Hotel of Les Invalides

Architectural systems have been changing over time, and they are becoming more and better. This paper discusses the historical past of the Hotel des Invalides as well as the hotel's overall structure. The Hotel des Invalides is a complex building located in Paris's 7th arrondissement. The hotel has a museum and a memorial dedicated to France's military past. The hotel also has a hospital and a nursing home that was designed in honor of war veterans, which was its original intent (Hanser, David A). There is a large church and at the same time a burial site for the war heroes who mostly died during the reign of Napoleon Bonaparte. Below is an aerial view of the Hotel of Les Invalides.



Figure 1: aerial view of the Hotel of Les Invalides(Hanser, David A)

The project was initiated on 24th November 1670 by Louis XIV, and its primary purpose was to act as a home for the elderly and unwell soldiers. The selected site of the structure was at that time the suburban plain of Grenelle. The construction of the project was in six years hence making the project to be completed in the year 1676. The building had a river front that measured one hundred and ninety-six meters and the complex fifteen courtyards. The largest courtyard was the court of honor that was used for military parades. After some time it was felt that the war veterans needed a chapel that was constructed and finished in the year 1679. There was another separate chapel that was built to serve as a private chapel, and it was completed in the year 1708.

The location of the Hotel of Les Invalides made it serve as the main scene for several key events that were celebrated in the French history. Unfortunately, on the 14th July of the year 1789, the hotel was stormed by the Parisian rioters, and they destroyed some parts of the structures. The building was again reconstructed to its original appearance I the year 1840 and resumed its original purpose as a home for the retired war veterans until the early twentieth century (Daly, Jean et al.). In the year 1872 a museum was constructed within the hotel and it was furnished on the year 1905. At that particular time, the residents and veterans was dispersed to some smaller centers outside Paris. With time, the building became too large for its original purpose. Currently the modern complex still has the facilities about a hundred incapacitated or elderly former soldiers.



Figure 2: architectural plan of Hotel of Les Invalides (Daly, Jean et al.)

The front structure of the building was first erected in the year 1671, with the primary purpose of providing accommodation for impoverished and disabled war veterans.



Figure 3: Front structure of Les Invalides (Daly, Jean et al.)

The design and construction were mainly planned for some barracks. King Louis XIV chose a good design by architect Liberal Bruant that on the other hand consisted a large impressive building which had a loyal courtyard and church. The house originally could carry a capacity of four thousand war veterans, and the entire complex had more than fifteen courtyards. The hotel was separated from the river by a wide five hundred meters long esplanade that was designed by Robert de Cotte.

The church was added to the annexe of the building in the year 1676 on the request of Sun King’s war minister. The church was built by Hardouin Mansart after he had designed the Liberal Bruant. Currently, the church is known as the Soldier’s church, and all the solder’s since have been conducting masses in the church daily. Below is the structure of the Soldier’s church.



Figure 4: The church (Daly, Jean et al.)

On the opposite side of the church, it is connected directly with the royal chapel that is known as Dome de Invalides. The chapel has a one hundred and seven meters long dome that originally was exclusively used by the royal family. The entire dome was constructed for twenty-seven years, and it was completed in the year 1708.



Figure 5 : Dome of the royal chapel (Daly, Jean et al.)

In the dome, plans to bury the bodies of the royal family and after some time, the dome were made as the site for planning the burial of the fallen soldiers. Currently, the dome is housing the tombs for some other several military leaders who had died.

The Hotel of Les Invalides is currently a home to several museums that carries the history of France. The museum in the hotel is known to be a large military museum that is located on both sides of the cour d’honneur. The entire museum carries the military history that covers the early middle ages up to the Second World War (Daly, Jean et al.). In the museum, there are military weapons, maps and banners, uniforms among much other military equipment. In the museum, there is a detailed design of the French fortresses and fortified cities that are going back to the seventeenth century. The museum was built as a dedication to the liberation of France, that took place in the Second World War, and at the same time, it is dedicated to the leader of the liberation Charles de Gaulle.

The historical architecture of the hotel is that it was originally initiated as hospital and a home for the sick and the old French military veterans. The hotel acquired its name from a famous architecture that was called Liberal Brunt, and he was the primary architect of the entire project. A wide public esplanade extends the complex’s courtyard in the north. The Finland and Austria embassies are located on the northern side of the hotel, and at the same location, there is the French ministry of foreign affairs. The whole entities that are located next to the hotel forms one of the grand open spaces that are in the center of Paris. The far end of the Hotel of Les Invalides is the port Alexander III Bridge that has linked the Grand Palais and the Petit Palais. At the other side that the river passes, there is the Pont des Invalides. The hospital in Hotel of Les Invalides has spurred King William III of England and emulated the Greenwich hospital that was constructed in the year 1694.

There is a very long architectural history of Hotel of Les Invalides since it was started in the year 1670 until the completion of the first face that was in the year 1976. The dome of the private chapel in the hotel was inspired by the dome of the St. Peters Cathedral in Rome that was built in the baroque period. Therefore the dome is taken as one of the French’s Baroque architecture. Charles Fosse painted the interior part of the hotel, and the whole painting was completed in the year 1705.

Through Mansart, its drum was raised with an attic story, and it employed the paired column motif in a more musical theme. The general structure of the chapel building is a tightly integrated but also richly in balance. There is a vertical capping thrust that is firmly ribbed with a hemispherical dome. The chapel with the dome is centrally placed, and it dominates the court of honor. The chapel was completed in the year 1708.



Figure 6 : Around the hotel structure (Daly, Jean et al.)

The hotel's museum is huge with nearly one hundred thousand exhibitions. This fact implies that one can spend more than a whole day just going through all the exhibits in the museum. This historical military museum has gained international recognition because it is rich in some military exhibitions. The whole set of presentations is the military equipment that was used between the middle age and the second world war that was about the liberation of France. Therefore it won’t be wrong to say that there is much to be seen in the hotel’s museum.



Figure 7: In the museum (Daly, Jean et al.)

The museum has a climb of up to four floors, and it is located in the western wing of the hotel. The museum building was built to appear dark and with a good climate control feature, and it is as big as the main courtyard. In the museum, there is a unique collection of the old relief-map model, and hence the models are classified as the French fortifications that are along the Atlantic coast, the Mediterranean Sea and the Pyrenees. The maps are from the 17th century and could give a three-dimensional view of all the fortified cities mostly in the coastal regions.

There are lots of interesting architectural facts about the Hotel of Les Invalides. The hotel comprises the largest single collection and complex, hence cannot be compared to any other monument in the entire Paris. The hotel is well known worldwide for having one of the largest military collections and one of the best museums. There is also a very comprehensive compilation of the history of France and the royal family that ruled France in ages.

There is a lot of architectural history about the dome of Hotel of Les Invalides. The dome was built on the private royal palace in the hotel. Shortly after the construction of the main building was completed, the chapel was erected, and it served as a hospital and a home for the fallen soldiers, and it was finalized in the year 1679.



Figure 8: The dome currently (Hanser, David A).

The architect of the dome is called Jules Mansart who constructed the royal chapel in the year 1706. After the construction of the royal chapel was complete, it was then inaugurated by the King himself. One of the best symbols of the baroque period architecture is the royal chapel, and it was inspired by the baroque period dome of the St. Peters Chapel of Rome. The dome was regarded for the fifth time since its creation time in the year 1989. The same year in 1989, was the 200th anniversary of the Hotel of Les Invalides. A lot of tins of gold were used to decorate the appearance of the dome during the 1989 celebration. The hotel acquired its name from a famous architecture that was called Liberal Brunt, and he was the primary architect of the entire project.

Conclusion

In summary, there are many reasons as to why the architecture of the Hotel of Les Invalides is more impressive. One of the reasons is that the hotel is one of the most beautiful buildings in Paris. The dome of the building is not only beautiful from the outside but also carries a lot of religious themes in the inside (Berger, Robert W). The dome has been used for military museum purposes, and this fact can make one enjoy more on the inner view of the structure of the hotel. The magnificent color that has been used in painting the entire hotel was built in the late 17th and the early 18th century. The dome of the hotel is not only remembered for its outside golden appearance, but it is remembered for what it carries in the inside.

































Work cited

Berger, Robert W. "Pierre Du Bellocq's Poem On The Dôme Des Invalides". Seventeenth-Century French Studies, vol 32, no. 2, 2010, pp. 137-151. Informa UK Limited, doi:10.1179/026510610x12857561930750.

Daly, Jean et al. Monuments That Tell The Story Of Paris. 1st ed., Paris, Parigramme, 2001,.

Hanser, David A. Architecture Of France. 1st ed., Westport, Conn., Greenwood Press, 2006,.