The Institut de France is a French learned society that brings together five académies, including the prestigious Académie Française, guardian of the French language. Founded in 1795 at the direction of the National Convention, it is housed on the Quai de Conti in the 6th arrondissement of Paris.
Today, the Institut oversees nearly 1,000 foundations, along with museums and châteaux open to visitors. It also distributes prizes and grants—amounting to more than €27 million annually in 2017—most of them awarded on the recommendation of the académies.
Faithful to the mission set for it in 1795, the Institut and its five académies continue “to contribute, on a non-profit basis, to the progress and influence of letters, sciences, and the arts; to honor useful inventions and discoveries; to recognize distinguished artistic achievements; and to reward noble deeds and the steadfast practice of civic and social virtues.”
Tucked beside the Comédie-Française, Place Colette is more than just a Parisian square—it’s a stage where the city itself performs. Named in 1966 after the writer Colette (1873–1954), following a request by her daughter to then–Minister of Culture André Malraux, the square has since become a beloved gathering spot. On warm evenings, people often come here to dance in public, filling the air with music and movement. It’s a joy to witness, and a reminder of Paris’s enduring spirit of playfulness.
Suggestion: If you’re nearby, try this walking route that includes Place Colette, the Palais-Royal, and surrounding streets. It’s a beautiful way to experience Parisian history and atmosphere at a relaxed pace.
As a lover of France and its language, walking into the Comédie-Française feels like stepping into the heart of French culture. Founded in 1680 by decree of Louis XIV, it is the world’s oldest active theater company and the only state theater in France with its own permanent troupe of actors.
Its main stage, the Salle Richelieu, stands within the Palais-Royal complex in the 1st arrondissement. The setting is both grand and intimate — a space steeped in history yet alive with contemporary energy.
Often called La Maison de Molière, the theater honors the playwright most closely tied to its legacy. Though Molière died before the company was formally created, the Comédiens-Français still perform his plays and pay tribute to him each January 15.
The Comédie-Française is often associated with the classical repertoire, but creation has always been central to its mission. In 2023, I saw a modern staging of Médée d’après Euripide that showed just how vital and daring the troupe remains.
If you speak French, it’s worth buying a ticket. Sitting in that gilded hall, you’re not just a spectator — you’re part of a living tradition more than three centuries old.
The 13th arrondissement of Paris is dominated by modern high-rise buildings, a sharp contrast to the historic architecture of the city center. Many now feature large-scale murals by French and international urban artists. There are more than fifty in total. This thoughtful initiative—not just decoration, but deliberate place-making—aims to bring warmth to otherwise stark facades.
This inventive urban renewal effort brings color and character to the neighborhood, offering a different experience from the artistic treasures of central Paris.
The Musée Nissim de Camondo is a historic house museum of French decorative arts, located in the Hôtel Camondo at 63 rue de Monceau, on the edge of Parc Monceau in Paris’s 8th arrondissement.
The home was built in 1911 by Ottoman-born Jewish banker and art collector Count Moïse de Camondo, inspired by the Petit Trianon at Versailles. It was designed to house his remarkable collection of decorative arts and fine furniture.
Tragedy shaped its fate. In 1917, the Count’s only son, Nissim, was killed in World War I. Shattered by the loss, the Count withdrew from society and dedicated himself entirely to perfecting his collection. When he died in 1935, he left the house and all it contained to the Musée des Arts Décoratifs, stipulating that it become a museum in Nissim’s memory.
Just nine years later, the Count’s last surviving heir, his daughter Béatrice, was deported to Auschwitz along with her family during the Nazi occupation of France. None survived. The Camondo family line ended, leaving the house as its sole surviving legacy.
Built in the late 17th century under King Louis XIV, Les Invalides was originally designed as a home and hospital for war veterans. Today, it stands as one of Paris’s most iconic sites—part military museum, part monument, and the final resting place of Napoleon Bonaparte.
Located in the 7th arrondissement, Les Invalides houses the Musée de l’Armée (Army Museum), which showcases centuries of French military history, from medieval armor to World War II artifacts. The golden dome of the Dôme des Invalides is visible from across Paris, glinting in the sunlight and dominating the skyline.
The site has played a role in pivotal moments of French history. It was stormed during the French Revolution in 1789, when rioters seized weapons stored inside. In 1840, Napoleon’s remains were brought here from Saint Helena and interred beneath the grand dome—a solemn resting place fit for an emperor. In 1906, the courtyard of Les Invalides was the setting for the formal rehabilitation ceremony of Alfred Dreyfus, marking the end of one of France’s most infamous miscarriages of justice.
This towering sculpture of Japanese contemporary artist Yayoi Kusama stands on rue du Pont Neuf, between the Louis Vuitton headquarters and the Samaritaine. Bold, whimsical, and impossible to overlook, it stopped me in my tracks and turned an ordinary walk into a moment I’ll remember.
That stretch of the Pont Neuf was alive with the hum of Paris—buses rumbling past, the scent of fresh pastries drifting from a nearby café, and above it all, Kusama’s unmistakable polka dots adding a splash of surreal joy to the scene.
Yayoi Kusama—often called the princess of polka dots—is one of the world’s most distinctive living artists, known for her playful patterns and immersive installations.
The Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel (Triumphal Arch of the Carousel) stands in the Place du Carrousel, just west of the Louvre. It was commissioned by Napoleon and built between 1806 and 1808 to commemorate his military victories of 1805 — especially the Battle of Austerlitz — during the War of the Third Coalition.
The arch is 63 feet (19 m) high, 75 feet (23 m) wide, and 24 feet (7.3 m) deep. Its 21-foot (6.4 m) central arch is flanked by two smaller arches, each 14 feet (4.3 m) high and 9 feet (2.7 m) wide. Eight Corinthian columns of marble line its exterior, each topped by a soldier of the Empire.
The far better-known Arc de Triomphe de l’Étoile, at the western end of the Champs-Élysées, was designed in the same year but is about twice the size. It was not completed until 1836.
The monument was designed by Charles Percier and Pierre-François-Léonard Fontaine. Its proportions were based on the Arch of Septimius Severus in Rome, while some decorative elements echo the Arch of Constantine. It originally served as the gateway to the Tuileries Palace, Napoleon’s Imperial residence. When the Tuileries were destroyed during the Paris Commune in 1871, the site opened onto a long westward view toward the Arc de Triomphe.
The frontispiece on the west façade (facing the Tuileries site) reads:
“À la voix du vainqueur d’Austerlitz L’empire d’Allemagne tombe La confédération du Rhin commence Les royaumes de Bavière et de Wurtemberg sont créés Venise est réunie à la couronne de fer L’Italie entière se range sous les lois de son libérateur”
This proclaims the sweeping changes Napoleon made in Europe after his 1805 victory: the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire, the formation of the Confederation of the Rhine, the creation of new kingdoms in Bavaria and Württemberg, the annexation of Venice, and the consolidation of nearly all Italy under French rule. From Austerlitz in 1805 to Waterloo in 1815, Napoleon’s peak political dominance lasted about a decade — his entire reign as Emperor was just 11 years — yet this monument remains a proud reminder of that era.
Before visiting Paris for the first time, I saw a film called A Little Romance, starring a young Diane Lane as a sharp-witted 13-year-old American girl living in Paris. There’s a charming scene in the film (starting at 21:14) that takes place at the Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel. Although I first saw the film more than 40 years ago, that moment made me want to visit Paris — and it’s stayed with me ever since. In person, the monument and its surroundings surpass what I saw in the film. I make a point to visit every time I’m in Paris.
The residence of the United States Ambassador to Paris is at 41 rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré in the 8th arrondissement. It is known as the Hôtel de Pontalba. It was built by Louis Visconti for the New Orleans–born Baroness Micaela Almonester de Pontalba between 1842 and 1855. Edmond James de Rothschild acquired the building in 1876.
During the German occupation of France, the mansion, then owned by Baron Maurice de Rothschild, was requisitioned as an officers’ club for the Luftwaffe. After the war, it was rented out to the British Royal Air Force Club, and then to the United States.
In 1948, the American government purchased the building, primarily for the United States Information Service. These offices were moved to the Hôtel Talleyrand as restoration was completed in 1971 during the tenure of Ambassador Arthur K. Watson. The building then became the official residence of the ambassador. This magnificent structure has only been the Ambassador’s residence for a little more than fifty years.
Dietrich v. Choltitz — Bundesarchiv, Bild 183-R63712 / CC-BY-SA 3.0, CC BY-SA 3.0 DE via Wikimedia Commons
At the end of WWII, Adolf Hitler ordered Choltitz to hold Paris, but if that wasn’t possible, to destroy it. Although General Choltitz had been very loyal to Hitler, he could not bring himself to obliterate the City of Light. He ultimately surrendered Paris to French forces on August 25, 1944. He’s been called the “Saviour of Paris” for preventing its destruction.
After his surrender, Choltitz was held for the remainder of the war in London and the United States and was ultimately released from captivity in 1947. He died in Baden-Baden in 1966.
The author of this exceptional book was the distinguished political scientist and biographer Jean Edward Smith. Smith’s work includes highly regarded biographies of Ulysses S. Grant and Dwight D. Eisenhower. He died on September 1, 2019 at the age of 86.
