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Arc de Triomphe
The Arc de Triomphe is a Paris monument situated in the middle of the Place Charles de Gaulle, also called a the Place de l'Étoile. Located at the western end of the Avenue des Champs-Élysées, this triumphal arch pays a tribute to all French armies who fought for France, especially those who took part in the wars during Napoleon reign. On the walls and the vault of the arch are written the names of French Army generals and of places where wars took place. Facing the Champs-Elysees Avenue lies the tomb of the unknown soldier in memory of all those who died during theses wars.
The Arc de Triomphe is in the middle of the grand perspective or historic axis, which is a very long route going from the Louvre Palace to Paris - La Defense, a business district on the outskirts of Paris. The Arc de triomphe was designed in 1806 by Jean Chalgrin, with architural details enhancing nationalistic and triumphant messages, which was commonplace for this kind of monuments until World War I.
This Paris monument is 162 ft height, 150 ft wide and 72 ft deep. It stands for the 2nd biggest triumphal arch in the world, the first one being an arch built in 1982 in North Koera honoring Kim Il-Sung. The arch's design took inspiration from the Arch of Titus in Roman era. The Arc de Triomphe is so high that in July 14th, 1919, a French aviator named Charles Godefroy flew through it with his 'bebe' Nieuport biplane. That event got a tremendous echo worldwide as this event took place only 3 weeks after the Paris victory parade in 1919, which marked the end of World War I. See the photo of Charles Godefroy's Flight taken by his friend, the journalist Jacques Mortane, a picture which contributed at that time to make this flight a worldwide event. See also a short video of Charles Godefroy's Flight (original documents at the Musee de l'Air et de l'Espace, Paris-Le Bourget).
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