Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel
Napoleon never really understood war at sea; he didn’t seem to comprehend that you couldn’t move a fleet around the sea in the age of sail as easily as you could an army on land. And he didn’t have a Nelson, who’s victory at the Battle of Trafalgar on 21st October removed for ever Napoleon’s threat of invasion. Britain’s dominance of the sea now enabled it to land an army in Portugal under General Arthur Wellesley — the future Duke of Wellington — and begin the famous Peninsular Campaign that, with Portuguese and later Spanish help, would bleed Napoleon’s army white.
But on land Napoleon was happily totting up an impressive list of victories, particularly the Battle of Austerlitz, widely regarded as the greatest victory achieved by Napoleon, when the Grande Armée of France defeated a larger Russian and Austrian army led by Tsar Alexander I and Holy Roman Emperor Francis II.
The Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel was commissioned by Emperor Napoleon in 1806 to commemorate his Austrian victories and honour his Grande Armée. It is based on the triumphal arches of the Roman Empire; in particular that of Septimius Severus (reminds me of Life of Brian for some reason) in Rome, and is the smallest of the three arches on the Triumphal Way. The horses on top are reminiscent of those in St. Mark's Square in Venice – that’s no accident, he “stole” them from Venice and placed them on the Arch but they were returned to Venice after Napoleon's downfall at Waterloo. The ones you see now are replicas. Originally a statue of Napoleon was supposed to be put in the chariot but he rejected the idea so the chariot stayed empty until the restoration of 1828 when an allegorical figure took the place of the emperor. It is flanked by statues symbolizing Victory and Peace. The eight marble Corinthian pillars are topped with statues of soldiers from Napoleon's army. And in keeping with the Roman tradition, the arch contains several bas-reliefs depicting the story of his military campaign. The bas-reliefs were removed by the allied army in 1815 but they were put in place again in 1830.
Personally, although about half the size, I think this arch is more impressive than the more famous Arc de Triomphe, especially with those rose marble columns. It could do without the chariot on top though I think....
The Arch now seems rather lonely and misplaced. It was originally intended as a monumental entrance to the Tuileries palace. When that palace was destroyed by fire in 1871, it was generally agreed that the arch stood well on its own; nor was the palace greatly missed in that an exceptional view of the Champs-Elysées had been opened up.
The name "carrousel" refers to a type of military dressage, an equine demonstration now commonly called military drill. The Place du Carrousel was named in 1662, when it was used for such a display by Louis XIV.
I didn’t see any plaques or notices in the area to record that on 21 August 1792, the guillotine was erected in the Place du Carrousel, and it remained there, with two short interruptions, until 11 May 1793. In total, thirty-five people were guillotined there.
Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel
Napoleon never really understood war at sea; he didn’t seem to comprehend that you couldn’t move a fleet around the sea in the age of sail as easily as you could an army on land. And he didn’t have a Nelson, who’s victory at the Battle of Trafalgar on 21st October removed for ever Napoleon’s threat of invasion. Britain’s dominance of the sea now enabled it to land an army in Portugal under General Arthur Wellesley — the future Duke of Wellington — and begin the famous Peninsular Campaign that, with Portuguese and later Spanish help, would bleed Napoleon’s army white.
But on land Napoleon was happily totting up an impressive list of victories, particularly the Battle of Austerlitz, widely regarded as the greatest victory achieved by Napoleon, when the Grande Armée of France defeated a larger Russian and Austrian army led by Tsar Alexander I and Holy Roman Emperor Francis II.
The Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel was commissioned by Emperor Napoleon in 1806 to commemorate his Austrian victories and honour his Grande Armée. It is based on the triumphal arches of the Roman Empire; in particular that of Septimius Severus (reminds me of Life of Brian for some reason) in Rome, and is the smallest of the three arches on the Triumphal Way. The horses on top are reminiscent of those in St. Mark's Square in Venice – that’s no accident, he “stole” them from Venice and placed them on the Arch but they were returned to Venice after Napoleon's downfall at Waterloo. The ones you see now are replicas. Originally a statue of Napoleon was supposed to be put in the chariot but he rejected the idea so the chariot stayed empty until the restoration of 1828 when an allegorical figure took the place of the emperor. It is flanked by statues symbolizing Victory and Peace. The eight marble Corinthian pillars are topped with statues of soldiers from Napoleon's army. And in keeping with the Roman tradition, the arch contains several bas-reliefs depicting the story of his military campaign. The bas-reliefs were removed by the allied army in 1815 but they were put in place again in 1830.
Personally, although about half the size, I think this arch is more impressive than the more famous Arc de Triomphe, especially with those rose marble columns. It could do without the chariot on top though I think....
The Arch now seems rather lonely and misplaced. It was originally intended as a monumental entrance to the Tuileries palace. When that palace was destroyed by fire in 1871, it was generally agreed that the arch stood well on its own; nor was the palace greatly missed in that an exceptional view of the Champs-Elysées had been opened up.
The name "carrousel" refers to a type of military dressage, an equine demonstration now commonly called military drill. The Place du Carrousel was named in 1662, when it was used for such a display by Louis XIV.
I didn’t see any plaques or notices in the area to record that on 21 August 1792, the guillotine was erected in the Place du Carrousel, and it remained there, with two short interruptions, until 11 May 1793. In total, thirty-five people were guillotined there.