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Origin and history

The Tuileries Garden, located in the 1st arrondissement of Paris, has its origin in the 16th century on the site of ancient tiles. Acquired by François I for his mother Louise de Savoie, the land was then bought by Catherine de Medici, who built the Tuileries Palace and built a garden in Italian. The latter, organized in geometric beds, is decorated with fountains, a menagerie and a cave decorated by Bernard Palissy. The terraces and alleys, designed to highlight the palace, still structure its layout today.

In 1664 Louis XIV and Colbert entrusted André Le Nôtre with the renovation of the garden in the French style. The Nôtre expands the space to the west, integrates the Renard garden, and creates emblematic terraces such as that of the Feuillants. Despite fears of degradation, Charles Perrault defended his public access, arguing for his social role for Parisians. The garden then becomes a place for walks, meetings and entertainment, with cafes, rented chairs, and statues marking its royal prestige.

The Revolution turned the garden into a political scene: the round basin hosted ceremonies such as that of the Supreme Being (1794) or tributes to Rousseau. In the 19th century, Napoleon III added orangery (1852) and the palm game (1861), now museums. The fire of the Tuileries Palace in 1871, during the Commune, profoundly altered his perception: the ruins razed in 1883 gave way to visual continuity with the Louvre. The garden, classified as a historic monument since 1914 and protected by UNESCO, remains a major cultural place, welcoming exhibitions, art fairs and events like FIAC.

In the 20th century, the garden suffered wars (brush in 1918, vegetable gardens during the occupation) and renovations, such as that led by Louis Benech and Pascal Cribier from 1995. Since 2005, its management has been entrusted to the Louvre Museum, which exhibits modern sculptures (Rodin, Giacometti, Bourgeois) in dialogue with its historical heritage. Today, it combines heritage, contemporary art and Parisian life, with its 25.5 hectares open to the public.

The Tuileries Garden is also a place of artistic and scientific memory: first flight in inhabited balloon (1783), auto fairs (1898), or ephemeral installations such as the Tours de la Liberté (1989). His statues, some of which are casts, bear witness to his evolution, from royal sponsors (Coysevox, Barye) to Republican tributes (monuments to Jules Ferry or Waldeck-Rousseau).

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