The Panthéon

In 1764, Louis XV laid the first stone for a new church that was meant to be one of the largest in Paris. The King who had been seriously ill, had pledged to rebuild the Sainte-Genevieve church if he survived his ailment. The architect in charge, Soufflot died in 1780 so his student took over and finished the construction in 1789…

That’s the year the French Revolution began… and the problems of the Catholic Church started… In 1791, the Pantheon was born and became the resting place for the great figures who served the Nation. On the pediment, you can read the words: “Aux grands hommes, la patrie reconnaissante” (to great men, the grateful nation).

Among the 80 great figures interred there are philosophers and writers: Voltaire, Rousseau, Victor Hugo, Emile Zola, Alexandre Dumas; scientists: Pierre and Marie Curie; statesmen and politicians. Simone Veil, a minister and women’s rights advocate was “Pantheonized” in 2018.