The Musée de l'Armée was created in 1905 with the merger of the Musée d'Artillerie and the Musée Historique de l'Armée.[1] The museum's seven main spaces and departments contain collections that span the period from antiquity through the 20th century.
History
The Musée de l'Armée was created in 1905 with the merger of the Musée d'Artillerie and the Musée Historique de l'Armée.[1] The Musée de l'artillerie (Museum of Artillery – "artillerie" meaning all things related to weapons) was founded in 1795 in the aftermath of the
French Revolution, and expanded under
Napoleon. It was moved into the
Hôtel des Invalides in 1871, immediately following the
Franco-Prussian War and the proclamation of the
Third Republic. Another institution called the Musée historique de l'Armée (Historical Museum of the Army) was created in 1896 following the
Paris World Fair. The two institutions merged in 1905 within the space of the former Musée de l'Artillerie. Today, it holds 500,000 artifacts, including weapons, armour, artillery, uniforms, emblems and paintings, exhibited in an area of 12,000 m2. The permanent collections are organised into "historical collections", representing a chronological tour from ancient times through the end of
World War II.
In March 1878, the museum hosted an "
ethnographic exhibition", as it was called, which represented the main "types" of
Oceania,
America,
Asia and
Africa. Dummies representing people from the
colonies, along with weapons and equipment, were the main attraction. The exhibit, organised by Colonel Le Clerc, attempted to demonstrate theories of
unilineal evolution, putting the European man at the apex of human history.[2] Parts of this collection began to be transferred to the
Ethnographic Museum of the Trocadéro in 1910 and in 1917; the last colonial rooms were closed just after the 1931
Paris Colonial Exhibition.[2] All remnants were transferred after the
Second World War.[2]
Significant holdings
The Musée de l'Armée has identified 24
aesthetic, technical and symbolic "treasures," which are all closely linked to French military history from the late
Middle Ages through to
World War II. They include weapons, armour, works of arts and technology.[3]
Main spaces
The museum consists of six main spaces.
Main Courtyard and artillery collections
The Main Courtyard is the centre of the Hôtel National des Invalides and displays a large part of the artillery collections, gathered during the
French Revolution. The collection traces 200 years of the history of French field artillery and enables visitors to discover how the equipment was manufactured, its role and the history of great French artillerymen.[4]
The Medieval Room: artifacts from the
feudal army to the royal army
The Louis XIII Room: the progress of the royal army)
A Themed Arsenal Gallery
An exhibit on Courtly Leisure Activities (late
Middle Ages to mid-17th century)
some rooms of antique and oriental armament
Modern Department, from Louis XIV to Napoleon III, 1643–1870
This department covers the military, political, social and industrial history of France, reliving great battles, exploring the lives of soldiers, and tracing the development of technologies and tactics.[6]
Contains:
Privates' uniforms
Luxury weapons and arms
Equipment of numerous French and foreign regiments
The Musée des Plans-Reliefs is a museum of
military models located within the Musée de l'Armée. About 100 models, created between 1668 and 1870, are currently on display in the museum. The construction of models dates to 1668 when the
Marquis de Louvois, minister of war to
Louis XIV, began a collection of three-dimensional models of fortified cities for military purposes, and kept growing until 1870 with the disappearance of fortifications bastionnées.
Cathedral of Saint-Louis des Invalides
In 1676, the Secretary of State for War,
Marquis de Louvois, entrusted the young architect
Jules Hardouin-Mansart with the construction of the chapel, which
Libéral Bruant had been unable to complete. The architect designed a building which combined a royal chapel, the "Dôme des Invalides", and a veterans' chapel.[9] This way, the King and his soldiers could attend mass simultaneously, while entering the place of worship though different entrances, as prescribed by etiquette. This separation was reinforced in the 19th century with the erection of the tomb of Napoleon I, the creation of the two separate altars and then with the construction of a glass wall between the two chapels.[9]
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abcGilles Aubagnac, "En 1878, les "sauvages" entrent au musée de l'Armée" in Zoos humains. De la Vénus hottentote aux reality shows, Nicolas Bancel, Pascal Blanchard, Gilles Boëtsch, Eric Deroo, Sandrine Lemaire, edition La Découverte (2002), p.349-354 (in French)