Invalides ... the Final Resting Place of Napoleon...

SSD_8607Across from the green space at the Eiffel Tower is Les Invalides - a monumental building that operates as a hospital and retirement home for war veterans as well as the burial place of some of France's most famous residents. The most notable tomb is that of Napoleon Bonaparte whose grand tomb was placed under the buildSSD_8571ing's elaborate dome in 1840.

It was 1670 when King Louis XIV determined there was a need to build a home for its wounded and homeless soldiers. One of the most prestigious monument in Paris, it still maintains its initial purpose as a hospital and retirement home, but now the SSD_8566building is also a museum and includes the plans and relief maps that lay out, in great detail, the war fronts - their landscape and geography - which were used to determine tactical strategies to fit in the wars.

The courtyard of the Invalides is lined with a battery of French bronze cannons, said to be the jewels of thSSD_8548e artillery collection of the Musee de l'Armee. These trace 200 years of the history of the French field artillery and give visitors an opportunity to see up close how well crafted these well decorated cannons are.

We also toured some of the ancient armour and arms from French and foreign royal collections that go back to the XIIIth century. The piecesSSD_8552 include medieval swords, suits of armour, firearms, vehicles and uniforms -- all in terrific condition and leave you feeling like you have taken a step back in time.

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