Arc de Triomphe - Free Audio Guide

The Arc de Triomphe, commissioned by Napoleon after his early nineteenth‑century victories and completed under King Louis‑Philippe, occupies the centre of Place Charles de Gaulle at the western end of the Champs‑Élysées in Paris. Executed in a Neoclassical mode by Jean Chalgrin and modelled on Roman triumphal arches, it honours those who fought and died for France in the Revolutionary and Napoleonic periods; names of commanders and battles are carved into its surfaces. Beneath its vault rests the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and its eternal flame, a powerful emblem of national remembrance. Sculptural groups, reliefs and an interior exhibition narrate military and civic history, and a rooftop viewing area affords broad urban panoramas. The monument is open to visitors during regular hours for a fee and provides some accessibility measures; specific operational details vary.