Rue de la Paix
Napoleon’s column at Place Vendôme
From Place de l’Opéra we turn back over Boulevard des Capucines and turn right into Rue de la Paix.
Famous for its jewellers. Many will recall names such as Christofle at no. 24, Cartier at no. 13, Mellers at no. 9, Poiray at no. 8, Jean Dinh Van at no. 7,; and at the square in front of us, Place Vendôme, Verney at no. 8, Chaumet at no. 12, Mauboussin at no. 20, Cleef et Arpels at no. 22 and Boucheron at no. 26.
Place Vendôme
We turn our attention to Place Vendôme.
All the way to Place Vendôme we recognized Napoleon’s column of victory, standing in its middle, made of bronze from 1200 captured cannons in the battle of Austerlitz in 1805. There is a statue of Napoleon himself on the top.
The square itself and the surrounding buildings are older, from 1702-1720. They were all designed by the architect Hardouin-Mansart in the years after 1685. He also designed Dome des Invalides and was responsible for the final appearance of Versailles. His Place Vendôme is the apex of 17th C. architecture in France.
On the ground floor arcades cover the side walks. Above there are pilasters reaching up two storeys. In the roofs there is a continuous row of dormer windows. The houses in the corners and the in middle of the wings have pediments. The best know building is the Ritz hotel.
