Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The Louvre Palace found its origins in the 12th century under Philippe Auguste, who erected a fortress there to protect Paris from invasions. This medieval castle, with an imposing dungeon and a fortified enclosure, quickly becomes a symbol of royal power. In the 14th century, Charles V transformed the fortress into a royal residence, installing its library and the Treasury, while maintaining a defensive function.

In the Renaissance, François I modernized the Louvre by destroying the medieval dungeon and entrusting Pierre Lescot with the construction of a Renaissance palace. The Lescot wing, with its sculptures by Jean Goujon, embodies the French architecture of the period. Henry II continued the work, adding the hall of the Caryatids and the king's pavilion, while Catherine de Medici initiated the palace of the Tuileries and its gardens.

Henri IV launches the "Grand Dessein" to unify the Louvre and the Tuileries via the Grande Galerie, 450 meters long. Under Louis XIII and Louis XIV, the palace expanded with the Cour Carrée and the colonnade of Perrault, although Versailles became the main residence. The Revolution transformed the Louvre into a museum in 1793, opening the royal collections to the public.

Napoleon I and Napoleon III gradually completed the Grand Dessein, permanently linking the two palaces. The Second Empire finished the Rivoli wing and symmetrical pavilions. After the fire of the Tuileries in 1871, the Louvre remains a cultural symbol, modernized in the 20th century by the pyramid of Pei and the Grand Louvre project, also revealing its medieval remains.

Today, the palace houses the Louvre Museum, the Decorative Arts, and the Louvre School. Its 210,000 m2 make it the largest palace in Western Europe, attracting more than 10 million visitors annually. Ranked a Historic Monument, it embodies eight centuries of French history, from medieval fortress to universal museum.

The origin of the name " Louvre" remains debated: some see it as a link with the Latin lupus (loup), evoking a moultery, while others propose a Celtic or Germanic root (leovar, "fortified castle"). Archaeological excavations revealed traces of Philippe Auguste's enclosure and successive extensions, testifying to its constant evolution.

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