Arc de Triomphe

For the horse race in Paris, see Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe. For other uses, see Arch of Triumph (disambiguation).
Not to be confused with the Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel, which stands west of the Louvre Palace.

Arc de Triomphe
Map
Alternative namesArc de Triomphe de l'Étoile
General information
TypeTriumphal arch
Architectural styleNeoclassicism
LocationPlace Charles de Gaulle (formerly Place de l'Étoile)
Coordinates48°52′25.6″N 2°17′42.1″E / 48.873778°N 2.295028°E / 48.873778; 2.295028
Construction started15 August 1806[1]
Inaugurated29 July 1836[2]
Height50 m (164 ft)
Dimensions
Other dimensionsWide: 45 m (148 ft)
Deep: 22 m (72 ft)
Design and construction
Architect(s)Jean Chalgrin
Louis-Étienne Héricart de Thury

The Arc de Triomphe de l'Étoile,[a] often called simply the Arc de Triomphe, is one of the most famous monuments in Paris, France, standing at the western end of the Champs-Élysées at the centre of Place Charles de Gaulle, formerly named Place de l'Étoile—the étoile or "star" of the juncture formed by its twelve radiating avenues. The location of the arc and the plaza is shared between three arrondissements, 16th (south and west), 17th (north), and 8th (east). The Arc de Triomphe honours those who fought and died for France in the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, with the names of all French victories and generals inscribed on its inner and outer surfaces. Beneath its vault lies the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier from World War I.

The central cohesive element of the Axe historique (historic axis, a sequence of monuments and grand thoroughfares on a route running from the courtyard of the Louvre to the Grande Arche de la Défense), the Arc de Triomphe was designed by Jean Chalgrin in 1806; its iconographic programme pits heroically nude French youths against bearded Germanic warriors in chain mail. It set the tone for public monuments with triumphant patriotic messages. Inspired by the Arch of Titus in Rome, Italy, the Arc de Triomphe has an overall height of 50 m (164 ft), width of 45 m (148 ft) and depth of 22 m (72 ft), while its large vault is 29.19 m (95.8 ft) high and 14.62 m (48.0 ft) wide. The smaller transverse vaults are 18.68 m (61.3 ft) high and 8.44 m (27.7 ft) wide.

Paris's Arc de Triomphe was the tallest triumphal arch until the completion of the Monumento a la Revolución in Mexico City in 1938, which is 67 m (220 ft) high. The Arch of Triumph in Pyongyang, completed in 1982, is modeled on the Arc de Triomphe and is slightly taller at 60 m (197 ft). The Grande Arche in La Défense near Paris is 110 metres high, and, if considered to be a triumphal arch, is the world's tallest.[6]

  1. ^ Raymond, Gino (30 October 2008). Historical dictionary of France. Scarecrow Press. p. 9. ISBN 978-0-8108-5095-8. Archived from the original on 12 January 2023. Retrieved 28 July 2011.
  2. ^ Fleischmann, Hector (1914). An unknown son of Napoleon. John Lane company. p. 204. Retrieved 28 July 2011.
  3. ^ "Arc de Triomphe". Lexico UK English Dictionary. Oxford University Press. Archived from the original on 18 August 2020.
  4. ^ "Arc de Triomphe". Collins English Dictionary. HarperCollins. Archived from the original on 22 August 2019. Retrieved 22 August 2019.
  5. ^ "arc de triomphe". Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary. Merriam-Webster. Retrieved 22 August 2019.
  6. ^ "Arc de Triomphe facts". Paris Digest. 2018. Archived from the original on 7 September 2018. Retrieved 6 September 2018.


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