Paris : Paris Tourism

The Army Museum was born in 1905 from the merger of the Artillery Museum and the Historical Museum of the Army. Implanted in the heart of the Hotel National des Invalides, prestigious building founded by King Louis XIV to house wounded soldiers The Museum of Army brings masterpieces of military art. It brings together outstanding collections of armor and old weapons, artillery pieces, emblems, uniforms, orders and decorations, and military iconography since the Middle Ages to the present days. The origin of this institution dates back to 1684, when Marshal d'Humières formed at Arsenal deposit models that General Gribeauval developed in the late eighteenth century. This first collection almost entirely dispersed in 1789, was reconstituted by Regnier, weapons controller. It was installed in the convent of leaves, then the Convent of the Jacobins of St Thomas Aquinas, and finally transferred and expanded in 1871 at the Hotel des Invalides. The fund collection is made up of remnants of public collections (Arsenal de Strasbourg) or private (collections of the Dukes of Bouillon, Conde). It has been enriched by Napoleon, the collection of Napoleon III, General Vanson, of Ruffin, Acari and Pauilhac. The museum rooms spread over 7,000 m2, which must be added the two churches of the Hotel des Invalides.

Weapons (from prehistory, antiquity and the early Middle Ages) and weaves of the XVth and XVIth century, of all origins (Europe, East and Far East). Armor or armor elements of the kings of France and great characters. Collections of assorted weapons. Old guns and small artillery models. Rooms of military memorabilia of Henry IV to Louis XVI. Many memories of Napoleon. Uniforms and military memorabilia of the Restoration, the July Monarchy, Second Empire, the Republic IIIrd, wars of the nineteenth century and colonial campaigns. Rooms devoted to the War of 1914 - 1918, with memories of all the Allied armies. Trophies, military emblems and flags of the War of 1939 to 1945. Opening of new rooms in June 2000 devoted to the Second World War. Project Athena, restructuring General 9000m ² which extends until 2009.