Les Invalides

Les Invalides, also known as the L'Hôtel national des Invalides, is a complex of buildings located in the 7th arrondissement of Paris, south of the River Seine, which is made up of several museums dedicated to the French army: the Musée de l'Armée, the military museum of the Army of France, the Musée des Plans-Reliefs, and the Musée d'Histoire Contemporaineall, as well as a hospital and a retirement home for war veterans. It is also the burial site of some of French war veterans, including Napoleon Bonaparte. The entire complex features 15 courtyards.

The architect Liberal Bruant, commissioned by King Louis XIV, designed the building in the Baroque style. The initial purpose of the building was to provide home and health care for aged and sick soldiers. The construction of Les Invalides began in 1670 and was completed in 1676. Two years later a chapel for the veterans, known as Église Saint-Louis des Invalides, was added to the complex, designed by Bruant's assistant Jules Hardouin Mansart. Not long after the chapel was finished, Louis XIV assigned Monsart to build another, separate chapel. The construction of the chapel was completed in 1708 and it came to be known as the Église du Dôme. The chapel is located in the royal courtyard, the central point of the complex, which was used for military parades

The architecture of the chapel is based on St. Peter's Basilica in Rome and has a characteristic Baroque dome reminiscent of that of its Roman cousin. The dome is 107 meters high and its interior is covered with paintings by Charles de La Fosse. Today, the Église du Dôme contains the tombs of such famous military leaders like Napoleon Bonaparte, Henri de Turenne, Sebastian Vauban and Ferdinand Foch.