Marie de Médicis : la reine déchue
Bien le bonjour ! Je vous retrouve aujourdâhui pour ce troisiĂšme et dernier article dĂ©diĂ© Ă Marie de MĂ©dicis.
Comme nous lâavons vu dans lâarticle prĂ©cĂ©dent, la rĂ©gence de Marie de MĂ©dicis vient de toucher Ă sa fin. Louis XIII entre dans sa quatorziĂšme annĂ©e, la majoritĂ© royale, et il est donc normalement prĂȘt Ă rĂ©gner. Jâinsiste sur le normalement car les choses ne vont pas se dĂ©rouler si simplement.
En effet Marie de MĂ©dicis ne considĂšre pas son fils comme apte Ă prendre le relais. Louis XIII ne semble pas sâintĂ©resser au Conseil, bien quâil y assiste par obligation. Il est taciturne, introverti, bĂšgue... Bref, il ne correspond pas aux attentes de sa royale maman qui va donc prendre la tĂȘte du Conseil pour continuer de sâoccuper des affaires dâĂ©tat.
La diffĂ©rence Ă©tant quâen tant que chef du Conseil, Marie de MĂ©dicis nâa plus Ă se tenir Ă lâancienne politique dâHenri IV comme elle le devait durant la rĂ©gence. Ayant prit goĂ»t au pouvoir, elle change complĂštement le gouvernement, dĂ©signe Richelieu aux Affaires Ă©trangĂšres, et fait accĂ©der Concino Concini (et oui, il est toujours lĂ ) Ă un rĂŽle politique gouvernemental de premiĂšre importance puisquâil doit protĂ©ger et gĂ©rer cette nouvelle Ă©quipe.
Mais Marie est une femme (ah oui, lâĂ©galitĂ© homme/femme au XVIe siĂšcle câest pas fou), et bien quâelle dĂ©tienne toujours son titre de reine, elle nâest pas censĂ©e avoir le pouvoir de tout remanier comme bon lui semble. Les Grands (la noblesse) se rĂ©voltent, dĂ©noncent la mauvaise influence du conseiller italien et vont trouver un alliĂ© en la personne... de Louis XIII. Car le jeune roi se sent humiliĂ© par sa mĂšre, qui monopolise le pouvoir ; sa relation avec elle a toujours Ă©tĂ© compliquĂ©e et Marie de MĂ©dicis nâa jamais cachĂ© sa prĂ©fĂ©rence pour le frĂšre de Louis, Gaston dâOrlĂ©ans, qui a hĂ©ritĂ© de son raffinement mais aussi de son inconstance. De plus Louis XIII dĂ©teste Concini, quâil considĂšre comme une tutelle encombrante.
Le jeune roi va donc dans le plus grand secret organiser avec lâaide du duc de Luynes, son plus proche ami, la chute du favori italien. Le 24 avril 1617, Concini est arrĂȘtĂ© au Louvre. Il tente vainement de rĂ©sister, dâaprĂšs les conspirateurs, qui vont alors lâexĂ©cuter : trois balles dans le visage et la gorge, les gardes lâachĂšveront Ă coups dâĂ©pĂ©e. Louis XIII aurait alors dĂ©clarĂ© âA cette heure, je suis Roiâ. Il en profite pour faire exĂ©cuter LĂ©onora GaligaĂŻ, lâaccusant de sorcellerie (ça marche Ă tous les coups il paraĂźt), il exile la reine-mĂšre au chĂąteau de Blois, et prend enfin le pouvoir.
Celle-ci vit trĂšs mal cet affront et ne conçoit pas dâĂȘtre mise Ă lâĂ©cart par son propre fils. NĂ©anmoins elle dĂ©cide dâamĂ©nager ce chĂąteau, y fait construire un pavillon (qui nâexiste plus aujourdâhui) par Salomon de Brosse, celui-lĂ mĂȘme qui construira un peu plus tard le palais du Luxembourg Ă Paris. Pas question pour elle de rĂ©duire son train de vie.
Le 22 fĂ©vrier 1619, grĂące Ă une Ă©chelle posĂ©e contre une fenĂȘtre, Marie de MĂ©dicis sâĂ©chappe du chĂąteau de Blois. Elle a cousu Ă lâintĂ©rieur de sa robe ses nombreux bijoux. Avec lâaide de quelques personnes dont sa servante, elle parvient tant bien que mal jusquâĂ la terrasse oĂč, avec lâaide dâune corde, elle va descendre aux pieds du chĂąteau 40 mĂštres plus bas puis rejoindre un carrosse. Une Ă©vasion digne dâun roman !
(Marie de MĂ©dicis sâĂ©chappant de Blois en toute discrĂ©tion)
Elle prend alors la tĂȘte du parti des malcontents et des nobles contre qui elle sâĂ©tait si longtemps opposĂ©e durant la rĂ©gence et va tout de mĂȘme ĂȘtre Ă lâorigine de deux petites guerres civiles (quâelle perdra) qui prendront le nom de âguerres de la mĂšre et du filsâ.
Louis XIII comprend alors que la seule façon dâarrĂȘter ces conflits est de rĂ©introduire Marie de MĂ©dicis Ă la cour de France et au Conseil du Roi. Et cette rĂ©conciliation est en partie dĂ» Ă un certain Richelieu, qui a su apaiser les tensions familiales. Marie revient donc Ă Paris accompagnĂ©e du Cardinal de Richelieu et lui fait Ă©galement intĂ©grer le Conseil le 29 avril 1624, malgrĂ© les rĂ©ticences de Louis XIII qui se souvient de lâancien ministre de sa mĂšre.
En parallĂšle, elle termine la construction du fameux palais du Luxembourg, oĂč siĂšge aujourdâhui le SĂ©nat, et sây installe en 1625. Elle offre dâailleurs le petit Luxembourg au Cardinal en 1627.
(Palais du Luxembourg Ă Paris)
Mais Marie se rend trĂšs vite compte quâelle nâa plus lâinfluence dâantan sur son fils, que ses conseils ne sont plus Ă©coutĂ©s et que Louis XIII sâest beaucoup rapprochĂ© de Richelieu avec qui il partage les mĂȘmes opinions politiques, notamment affirmer lâautoritĂ© royale (ce qui donnera par la suite les prĂ©mices de la monarchie absolue).
Se sentant exclue face Ă ce nouveau binĂŽme, redoutant la puissance de Richelieu qui a su se faire une place auprĂšs du roi Ă ses dĂ©pends, la reine-mĂšre dĂ©cide de passer Ă lâaction. Le 12 novembre 1630, elle convoque son fils au Palais du Luxembourg oĂč elle ordonne que personne ne viennent les dĂ©ranger. Marie de MĂ©dicis va alors demander Ă Louis XIII la destitution de Richelieu. Malheureusement pour elle, le roi dĂ©cide de garder auprĂšs de lui son prĂ©cieux ministre.
Marie, trahit par cet homme quâelle avait placĂ© elle-mĂȘme prĂšs de son fils, quitte la cour de France et va sâexiler au chĂąteau de CompiĂšgne. Elle tentera par la suite de monter de nouveaux complots (une fĂącheuse habitude visiblement), plaidant sa cause Ă Bruxelles, ce qui lui vaudra de perdre son statut de reine de France et donc ses pensions. Se faisant balloter entre les diffĂ©rentes cours dâEurope, en Angleterre mais Ă©galement en Allemagne, sans jamais pouvoir retourner en France.
Malade, elle se rĂ©fugie dans la maison de son ami peintre Pierre-Paul Rubens Ă Cologne. TrĂšs loin du faste et du confort de son Palais du Luxembourg, exilĂ©e et seule, Marie de MĂ©dicis sâĂ©teindra le 3 juillet 1642 Ă lâĂąge de 67 ans. Son corps sera ramenĂ© Ă Saint-Denis et Louis XIII interdira en France toute cĂ©rĂ©monie en lâhonneur de sa mĂšre.
Louis XIII dĂ©cĂ©dera quelques mois aprĂšs sa mĂšre, laissant la place Ă un nouveau roi qui nâa alors que quatre ans : Louis XIV.
Une nouvelle rĂ©gence, une nouvelle femme : Anne dâAutriche
Alors OUI JE SAIS, je vous vois venir, ce nâest pas une fin trĂšs glorieuse. Mais en regardant le parcours de cette femme dans sa globalitĂ©, on remarque sa force de caractĂšre, et surtout son ambition Ă toutes Ă©preuves. Car elle nâa cessĂ© de se battre pour obtenir gain de cause : contre son mari Henri IV dâabord, qui ne souhaitait pas la faire couronner. Contre les aristocrates et les princes du sang pendant la rĂ©gence, prĂ©servant la couronne  pour son fils. Puis contre son fils lui mĂȘme, ne le croyant pas capable de gouverner ce pays dont elle Ă©tait devenue reine et dans lequel elle ne sera jamais rĂ©ellement acceptĂ©e.
JâespĂšre sincĂšrement que ce sujet vous aura plu, nâhĂ©sitez pas Ă me faire des retours sur ces premiers articles, Ă poser des questions si vous en avez, et je vous retrouve bientĂŽt pour un sujet complĂštement diffĂ©rent !
Bonne soirée,
Lâescadron guidant
Bio : https://www.histoire-pour-tous.fr/histoire-de-france/1550-louis-xiii-le-juste-roi-de-france-1601-1643.html https://www.lhistoire.fr/le-roi-est-mort-vive-la-r%C3%A9gente https://www.linternaute.fr/actualite/biographie/1776094-cardinal-de-richelieu-mousquetaires-la-rochelle-la-vraie-biographie-du-ministre-de-louis-xiii/
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The Louvre and Eiffel Tower
28/04/2018: An early rise today for at least one person while the rest took it easy. The purpose was to take a walk through Jardin des Tuileries while the crowds weren't around. It was well worth the effort to be able to move around with plenty of room. After the walk, it was briefly back to the room and out again along Rue Saint-Honoré for croissants and pastries. Returning for breakfast we were then all on the move to Paris City Vision, also known as Get Your Guide to collect the Skip the Line tickets to the Louvre.
Allée Centrale,  Jardin des Tuileries
We were in the queue at around nine fifteen, waiting to go through the Pyramid entrance security and down to NapolĂ©on Hall, directly beneath the large glass pyramid. Today Shane made the choice of sticking with the girls and Tom and Beau heading off on a brother adventure. This was a wise move as the girls were always left behind as Cecilia wasnât use to keeping up with the pace set by Shane and therefore the girls walked slower than the boys and were always left far behind.  Sadly, we were to discover the reason for Ceciliaâs struggle to keep up a few months after returning to Australia. Anyway, this separation between the men and women folk were making the girls feel like it was an âus and themâ holiday when out exploring. So good boy Shane for keeping with the women today. We immediately grabbed a few maps and headed to the Sully Wing, via the ticket box and more security, where the some of the original fortress still stands. Last time it was closed for a reno. Also, the last time we were here, we were guided by Violetta, a masters student in French art and since that was what she was familiar with, thatâs what we looked at. By the time we were finished the tour and were able to wander around at will, we were knackered. This time we were on a mission to see whatever else was around, but in particular, the Egyptian stuff.
The Foyer under the Glass Pyramid. Leading to all wings
First impressions were great. As we entered the basement of the Sully Wing, we were drawn to the start of the Pavillon de d'Horloge devoted to the history of the museum and its collections including the original fortress of which plenty still remains today.
Relationship of the original fortress within the Louvre
The path led around the base of what remained of the fortress and included a walkway so that we could walk within the original moat.
Prior to his departure on crusade in 1190, Philip II (King Philippe Auguste), son of Louis VII, erected a fortified enclosure to protect Paris against the threat of invaders while he was away. Ordering the construction of a great wall around the city, he reinforced it at the junction with the Seine by building a defensive fortress. Square in plan with corner towers and an imposing central keep. The Seine fed a moat that encompassed the entire structure with another moat surrounding the keep. Two gates, flanked by towers, were built within the wall, one facing south towards the Seine and the other facing east, leading to the city. As Paris spread west, the castle lost its defensive effectiveness and was later transformed into a luxurious royal residence by King Charles V.
The outer wall of the fortress (and probably the outer moat)
The inner moat and the keep
The path skirted the outer moat and to the far side of the ruins, past the Crypt of the Sphinx and to a long staircase that climbed to the floor above. Halfway up we had a choice, left or right. We chose the right and ended up in the Greek, Etruscan and Roman Antiquities Rooms, which were shared by the Sully and Denon Wings and were welcomed by Athena, a three metre high antique replica of the original bronze from around 430BC.
Great Sphinx of Tanis. "Found" a couple of hundred years ago in the ruins of the Temple of Amun at Tanis (the capital of Egypt during the 21st and 22nd dynasties
Hello! (La Pallas de Velletri)
With Athena behind us, we entered a large room which was full of artefacts from the Greek, or Roman copies of long lost Greek bronzes going back several hundred centuries BC. Bigger than life (they're gods so they should be) statues of Ares, Aphrodites, Zeus, Hermes and such were scattered throughout with smaller, mantle size pieces around the peripheral and reliefs and friezes on the walls.
Aphrodite ("Venus Genitrix")
Zeus, dieu des cieux et maĂźtre de lâOlympe
The entire display covered the whole Mediterranean basin from the sixth century AD back to Neolithic times. At the end of the Greek section Venus de Milo, demanding her own room ferried us through to the Etruscan and Roman sections.
Doing an about face, we retraced our steps to the central stairs, descended to the landing, back up to the Egyptian Antiquities section and further to the Near Eastern area in the Richelieu Wing, dominated by Iran and Mesopotamia.
Small alcoves were lined with small figurines of Egyptian history. The larger areas were divided by displays of the same, thereby creating more small alcoves. Almost all of the displays were protected in glass. Interesting stuff, jewellery, trinkets, decorative objects, toys and what seemed like kitchen accessories.
Statue du dieu Horus, worshipped from at least the late prehistoric Egypt until the Ptolemaic Kingdom and Roman Egypt, he was one of the most significant ancient Egyptian deities
Partial sarcophagus lid
The row of sphinxes nearby was interesting, a half a dozen were impressive enough, but apparently several hundred of them lined the processional way to the Serapeum in Saqqara, which has long since gone. An 1850's tomb raider noticed these at various antique shops around town and put two and two together. It was apparent that some of the sphinxes came from the same place so he went out and found the place, thereby finding all of the sphinxes, buried in sand.
Six des sphinx qui bordaient l'allée menant au Sérapéum de Saqqara
We then came across the mummy sarcophagi, quite a few mainly protected by glass cabinets. Amongst them all was an actual mummy, a well preserved specimen of a male that lived during the Ptolemaic Period. After death and during the mummification process, he was covered in strips of linen and after receiving more attention to dry him out a bit, was covered in cartonnage which consisted of a mask covering his head, a wide collar over his chest, an apron across his legs and a casing over the feet.
This was one of the highlights of the day, probably for everyone as it was difficult to get close to him.
Momie recouverte de ses "cartonnages". Mummy covered with its "Cartonnages ". Embalming jars as well
As the Egyptian section finished, the Near Eastern Antiquities started. The Levant was an area located at the western extreme of the Mediterranean but not too far inland. It seemed to encompass modern day Syria, Jordan, down to what is now the Suez Canal and all between. The sarcophagus of Eshmunazar II, King of Sidon was carved around 500BC for a king whose demise was ahead of his time (he died when 14 years old and ruled the kingdom with his mother). Sidon was located in Phoenicia, now Lebanon and later expanded its horizons by being given lands by the Persian "Lord of Kings", Xerxes as reward by providing their naval fleet to the Persian forces.
The epitaph across the chest and around the head describes a king who died young and curses on anyone who should trouble his rest among the RephaĂŻm, followed by a genealogy of the royal family, concluding with a final curse on those who would "raise my slab" and remove the sarcophagus.
The next section was Iran followed by Mesopotamia. There was some great stuff here, the highlights being some friezes from the Persian King Darius I back around 500BC. The first was of lions made of a glazed brick and came from Mesopotamia. They were displayed in his Susa palace and was a symbol of power, embodying the king of beasts. The next frieze was not so certain as to its origins. They were the Archers on Parade depicting two symmetrical lines of soldiers, bow and quiver around their shoulders, both hands holding their spears. Very impressive and quite colourful.
The Frieze of Lions from the first court of Darius Iâs palace at Susa
Archers on Parade
Although there was other great stuff in this area, the other impressive artefact was the temple headstock and column (or the colossal capital), one of thirty six that once held up the roof components of the apadana at Susa. A couple of bulls kneeling back to back atop of Egyptian style palm fronds and double volutes with rosettes taken from the temple of Artemis at Ephesus. There wasn't too much in one piece when excavators excavated during the late nineteenth century which explained the colour difference (veined grey limestone brought to the plain of Susa from the Zagros Mountains) due to the capital being reconstructed from bits and pieces of the thirty six columns that originally existed.
Chapiteau d'une colonne de la salle d'audiences (Apadana) du Palais de Darius Ier
The final part, after a break at the café overlooking Napoléon Hall, was back to the Denon Wing to finish off with a few more statues and some paintings, particularly looking forward to the pushing and shoving in front of the Mona Lisa. After ascending a rather grand staircase we found ourselves on the ground floor amongst the European sculptures before climbing one more floor to the paintings of France, Italy and Spain. One of the final acts of the morning, after wandering through the corridors of religious art was to enter Room 711 where the incredibly underwhelming Mona Lisa proudly hung.
First break for the day.
Andrea di Bartolo dit Solario. La Crucifixion
There she is
That was it. Louvre over and lunch ahead, followed by the tower. Playing it safe, we headed back to where we knew, via the Carrousel du Louvre underground shopping centre, eventually reaching the surface at Arc de Triompe du Carrousel, watched a weirdo pigeon man walking around dropping wheat out of his pockets and braved the irksome Africans and gypsies trying to con us or flog us something. Once through the cordon of conmen we settled in at the Le Carrousel Bar and Brasserie for pizza and snails.
Cordon of conmen
Snails for lunch
After lunch we walked back through the gardens towards Place de la Concorde and further to Avenue Winston Churchill, across the road from the Grand Palais. From there we had a good look at our next destination, the Eiffel Tower. Shane and Jo had seen it before so were doing something different while Cec and the boys went to the top. We proceeded as one to the ticket place where they would meet up with their escort for the trip to the top, then separate for a while.
We Shall Never Surrender
Winston Churchill
Londres le 4 Juin 1940
Leaving Cec, Tom and Beau at the meeting place and agreeing to meet below at the tower ticket collection box later on, Jo and Shane headed along Rue de Grenelle a few streets away to Rue Cler for a Rick Steves audio tour starting with Café Rousillon.
Emmanuel Macron lived in an apartment in Rue Cler before becoming president. Even though he and his wife occasionally shopped in the street, business owners and residents were glad to see the back of them after he was voted in as president. From the vote until the inauguration, the lived in Rue Cler but then moved to Palais de l'élysée, the Presidential residence. During that period the extra security, movement restrictions and extra crowds caused the locals some angst until he left and calm was restored. Shop owners lost business due to street closures. It's okay now and they'll probably be welcomed back when he leaves politics.
Café Rousillon
At the Bar Prices
Taking Rick's advice and saving money by standing for cafés, we then moved across Rue de Grenelle to a neat and village like street, lined with open aired produce stands, made particularly inviting by excluding all but service vehicles beyond the intersection.
Bunches of radishes. The French have a real flair for produce display
Looking down Rue Cler from Café Rousillion
The street had everything. Apparently, many Parisiennes shop for food daily in street markets just like this as not only are they after fresh food, but their apartments are small and so are their fridges. To shop daily may not only be a preference but a necessity.
Immediately on our left was the only supermarket to be seen, albeit typically small. A fruit stall on either side constricted the street but it soon opened up to specialty shops, hotels and banks, hidden behind closed doors and partially obscured by the fishmongers, cheese shops, bakers and butchers who opened their doors wide and spilled their produce onto the street.
Top Halles
La Fromagerie
La Fromagerie has been in Rue Cler for generations, straight across the street was La Sablaise Poissonniere-Traiteur, supplying fresh seafood daily from the English Channel. There were more cafés, where if one desired could have a café and smoke while sitting on the footpath, facing the crowds, Traiteur Jeusselin which served precooked meal portions for people to buy on their way home from work if too busy to cook and Boucherie du Perche. People around the area didn't have a garden per se, but flower boxes hanging from the window sill. They still had an appetite for flowers as the florist was pretty popular.
La Sablaise Poissonniere-Traiteur
Boucherie du Perche
Cler Fleurs
This was an interesting experience but catering more for the top end of town given some of the prices.
Rue Cler came to an abrupt halt at its intersection with Avenue de la Motte-Piquet. Turning right we followed the avenue to the Cavalerie building on Place Joffre, standing at the top of Champ de Mars, a tree lined and grassed park which would lead us to the Eiffel Tower at the other end.
The tower at the end of Champ de Mars
Partially down the Champ de Mars we were lucky enough to experience something that made our day. Amongst the families and couples taking it easy around the place, there was a young couple quickly becoming the centre of attention. The young bloke had a couple of mates with him and duly went down on one knee and opened up a jewellery box with a ring in it. Whilst this was happening one of his mates was playing the violin and the other recording everything. We were a bit far away to hear but she must have said yes as those closer started to applaud. A touching moment to soon be over shadowed by the crowds ahead and the hordes of Africans trying to flog models of the tower.
Romance in Champ de Mars
While this was all happening, Cec, Beau and Thomas were enjoying the city from the top of the tower.
Looking over Paris
As Jo and Shane moved closer to the proposed meeting point below the tower, it was apparent that it would not go to plan. Considerable construction works were underway to construct a "terrorist proof" fence around the tower. The fence will be made of thick glass that will supposedly stop bullets and car bombers and cost several tens of millions of Euro.
Let the fence begin
With no communication and our meeting plan in tatter as there was no ticket box to meet as planned and there were 4 different entry/exit points, we had no idea where the crew would emerge from. Jo and Shane headed to the park besides the north rafter and waited. Jo wandered around panicking, Shane just sat, moving around, trying to find a seat without bird shit on it. There were plenty of vacant benches for a reason. Just as annoying were the Africans, they were everywhere trying to make a buck. There didn't seem to be much competition as they were all standing together in small groups selling the same thing, models of the tower. They did however, move pretty quickly when the gendarmes approached. Within not to long spent waiting, firstly Tom and Beau walked out the gate followed a short time later by Cecilia, bitchin about how the group dropping them off somehow and they had to fend for themselves. Anyway, it didn't matter now as we were all together again. When asked how did they enjoy their experience, Cecilia said she was too terrified, fearing that an attack on the tower was imminent, As like all major tourist spots, the area had armed troops patrolling the area and being a large city, sirens wailing through the streets was commonplace, we were use to this from previous travels but this was a new experience for Cecilia , thus fuelling her fear for expecting a disaster was  pending. Beau has an extreme fear of hieghts but was proud of the fact he did manage to stand at the railings of the top level viewing deck, take in the vista, albeit feeling like he left his fingerprints embedded in the steel hand rail.
Gendarmes causing a stir
The trip back to the apartment was interrupted by a beer at CafĂ© Roussillon in the Le Cler district. While here, Beau made a very interesting observation, on visiting the toilet area of the bar. There was only one toilet that had a step up to it, the disabled toilet. What the Heck!! Time to head home. Women taxied; men walked. By then it was after seven, back at the apartment by eight.Â
Back at CafĂ© RoussillonÂ
Cosy lift
Twilight view from our apartment
Tomorrow, the Catacombes, for the boys, a special treat, for the girls with breakfast and Café Angilina, and then Notre Dame, Saint-Chappelle and the football.
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4 mars 1988. Inauguration de la pyramide du Louvre par le président François Mitterrand
 Parmi les grands travaux engagĂ©s au cours de son premier septennat, en 1981, le prĂ©sident François Mitterrand annonce le lancement du projet du "Grand Louvre". Il sâagit de consacrer lâensemble des bĂątiments du Louvre Ă la prĂ©sentation des collections nationales. Ainsi la nouvelle affectation de lâaile Richelieu, construite sous NapolĂ©on III, et occupĂ©e par le ministĂšre des Finances depuis 1871, permet de libĂ©rer 21 500 m2 dâespaces dâexposition supplĂ©mentaires. Lâouverture du passage Richelieu va Ă©galement permettre un accĂšs direct avec le Palais Royal.
Le projet du Grand Louvre ne consiste pas seulement Ă agrandir des espaces dâexposition mieux conçus pour la prĂ©sentation des Ćuvres, mais Ă rendre un musĂ©e  devenu si vaste accessible et confortable.
Lâ enjeu du projet est de repenser la circulation des visiteurs Ă lâintĂ©rieur des espaces du musĂ©e aussi bien quâĂ lâextĂ©rieur du bĂątiment. LâidĂ©e est de pouvoir y pĂ©nĂ©trer Ă partir du point central qui se trouve situĂ© dans la cour NapolĂ©on. Câest de lĂ que naĂźt le projet dâaccĂ©der au Grand Louvre par un vaste souterrain central, mais ouvert Ă lâair libre, Ă lâespace, Ă la lumiĂšre. Dans cette perspective, lâarchitecte amĂ©ricain dâorigine chinoise, leoh Ming Pei, propose dâĂ©difier la pyramide de verre que lâon peut voir aujourdâhui. Les travaux dĂ©marrent en 1983.
"Je suis de ceux qui croient profondĂ©ment (...) qu'une politique culturelle est Ă la base de toute autre politique, qu'il faut que les Français se retrouvent dans leur histoire, dans leur art, leur passĂ©, pour qu'ils sachent mieux avoir l'ambition de leur avenir", dĂ©clare le prĂ©sident François Mitterrand lors de lâinauguration de la pyramide du Louvre, le 4 mars 1988.
Le projet de leoh Ming Pei comporte plusieurs pyramides de verre, cinq au total. SituĂ©e au milieu de la cour NapolĂ©on, la pyramide principale, entourĂ©e de trois pyramidions, offre avec ingĂ©niositĂ© un nouvel accĂšs permettant de desservir tous les espaces du musĂ©e. Mais il y a aussi la pyramide inversĂ©e qui se trouve sous le Carrousel du Louvre. Les proportions de la pyramide du Louvre, composĂ©e de 603 losanges et de 70 triangles en verre lĂ©ger et transparent, sont celles, naturellement rĂ©duites, de la pyramide de KhĂ©ops en Ăgypte. Chaque pyramide  constitue un puits de lumiĂšre qui permet dâintroduire la lumiĂšre naturelle dans lâespace intĂ©rieur. Quant aux bassins dâeau bordant les pyramides, ils reflĂštent les bĂątiments Ă lâentour : le Pavillon de lâhorloge, le Pavillon Richelieu, le Pavillon Denon.
Inaugurée le 4 mars 1988, la pyramide du Louvre ouvre au public le 1er avril 1989.
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