The document provides details about the history and sights of Montmartre in Paris, France. It describes how Montmartre was originally a small farming village that became a center for artists in the late 19th century. It summarizes the construction of the Sacré-Coeur Basilica between 1876-1919 to fulfill a pledge to build a church if Paris was spared from war. Finally, it lists many famous artists and performers who lived and worked in Montmartre, as well as current attractions, including the Moulin de la Galette, Dalí and Picasso museums, and streets and neighborhoods of historical significance.

1. PARIS
Montmartre
Above all, Montmartre is known for its many artists who have been omnipresent since 1880. The name
Montmartre is said to be derived from either Mount of Martyrs or from Mount of Mars. Until 1873, when the
Sacré-Coeur was built on top of the hill, Montmartre was a small village, inhabited by a mostly farming
community.
The Basilica Project
The project to build the Sacré-Coeur Basilica (Basilica of the Sacred Heart) was initiated by a group of
influential people. Their reasons to build this monument was two-fold:
King Louis IX
they had pledged to build a church if Paris escaped unscathed from the war with the Prussians and they saw
the defeat of the French at the hands of the Prussian army in 1870 as a moral condemnation of the sins of
Paris.
The project was authorized by the National Assembly in 1873, and a competition was organized. The goal
was to build an imposing basilica true to Christian traditions.
The Building
The winner of the competition was Paul Abadie, who had already restored two cathedrals in France. He
designed an immense basilica in a Roman-Byzantyne style. This architectural style stands in sharp contrast
with other contemporary buildings in France,
View from the Parc des Buttes-Chaumont which were mostly built in a Romanesque style.
Construction of the Basilica started in 1876 with Abadie as the lead architect. When Paul Abadie died in
1884, he was succeeded by Lucien Magne, who added an 83 meter (272 ft) tall clock tower. The Savoyarde
clock installed here is one of the world's largest.
Due to its location on the Montmartre hill, the basilica towers over the city; its highest point is even higher
than the top of the Eiffel Tower.

2. White Stones
The Sacré-Coeur Basilica has managed to keep its beaming white color even in the polluted air of a big city
like Paris. This can be attributed to the Château-Landon stones which were used for the construction of the
Sacré-Coeur. When it rains, the stones react to the water and secrete calcite, which acts like a bleacher.
Montmartre artists
In the mid-19th century, artists such as Johan Jongkind and Camille Pissarro came to inhabit Montmartre.
But only at the end of the century did the district become the principal artistic center of Paris. A restaurant
opened near the old windmill near the top, the Moulin de la Galette.
Artists' associations such as Les Nabis and the Incoherents were formed and individuals including Vincent
van Gogh, Pierre Brissaud, Alfred Jarry, Gen Paul, Jacques Villon, Raymond Duchamp-Villon, Henri
Matisse, André Derain, Suzanne Valadon, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Edgar Degas, Maurice Utrillo, Henri de
Toulouse-Lautrec, Théophile Steinlen, and African-American expatriates such as Langston Hughes worked
in Montmartre and drew some of their inspiration from the area.
Pablo Picasso, Amedeo Modigliani, and other impoverished artists lived and worked in a commune, a
building called Le Bateau-Lavoir, during the years 1904–1909. Composers, including Satie (who was a
pianist at Le Chat Noir), also lived in the area.
Éric Alfred Leslie Satie (1866 – 1925) was a French composer and pianist. Satie was a colourful figure in
the early 20th century Parisian avant-garde. His work was a precursor to later artistic movements such as
minimalism, repetitive music, and the Theatre of the Absurd. An eccentric,Satie was introduced as a
"gymnopedist" in 1887, shortly before writing his most famous compositions, the Gymnopédies. In addition
to his body of music, Satie also left a remarkable set of writings, having contributed work for a range of
publications, from the dadaist 391 to the American culture chronicle Vanity Fair. After years of heavy
drinking (including consumption of absinthe),Satie died on 1 July 1925 from cirrhosis of the liver. He is
buried in the cemetery in Arcueil. There is a tiny stone monument designating a grassy area in front of an
apartment building – 'Parc Erik Satie'. Over the course of his 27 years in residence at Arcueil, no one had
ever visited his room.
Montmartre sights
The Place du Tertre, known for the artists who paint tourists for pleasure (and also money)

3. The Espace Dali, a museum dedicated to several of the surrealist's masterpieces
Salvador Domingo Felipe Jacinto Dalí i Domènech, 1st Marqués de Dalí de Pubol ( 1904 – 1989),
known as Salvador Dalí was a prominent Spanish surrealist painter born in Figueres, Spain. Dalí was a
skilled draftsman, best known for the striking and bizarre images in his surrealist work. His painterly skills
are often attributed to the influence of Renaissance masters.His best-known work, The Persistence of
Memory, was completed in 1931. Dalí's expansive artistic repertoire included film, sculpture, and
photography, in collaboration with a range of artists in a variety of media. Dalí was expelled from the
Academia in 1926, shortly before his final exams when he was accused of starting an unrest. Dalí grew a
flamboyant moustache, influenced by 17th-century Spanish master painter Diego Velázquez. The moustache
became an iconic trademark of his appearance for the rest of his life.
the Dalida house in rue d'Orchampt
She died at her Montmartre mansion at "11bis Rue d'Orchampt".
Dalida (1933 – 1987), born with the Italian name Iolanda Cristina Gigliotti, was a famous singer and
actress born in Egypt to Italian parents but naturalised French. She spent her early years in Egypt amongst
the Italian Egyptian community, but she lived most of her adult life in France. She received 55 gold records
and was the first singer to receive a diamond disc. Dalida performed and recorded in more than 10 languages
including: French, Arabic, Italian, Greek, German, English, Japanese, Hebrew, Dutch and Spanish. In 1954,
at the age of 20, Dalida competed in and won the Miss Egypt pageant, and was crowned Miss Egypt. Despite
enormous career success, Dalida’s private life was marred by a series of failed relationships and personal
problems. In 1967, Dalida took part to the San Remo Festival with her new lover, an Italian singer,
songwriter and actor Luigi Tenco. Tenco allegedly committed suicide after learning that his song had been
eliminated from the final competition. Tenco was found in his hotel room with a bullet wound in his left
temple and a note announcing that his gesture was against the jury and public's choices during the
competition. It was Dalida who discovered his body. One month later, Dalida attempted to commit suicide
by drug overdose at the Prince of Wales hotel in Paris. She spent 5 days in a coma and several months
convalescing, only going back to the stage the following October. In December 1967, just after her first
suicide attempt, she became pregnant by an 18-year-old Italian student, Lucio. She decided to abort but the
surgery left her infertile. In September 1970, her pygmalion, lover from 1956 to 1961 and former husband
Lucien Morisse, with whom she was still on very good terms, committed suicide by shooting himself in the

4. head. In July 1983, her lover from 1972 to 1981, Richard Chanfray, committed suicide by inhaling the
exhaust gas of his Renault R25 car. On Saturday, 2 May 1987, Dalida decided to end her life with an
overdose of barbiturates. At the time of her death, Dalida was preparing a new single with two songs. She
left a suicide note which read "La vie m'est insupportable... Pardonnez-moi." ("Life is unbearable for me...
Forgive me.")
The place Pigalle and the Moulin Rouge in the south. Pigalle is a well known spot for tourists who want to
experience "Paris by night".
Edith Piaf
After her birth, Édith's parents soon abandoned her, and she lived for a short time with her maternal
grandmother, Emma (Aïcha). Before he enlisted with the French Army in 1916 to fight in World War I, her
father took her to his mother, who ran a brothel in Normandy. There, prostitutes helped look after Piaf. From
the age of three to seven, Piaf was allegedly blind as a result of keratitis. According to one of her
biographies, she recovered her sight after her grandmother's prostitutes pooled money to send her on a
pilgrimage honoring Saint Thérèse of Lisieux, which the author claims resulted in a miraculous healing. In
1929, at 14, she joined her father in his acrobatic street performances all over France, where she first sang in
public.
She took a room at Grand Hôtel de Clermont (18 rue Veron, Paris 18ème) and separated from him, going her
own way as a street singer in Pigalle, Ménilmontant, and the Paris suburbs (cf. the song "Elle fréquentait la
Rue Pigalle"). She joined her good friend Simone Berteaut ("Mômone")in this endeavor, and the two
became lifelong partners in mischief. She was about 16 when she fell in love with Louis Dupont, a delivery
boy. At 17, she had her only child, a girl named Marcelle, who died of meningitis at age two. Like her
mother, Piaf found it difficult to care for a child while living a life of the streets, so she often left Marcelle
behind while she was away, and Dupont raised her until her death.
The marché Saint-Pierre, area of the cloth sellers, in the south-east
The working class districts with immigrant communities: Barbès (Maghreb) in the southeast, Château
Rouge in the east
The Boulevard de Rochechouart (metro stations: Anvers and Pigalle) for its concert halls (La Cigale,
L'Elysée-Montmartre

5. Open in 1807, the Élysée Montmartre is a music venue, at 72 Boulevard de Rochechouart, in Paris, France.
It has a capacity of 1,200 patrons. The nearest métro station is Anvers. In 1900, the venue was damaged by
fire, and was re-decorated. The concert hall suffered another fire on March 22, 2011, and is currently closed
to the public. It is one of the most famous music venues in the city. The venue can also host boxing matches.
Le Trianon, La Boule Noire) inspired by the 19th century cabarets
The cimetière de Montmartre (Emile Zola)
The famous and often sung rue Lepic with its Les Deux Moulins café, made famous by the movie Le
Fabuleux Destin d'Amélie Poulain. Amelie was filmed here.
Erik Satie's house
the Musée de Montmartre

6. Rue Saint-Vincent, the vigne de Montmartre, the most famous of the Parisian vineyards (there are some
others, in particular in the parc Georges Brassens, wine is quite expensive; the earnings are used to help
social institutions. It is overhung by beautiful buildings from the 20s
Le Chat noir and the Lapin Agile cabarets whose clientele at the beginning of the 20th century was mainly
French artists
Picasso at the Lapin Agile is a play written by Steve Martin in 1993. It features the characters of Albert
Einstein and Pablo Picasso, who meet at a bar called the Lapin Agile (Nimble Rabbit). It is set on October
8, 1904, and both men are on the verge of an amazing idea (Einstein will publish his special theory of
relativity in 1905 and Picasso will paint Les Demoiselles d'Avignon in 1907) when they find themselves at
the Lapin Agile, where they have a lengthy debate about the value of genius and talent while interacting with
a host of other characters.
Moulin de la Galette
Of the 14 windmills (moulins) that used to sit atop this hill, only two remain. They're known collectively as
Moulin de la Galette—the name being taken from the bread that the owners used to produce. The more
storied of the two is Le Blute-fin. In the late 1800s there was a dance hall on the site, famously captured by
Renoir (you can see the painting in the Musée d'Orsay).
A facelift recently restored the windmill to its 19th-century glory; however, it is on private land and can't be
visited. Down the street is the other moulin, Le Radet.

7. Address: Le Blute-fin, corner of Rue Lepic and Rue Tholozé,
The Montmartre funicular was opened on 13 July 1900 and was entirely rebuilt in 1935 and again in 1991.
The funicular carries passengers between the foot of the butte (outlier) of Montmartre and its summit, near
the foot of the Sacré-Cœur basilica. It provides an alternative to the multiple stairways of more than 300
steps that lead to the top of the Butte Montmartre. At 108 m (354 ft) long, the funicular climbs and drops the
36 m (118 ft) in under a minute and a half. It carries two million passengers a year.
the place Émile-Goudeau, where the Bateau-Lavoir welcomes great painters
Place Jean-Marais
Jean-Alfred Villain-Marais ( 1913 – 1998), was a French actor and director. France, Marais starred in
several movies directed by Jean Cocteau, for a time his lover and a lifelong friend, most famously Beauty
and the Beast (1946) and Orphée (1949). Marais played over 100 roles in film and on television, and also
was known for work in other areas of artistic expression, such as writing, painting and sculpture. Though he
was married during World War II to the actress Mila Parély, the couple were divorced after around two
years. Marais, who was homosexual, was the muse and lover of Jean Cocteau until Cocteau's death.

8. The Louvre
This is the world's greatest art museum—and the largest, with 675,000 square feet of works from almost
every civilization on earth. The three most popular pieces here are, of course, the Mona Lisa, the Venus de
Milo, and Winged Victory.
The marble Escalier Daru to discover the sublime Winged Victory of Samothrace , a statue found on a tiny
Greek island that was carved in 305 BC to commemorate the naval victory of Demetrius Poliocretes over the
Turks.
Bear in mind that the Louvre is much more than a museum—it represents a saga that started centuries ago,
having been a fortress at the turn of the 13th century, and later a royal residence. It was not until the 16th
century, under François I, that today's Louvre began to take shape, and through the years Henry IV, Louis
XIII, Louis XV, Napoléon I, and Napoléon III all contributed to its construction. Napoléon Bonaparte's
military campaigns at the turn of the 19th century brought a new influx of holdings, as his soldiers carried
off treasures from each invaded country. During World War II the most precious artworks were hidden,
while the remainder was looted. Most of the stolen pieces were recovered, though, after the liberation of
Paris. No large-scale changes were made until François Mitterrand was elected president in 1981, when he
kicked off the Grand Louvre project to expand and modernize the museum.
Mitterrand commissioned I.M. Pei's Pyramide, the giant glass pyramid surrounded by three smaller pyramids
that opened in 1989 over the new entrance in the Cour Napoléon. In 2012, the Louvre's newest architectural
wonder opened—the 30,000-square-foot Arts of Islam wing. Built into the Cour Visconti in the Denon
wing and topped with an undulating golden roof evoking a veil blowing in the wind, the two-level galleries
house one of the world's largest collections of art from all corners of the Islamic world.
The ground floor and underground rooms in this wing contain 5th- to 19th-century French sculpture, and the
Near East Antiquities Collection, including the Lamassu, carved 8th-century winged beasts.

9. On the first floor of this wing you'll find the Royal Apartments of Napoléon III, a dozen elaborately
decorated reception rooms. Continue to the second floor for the French and Northern School paintings,
including Vermeer's The Lacemaker.
The entrance to the Sully wing is the most impressive, as you can walk around the 12th-century foundations
and vestiges of the original medieval moat. Below ground is also the largest display of Egyptian antiques in
the world after that of the Cairo museum, featuring such artifacts as Ramses II, a beautifully proportioned
statue from the site of Tanis.
Upstairs in Salle 16 is the armless Venus de Milo , a 2nd-century representation of the goddess Aphrodite.
She was cleaned and restored over six months in 2010, the work taking place after hours and on Tuesday,
when the museum is closed. The first and second floors of the Sully Wing boast decorative arts from all over
Europe, as well as 17th-century French paintings, including the Turkish Bath by Jean-August-Dominique
Ingres.
In the paintings section of the Denon Wing, you'll find three by Leonardo da Vinci, including the most
famous painting in the world: the Mona Lisa , located in Salle 7. Head across to Salle 75 for the Coronation
of Napoléon, or to Salle 77 for the graphic 1819 Raft of the Medusa, the first work of art based on a real
news event, in this case the survivors of the wreck of a French ship.

10. Église de la Madeleine
With its rows of uncompromising columns, this enormous neoclassical edifice in the center of the Place de la
Madeleine was consecrated as a church in 1842, nearly 78 years after construction began. Initially planned
as a Baroque building, it was later razed and begun anew by an architect who had the Roman Pantheon in
mind. Interrupted by the Revolution, the site was razed yet again when Napoléon decided to make it into a
Greek temple dedicated to the glory of his army. Those plans changed when the army was defeated and the
emperor deposed. Other ideas for the building included making it into a train station, a market, and a library.
Finally, Louis XVIII decided to make it a church, which it still is today. Free classical concerts are held here
some Sundays.
Église St-Germain-l'Auxerrois
Across from the Louvre's Cour Carée, this church, founded in 500 AD, is one of the city's oldest. The current
building dates from the 13th century, and the bell, from 1529, still tolls weekly masses. Address: Rue St-
Germain-l'Auxerrois, Louvre/Tuileries
Galerie Véro-Dodat
A lovely 19th-century passage, gorgeously restored, the Véro-Dodat has a dozen artsy boutiques selling
objets d'art, textiles, furniture, and accessories. The headliner tenant is Christian Louboutin, at Rue Jean-
Jacques Rousseau, whose red-soled stilettos are favored by Angelina, Madonna and other members of the
red-carpet set. On the opposite end, at the Rue du Bouloi entrance, star cosmetics maker Terry De Gunzburg
has a boutique, By Terry. Address: 19 rue Jean-Jacques

11. Galerie Vivienne
Considered the grande dame of Paris's 19th-century passages couverts—the world's first shopping malls—
this graceful covered arcade evokes an age of gaslights and horse-drawn carriages. Once Parisians came to
passages like this one to tred tiled floors instead of muddy streets, and to see and be seen browsing boutiques
under the glass-and-iron roofs. Today, the Galerie Vivienne still attracts top-flight retailers such as Jean-Paul
Gaultier (6 rue Vivienne) and the high-quality secondhand clothes seller La Marelle (No. 21), as well as
shops selling accessories, housewares, and fine wine. The Place des Victoires, a few steps away, is one of
Paris's most picturesque squares. In the center is a statue of an outsized Louis XIV (1643-1715), the Sun
King, who appears almost as large as his horse. Address: Main entrance at, 4 rue des Petits-Champs,
Jardin des Tuileries
The quintessential French garden, with its verdant lawns, manicured rows of trees, and gravel paths, was
designed by André Le Nôtre for Louis XIV. After the king moved his court to Versailles, in 1682, the
Tuileries became the place for stylish Parisians to stroll. (Ironically, the name derives from the decidedly
unstylish factories which once occupied this area: they produced tuiles, or roof tiles, fired in kilns called
tuileries.) Monet and Renoir captured the garden with paint and brush, and it's no wonder the Impressionists
loved it—the gray, austere light of Paris's famously overcast days make the green trees appear even greener.

12. HIGHLIGHTS
The garden still serves as a setting for one of Paris's loveliest walks. Laid out before you is a vista of must-
see monuments, with the Louvre at one end and the Place de la Concorde at the other. The Tour Eiffel is on
the Seine side, along with the Musée d'Orsay, reachable across a footbridge in the center of the garden.
A good place to begin is at the Louvre end, at the Arc du Carrousel, a stone-and-marble arch ordered by
Napoléon to showcase the bronze horses he stole from St. Mark's Cathedral in Venice. The horses were
eventually returned and replaced here with a statue of a quadriga, a four-horse chariot. On the Place de la
Concorde end, twin buildings bookend the garden.
On the Seine side, the former royal greenhouse is now the exceptional Musée de l'Orangerie, home to the
largest display of Monet's lovely Water Lilies series, as well as a sizable collection of early-20th-century
paintings. On the opposite end is the Musée du Jeu de Paume, which has some of the city's best temporary
photography exhibits.
Address: Bordered by Quai des Tuileries, Pl. de la Concorde, Rue de Rivoli, and the Louvre,
Arc de Triomphe
The Arc de Triomphe de l'Étoile stands in the centre of the Place Charles de Gaulle (originally named
Place de l'Étoile), at the western end of the Champs-Élysées. It should not be confused with a smaller arch,
the Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel, which stands west of the Louvre. The Arc de Triomphe (in English:
"Triumphal Arch") honours those who fought and died for France in the French Revolutionary and the
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.

13. The monument was designed by Jean Chalgrin in 1806, and its iconographic program pitted heroically nude
French youths against bearded Germanic warriors in chain mail. It set the tone for public monuments, with
triumphant patriotic messages. The monument stands 50 metres in height, 45 m wide and 22 m deep. It was
the largest triumphal arch in existence until the construction of the Arch of Triumph in Pyongyang, in 1982.
Its design was inspired by the Roman Arch of Titus. The Arc de Triomphe is so colossal that three weeks
after the Paris victory parade in 1919, (marking the end of hostilities in World War I), Charles Godefroy
flew his Nieuport biplane through it, with the event captured on newsreel.
Place de la Concorde
The Place was designed by Ange-Jacques Gabriel in 1755 as a moat-skirted octagon between the Champs-
Élysées to the west and the Tuileries Garden to the east. Decorated with statues and fountains, the area was
named Place Louis XV to honor the king at that time. The square showcased an equestrian statue of the
king. The chemical compounds have let it survive for so long under acid rain.
During the French Revolution the statue of Louis XV of France was torn down and the area renamed "Place
de la Révolution". The new revolutionary government erected the guillotine in the square, and it was here
that King Louis XVI was executed on 21 January 1793. Other important figures guillotined on the site, often
in front of cheering crowds, were Queen Marie Antoinette, Princess Élisabeth of France, Charlotte Corday,
Madame du Barry, Georges Danton, Camille Desmoulins, Antoine Lavoisier, Maximilien Robespierre,
Louis de Saint-Just and Olympe de Gouges.
The guillotine was most active during the "Reign of Terror", in the summer of 1794, when in a single month
more than 1,300 people were executed. A year later, when the revolution was taking a more moderate
course, the guillotine was removed from the square.
The old plaque, for "Place Louis XVI", and replacement plaque at the corner of Hôtel de Crillon.

14. Execution of Louis XVI in the then Place de la Révolution. The empty pedestal in front of him had
supported a statue of his grandfather, Louis XV, torn down during one of the many revolutionary riots.
Under the Directory the square was renamed Place de la Concorde as a gesture of reconciliation after the
turmoil of the French Revolution. After the Bourbon Restoration of 1814, the name was changed back to
Place Louis XV, and in 1826 the square was renamed Place Louis XVI. After the July Revolution of 1830 the
name was returned to Place de la Concorde and has remained since.
The Luxor Obelisk (French: Obélisque de Louxor) is a 23 metres (75 ft) high Egyptian obelisk standing at
the center of the Place de la Concorde in Paris, France. It was originally located at the entrance to Luxor
Temple, in Egypt.
Champs Elysees
The avenue is also the setting for the last leg of the Tour de France bicycle race (the third or fourth Sunday
in July), as well as Bastille Day (July 14) and Armistice Day (November 11) ceremonies. The Champs-
Élysées, which translates as "Elysian Fields" (the resting place of the blessed in Greek mythology), began
life as a cow pasture and in 1666 was transformed into a park by the royal landscape architect André Le
Nôtre. Traces of its green origins are visible near Concorde, where elegant 19th-century park pavilions house
the historic restaurants Ledoyen, Laurent, and Le Pavillon Élysées Lenôtre.

15. Grand Palais
With its curved-glass roof and gorgeously restored Belle Époque ornamentation, you can't miss the Grand
Palais whether you're approaching from the Seine or the Champs-Élysées. It forms an elegant duo with the
Petit Palais across Avenue Winston Churchill: both stone buildings, adorned with mosaics and sculpted
friezes, were built for the 1900 World's Fair, and, like the Eiffel Tower, were not intended to be permanent.
The exquisite main exhibition space called le Nef (or nave) plays host to large-scale shows that might focus
on anything from jewelry to cars. The art-oriented shows staged here are some of the hottest tickets in town.
Previous must-sees included an Edward Hopper retrospective, "Marie Antoinette," and "Picasso and the
Masters." To skip the long lines, it pays to book an advance ticket online, which will cost you an extra euro.
Address: Av. Winston Churchill, Champs-Élysées, Paris, 75008 |
Palais-Royal
The quietest, most romantic Parisian garden is enclosed within the former home of Cardinal Richelieu
(1585-1642). It's an ideal spot to while away an afternoon, cuddling with your sweetheart on a bench under
the trees, soaking up the sunshine beside the fountain, or browsing the 400-year-old arcades that are now
home to boutiques ranging from retro quirky (picture toy soldiers and music boxes) to modern chic (think
Stella McCartney and Marc Jacobs). One of the city's oldest restaurants is here, the haute-cuisine Le Grand
Véfour, where brass plaques recall regulars like Napoléon and Victor Hugo. Built in 1629, the palais became
royal when Richelieu bequeathed it to Louis XIII. Other famous residents include Jean Cocteau and Colette,
who wrote of her pleasurable "country" view of the province à Paris. Today, the garden often plays host to
giant-size temporary art installations sponsored by another tenant, the Ministry of Culture. The courtyard off
Place Colette is outfitted with an unusual collection of short black-and-white columns created in 1986 by
artist Daniel Buren.
Address: Pl. du Palais-Royal, Louvre/Palais-Royal, Paris,

16. EiffeEiffel Tower (Tour Eiffel)
The Eiffel Tower is to Paris what the Statue of Liberty is to New York and what Big Ben is London: the
ultimate civic emblem. French engineer Gustave Eiffel—already famous for building viaducts and bridges—
spent two years working to erect this monument for the World Exhibition of 1889.
Because its colossal bulk exudes a feeling of mighty permanence, you may have trouble believing that it
nearly became 7,000 tons of scrap metal (the 1,063-foot tour contains 12,000 pieces of metal and 2,500,000
rivets) when its concession expired in 1909. At first many Parisians hated the structure, agreeing with
designer William Morris, who, explaining why he had been spending so much time at the tower, said "Why
on earth have I come here? Because it's the only place I can't see it from." Only its potential use as a radio
antenna saved the day (it still bristles with a forest of radio and television transmitters). Gradually, though,
the Tour Eiffel became part of the Parisian landscape, entering the hearts and souls of Parisians and visitors
alike. Today it is most breathtaking at night, when every girder is highlighted in a sparkling display
originally conceived to celebrate the turn of the millennium. The glittering light show was so popular that
the 20,000 lights were reinstalled for permanent use in 2003. The tower does its electric shimmy for five
minutes every hour on the hour until 1 am.
You can stride up the stairs as far as the third floor, but if you want to go to the top you'll have to take the
elevator. (Be sure to take a close look at the fantastic ironwork.) Although the view of the flat sweep of Paris
at 1,000 feet may not beat the one from the Tour Montparnasse skyscraper, the setting makes it considerably
more romantic—especially if you come in the late evening, after the crowds have dispersed. Beat the
crushing lines by reserving your ticket online. You can also book a guided tour.
The tower is the tallest structure in Paris and the most-visited paid monument in the world; 7.1 million
people ascended it in 2011. The third level observatory's upper platform is at 279.11 m the highest accessible
to public in the European Union and the highest in Europe as long as the platform of the Ostankino Tower, at
360 m, remains closed as a result of the fire of August 2000. The tower received its 250 millionth visitor in
2010.
The tower stands 320 metres tall, about the same height as an 81-storey building. During its construction, the
Eiffel Tower surpassed the Washington Monument to assume the title of the tallest man-made structure in
the world, a title it held for 41 years, until the Chrysler Building in New York City was built in 1930.
However, because of the addition, in 1957, of the antenna atop the Eiffel Tower, it is now taller than the
Chrysler Building. Not including broadcast antennas, it is the second-tallest structure in France, after the
Millau Viaduct.
The tower has three levels for visitors. Tickets can be purchased to ascend, by stairs or lift (elevator), to the
first and second levels. The walk from ground level to the first level is over 300 steps, as is the walk from
the first to the second level. The third and highest level is accessible only by lift - stairs exist but they are not
usually open for public use. Both the first and second levels feature restaurants.
The tower has become the most prominent symbol of both Paris and France, often in the establishing shot of
films set in the city.

17. Hôtel des Invalides
The Baroque complex known as Les Invalides is the eternal home of Napoléon Bonaparte (1769-1821) or,
more precisely, the little dictator's remains, which lie entombed under the towering golden dome.
Louis XIV ordered the facility built in 1670 to house disabled soldiers (hence the name), and at one time
4,000 military men lived here. Today, a portion of it still serves as a veterans' residence and hospital. The
Musée de l'Armée, containing an exhaustive collection of military artifacts from antique armor to weapons,
is also here as is the World Wars Department, which chronicles the great wars that ravaged Europe.
If you see only a single sight, make it the Église du Dome (one of Les Invalides' two churches) at the back of
the complex. Napoléon's tomb was moved here in 1840 from the island of Saint Helena, where he died in
forced exile. The emperor's body is protected by a series of no fewer than six coffins—one set inside the
next, sort of like a Russian nesting doll—which is then encased in a sarcophagus of red quartzite. The
bombastic tribute is ringed by statues symbolizing Napoléon's campaigns of conquest. To see more
Napoléoniana, check out the collection in the Musée de l'Armée featuring his trademark gray frock coat and
huge bicorne hat. Look for the figurines reenacting the famous coronation scene when Napoléon crowns his
empress, Josephine. (Notice the heavily rouged cheeks; Napoléon hated pale skin.) You can see a grander
version of this scene hanging in the Louvre by the painter David.
The Esplanade des Invalides, the great lawns in front of the building, are favorite spots for pickup soccer,
Frisbee games, sunbathing, and dog walking—despite signs asking you to stay off the grass. The best
entrance to use is at the southern end, on Place Vauban (Avenue de Tourville). The ticket office is here, as is
Napoléon's Tomb. There are automatic ticket machines at the main entrance on the Place des Invalides.