 12, even before the apartments in the house began to be rented out, the Russian diplomatic mission was located. Buildings 17 and 19 were owned by a family of French bankers Crozet. One of them sold a collection of paintings by Rubens, Rembrandt and Titian to Catherine II. So these paintings got to the Hermitage.