The tomb of Marechal Lyautey, Marshal of France and colonial administrator It was monumental. Grand. And I was awestruck at the spaciousness of the interior of the Dôme des Invalides. From the paintings of Charles de la Fosse at the underside of the dome, finished in 1705, to the ornate baldachin at the altar. So grand and spacious that visitors, including me were all dwarfed. But I wasn’t here to hear mass, the space, a former royal chapel built at the southern part of the Hospital des Invalides upon the orders of Louis XIV, was converted, by an 1840 law, as the final resting place of Napoleon Bonaparte.
I roamed around, admiring the monumentality of the space. I explored the other chambers where there are other notable French military and some of Napoleon’s family are interred too. Some are buried in vaults with only their hearts. But all these can be overwhelming: the architecture, the information, the whole experience. And that is just at one part of a series of buildings, a complex. And sometimes, it’s just better to take stock of everything and pause. I stop for a moment to lean at the edge of the central circle. Gazed up, admiring again the underbelly of the dome then slowly lowered my gaze, tracing the columns, resting my eyes on the ornate baldachin, down the steps, to the opposite side of the circle and finally looked down and laid my eyes on Napoleon’s sarcophagus. Wow.
The marvelous underside of the dome with its rich paintings by Charles de la Fosse done in 1705The Dome des Invalides is actually a church that was redesigned in the 19th century to accommodate the remains of Napoleon BonaparteLeft, tomb of Ferdinand Foch, Marshal of France, Allied Supreme Commander in the First World War; right, tomb of Joseph Bonaparte, Napoleon’s elder brother and King of Naples and Sicily, then King of SpainThe opening where people can look down on Napoleon Bonaparte’s sarcophagusThe sarcophagus of Napoleon Bonaparte made from red quartzite resting on green granite finished in 1861A flight of stairs to the undergroundThe frieze at the underground cryptRoi de Rome, Napoleon Bonaparte sculpture at the underground cryptNapoleon Bonaparte’s final resting placeOther than Napoleon Bonaparte, there are other officers and his other family members who are buried inside the Domes des Invalides. Some are buried only with their hearts.
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At the Domes des Invalides visiting #napoleonbonaparte’s #sarcophagus #paris #france
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At the Domes des Invalides visiting #napoleonbonaparte’s #sarcophagus #paris #france
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