Hôtel des Invalides

Hôtel des Invalides Review

Les Invalides (pronounced lehz-ahn-vah-leed), as this Baroque complex is known, is the eternal home of Napoléon Bonaparte (1769-1821), or more specifically, the little dictator's tomb, which lies under the towering golden dome. There are two churches here: St-Louis des Invalides Church, built between 1677 and 1706, later subdivided into the Église du Dome and the Église des Soldats (Soldiers' Church).

Louis XIV ordered this complex built in 1670 to house-disabled soldiers, and at one time 4,000 military men lived here. Today, a portion of it remains a veterans' residence and hospital. There's also the Musée de l'Armée, an exhaustive collection of military artifacts from antique armor to weapons. The World Wars Department, also housed here, chronicles the great wars that ravaged Europe.

If you see only one sight here, make it the Église du Dome at the back of the complex. Napoléon's tomb was moved here in 1840 from the island of Saint Helena, where the emperor died in forced exile. Napoléon's body is protected by a series of no fewer than six coffins, one 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 the emperor's 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.

For the 200th anniversary of the French Revolution, in 1989, the dome was regilded using more than half a million gold leaves, or more than 20 pounds of gold. Renovations of the church and the museum are ongoing, so parts of it may be closed. The Esplanade des Invalides, the great lawns in front of the building, are favorite spots for pickup soccer and 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.