Arc de Triomphe
The
Arc de Triomphe de l'Étoile is one of the most famous monuments in Paris. It stands in the centre of the
Place Charles de Gaulle, 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 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. The
Arc de Triomphe is the linchpin of the historic axis – a sequence of monuments and grand thoroughfares on a route which goes from the courtyard of the Louvre, to the Grande Arche de la Défense. 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. The large vault is 29.19 m high and 14.