The Palais de la Légion d’honneur (French for “Palace of the Legion of Honour”) is a historic building on the Left Bank of the Seine in Paris (France). It houses the Musée de la Légion d’honneur (“Museum of the Legion of Honour”) and is the seat of the Légion d’honneur, the highest French order of merit.
The building is also known as the Hôtel de Salm. It is located at 64 rue de Lille, next to the old Orsay railway station (now the Musée d’Orsay) in the 7th arrondissement of Paris.
The original Hôtel de Salm was constructed between 1782 and 1787 by the architect Pierre Rousseau (1751–1810) for the German prince Frederick III, Prince of Salm-Kyrburg. The revolutionary government nationalised the building, and from 13 May 1804, it was renamed the “Palais de la Légion d’honneur” and became the seat of the newly created Légion d’honneur. The interior was remodeled for that purpose by Antoine-François Peyre, and new exterior sculptures were added by Jean Guillaume Moitte and Philippe-Laurent Roland.
The Musée national de la Légion d’honneur et des ordres de chevalerie (French for “National museum of the Legion of Honour and of orders of chivalry”) is a French national museum of orders of merit and orders of chivalry.
Today’s museum was created in 1925. It displays a history of France’s honours, medals, decorations, and chivalric orders from the time of King Louis XI to the present, including Napoleonic souvenirs and more than 300 portraits. A special section is dedicated to foreign orders. Its library and archives contain more than 3,000 works.
Located in: Great Chancellery of the Order of the Legion of Honor.
Address: 2 Rue de la Légion d’Honneur, 75007 Paris, France.
Hours:
Monday Closed
Tuesday Closed
Wednesday Closed
Thursday Closed
Friday Closed
Saturday 1–6 PM
Sunday 1–6 PM
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