General view

The Arc de Triomphe, in full Arc de Triomphe de l'Étoile, massive triumphal arch in Paris, France, is one of the world's best-known commemorative monuments. It stands at the centre of the Place Charles de Gaulle (formerly called the Place de l'Étoile). Napoleon I commissioned the triumphal arch in 1806 — after his great victory at the Battle of Austerlitz (1805) — to celebrate the military achievements of the French armies. The arch, designed by Jean-François-Thérese Chalgrin, is 50 metres high and 45 metres wide. It sits in a circular plaza from which 12 grand avenues radiate, forming a star (étoile).

Construction of the arch began in 1806, on August 15, Napoleon's birthday. Little more than the foundation had been completed by the time of his marriage to the Austrian archduchess Marie-Louise in 1810, so, in honour of her ceremonial entry into Paris, a full-scale depiction of the completed design, created from wood and painted canvas, was erected at the site. That gave Chalgrin the opportunity to see his design in place on the site, and he made some small amendments to it. At the time of his death in 1811, only a small portion of the structure had been completed, and work slowed further after Napoleon's abdication as emperor and the Bourbon Restoration (1814). Thus, little more was accomplished until the resumption of work was ordered in 1823 by King Louis XVIII, who was motivated by the success of the French invasion of Spain that restored King Ferdinand VII's power as absolute monarch. The basic structure of the monument was finished by 1831; work was completed in 1836, during the reign of King Louis-Philippe, who opened it officially on July 29.

Chalgrin's design is Neoclassical, inspired in part by the Arch of Titus in the Roman Forum. Decorative high-relief sculptures celebrating military victories of the Revolution and the First Empire were executed on the façades of the arch's four pedestals by François Rude, Jean-Pierre Cortot, and Antoine Etex. The most famous of those sculptures is Rude's group Departure of the Volunteers of 1792 (popularly called La Marseillaise). Other surfaces are decorated with the names of hundreds of generals and battles.

The Arc de Triomphe continues to serve as an iconic symbol of France, to the country itself and to the world. The coffins of many French luminaries, such as Victor Hugo and Ferdinand Foch, have lain in state there before their interment elsewhere. In addition, victory parades have frequently marched past the arch, both those of invading powers (such as Germany, in 1871 and 1940) and of France and its allies (in 1918, 1944 [upon the liberation of Paris during World War II], and 1945 [after the end of the war in Europe]).