The 7th arrondissement of Paris (''VII^e arrondissement'') is one of the 20

arrondissements An arrondissement (, , ) is any of various administrative divisions of France, Belgium, Haiti, certain other Francophone countries, as well as the Netherlands. Europe France The 101 French departments are divided into 342 ''arrondissements' ...

of the capital city of

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

. In spoken French, this arrondissement is referred to as ''le septième''. The arrondissement, called Palais-Bourbon in a reference to the seat of the

National Assembly In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the r ...

, includes some of the major and well-known tourist attractions of Paris, such as the

Eiffel Tower The Eiffel Tower ( ; french: links=yes, tour Eiffel ) is a wrought-iron lattice tower on the Champ de Mars in Paris, France. It is named after the engineer Gustave Eiffel, whose company designed and built the tower. Locally nicknamed ...

, the Hôtel des Invalides (

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader wh ...

's resting place), the

Chapel of Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal The Chapel of Graces of the Miraculous Virgin (French: ''La Chapelle du Grâce de Sainte Vierge Miraculeuse'') or informally the Chapel of Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal, is a Marian pontifical shrine located in Paris, France. Originally cons ...

, as well as a concentration of museums such as the

Musée d'Orsay The Musée d'Orsay ( , , ) ( en, Orsay Museum) is a museum in Paris, France, on the Left Bank of the Seine. It is housed in the former Gare d'Orsay, a Beaux-Arts railway station built between 1898 and 1900. The museum holds mainly French a ...

, Musée Rodin and the Musée du Quai Branly – Jacques Chirac. Situated on the Rive Gauche—the "Left" bank of the

River Seine ) , mouth_location = Le Havre/Honfleur , mouth_coordinates = , mouth_elevation = , progression = , river_system = Seine basin , basin_size = , tributaries_left = Yonne, Loing, Eure, Risle , tributari ...

—this central arrondissement, which includes the historical aristocratic neighbourhood of

Faubourg Saint-Germain ''Faubourg Saint-Germain'' () is a historic district of Paris, France. The ''Faubourg'' has long been known as the favourite home of the French high nobility and hosts many aristocratic '' hôtels particuliers''. It is currently part of the 7th ...

, contains a number of French national institutions, among them the National Assembly and numerous

government ministries Ministry or department (also less commonly used secretariat, office, or directorate) are designations used by first-level executive bodies in the machinery of governments that manage a specific sector of public administration." Энцикло� ...

. It is also home to many foreign diplomatic embassies, some of them occupying outstanding hôtels particuliers. The arrondissement has been home to the French

upper class Upper class in modern societies is the social class composed of people who hold the highest social status, usually are the wealthiest members of class society, and wield the greatest political power. According to this view, the upper class is gen ...

since the 17th century, when it became the new residence of France's highest

nobility Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy. It is normally ranked immediately below royalty. Nobility has often been an estate of the realm with many exclusive functions and characteristics. The character ...

. The district has been so fashionable within the French

aristocracy Aristocracy (, ) is a form of government that places strength in the hands of a small, privileged ruling class, the aristocrats. The term derives from the el, αριστοκρατία (), meaning 'rule of the best'. At the time of the word' ...

that the phrase ''le Faubourg''—referring to the ancient name of the current 7th arrondissement—has been used to describe French nobility ever since. Balzac explains the very specific ''Faubourg's aristocratic way of life'' in his novel ''La Duchesse de Langeais'' The 7th arrondissement of Paris and

Neuilly-sur-Seine Neuilly-sur-Seine (; literally 'Neuilly on Seine'), also known simply as Neuilly, is a commune in the department of Hauts-de-Seine in France, just west of Paris. Immediately adjacent to the city, the area is composed of mostly select residentia ...

form the most affluent and prestigious residential area in France.

History

During the 17th century, French

high nobility Traditional rank amongst European royalty, peers, and nobility is rooted in Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages. Although they vary over time and among geographic regions (for example, one region's prince might be equal to another's grand duk ...

started to move from the central Marais, the then-aristocratic district of Paris where

nobles Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy. It is normally ranked immediately below royalty. Nobility has often been an estate of the realm with many exclusive functions and characteristics. The character ...

used to build their urban mansions (see

Hotel de Soubise A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. Facilities provided inside a hotel room may range from a modest-quality mattress in a small room to large suites with bigger, higher-quality beds, a dresser, a ref ...

), to the clearer, less populated and less polluted

. The district became so fashionable within the French

that the phrase ''le Faubourg'' has been used to describe French nobility ever since. The oldest and most prestigious families of the French nobility built outstanding residences in the area, such as the Hôtel Matignon, the Hôtel de Salm, and the

Hôtel Biron The Hôtel Biron, known initially as the Hôtel Peyrenc-de-Moras and later as the Hôtel du Maine, is an ''hôtel particulier'' located at 77 rue de Varenne, in the 7th arrondissement of Paris, that was built from 1727 to 1732 to the designs of t ...

. After the

Revolution In political science, a revolution (Latin: ''revolutio'', "a turn around") is a fundamental and relatively sudden change in political power and political organization which occurs when the population revolts against the government, typically due ...

many of these mansions, offering magnificent inner spaces, many reception rooms and exquisite decoration, were confiscated and turned into national institutions. The French expression ''"les ors de la Republique"'' (literally ''"the golds of the Republic"''), refers to the luxurious environment of the national palaces (outstanding official residences and priceless works of art), comes from that time. During the Restauration, the ''Faubourg'' recovered its past glory as the most exclusive

district of Paris and was the political heart of the country, home to the

Ultra adopted by British military intelligence in June 1941 for wartime signals intelligence obtained by breaking high-level encrypted enemy radio and teleprinter communications at the Government Code and Cypher School (GC&CS) at Bletchley P ...

Party. After the Fall of

Charles X Charles X (born Charles Philippe, Count of Artois; 9 October 1757 – 6 November 1836) was King of France from 16 September 1824 until 2 August 1830. An uncle of the uncrowned Louis XVII and younger brother to reigning kings Louis XVI and Lou ...

, the district lost most of its political influence but remained the centre of the French

social life ''Social Life'' is the second studio album by the American indie rock band Koufax. The song "Bright Side" was featured in an episode of the adult animated sitcom ''Clone High''. Background Unlike the previous album “''Social Life''”was r ...

. During the 19th century, the arrondissement hosted no fewer than five Universal Exhibitions ( 1855, 1867, 1878, 1889,

1900 As of March 1 ( O.S. February 17), when the Julian calendar acknowledged a leap day and the Gregorian calendar did not, the Julian calendar fell one day further behind, bringing the difference to 13 days until February 28 ( O.S. February 15), 2 ...

) that have immensely impacted its cityscape. The

and the Orsay building were built for these Exhibitions (respectively in 1889 and 1900).

Geography

The land area of the arrondissement is 4.088 km² (1.578 sq. miles, or 1,010 acres).

Demography

The 7th arrondissement attained its peak population in 1926 when it had 110,684 inhabitants. Because it is the location of so many French government bodies, this arrondissement has never been as densely populated as some of the others. In 1999, the population was 56,985, while the arrondissement provided 76,212 jobs.

Historical population

Immigration

Cityscape

File:Champ de Mars from the Eiffel Tower - July 2006 edit.jpg,

Champ-de-Mars The Champ de Mars (; en, Field of Mars) is a large public greenspace in Paris, France, located in the seventh ''arrondissement'', between the Eiffel Tower to the northwest and the École Militaire to the southeast. The park is named after t ...

view from the top of the Eiffel Tower File:Jielbeaumadier tour eiffel paris 2007.jpg, The

File:Invalides 2007 03 11.jpg, St. Louis Chapel of the Hôtel des Invalides view from avenue de Breteuil File:Dome hotel des invalides.JPG, Inside Hôtel des Invalides's Chapel File:Rue de Solférino vue depuis la passerelle Léopold-Sédar-Senghor.jpg, View of rue de Solférino from the Léopold-Sédar-Senghor bridge File:Seine and 7th Arrondissement June 2010.jpg, The Seine and the 7th arrondissement as seen from the Eiffel Tower File:Typical Paris Apartment.jpg, Typical Parisian architecture in the 7th arrondissement

Places of interest

Important places include: *

Palais Bourbon The Palais Bourbon () is the meeting place of the National Assembly, the lower legislative chamber of the French Parliament. It is located in the 7th arrondissement of Paris, on the '' Rive Gauche'' of the Seine, across from the Place de la Con ...

, meeting place of the

* Hôtel Matignon *

Hôtel de Boisgelin (Rue de Varenne, Paris) The Hôtel de Boisgelin, a.k.a. Hôtel de La Rochefoucauld-Doudeauville, is a hôtel particulier in Paris, France. It houses the Italian embassy in France. It has been listed since 1926 as a '' monument historique'' by the French Ministry of Cult ...

, historic building, home to the Italian embassy in Paris. * Champ de Mars *

* École Militaire * Hôtel des Invalides * Maison de Verre * Musée du quai Branly * Musée national de la Légion d'Honneur et des Ordres de Chevalerie *

Musée Maillol The Musée Maillol is an art museum located in the 7th arrondissement at 59–61, rue de Grenelle, Paris, France. History In 1964, Dina Vierny donated Maillol's monumental sculptures to the state. André Malraux, Minister of Culture, installs ...

Musée de l'Ordre de la Libération The Musée de l'Ordre de la Libération is a military museum located in the 7th arrondissement of Paris, France. The museum is dedicated to the Ordre de la Libération, France's second national order after the Légion d'honneur, which was created ...

* Musée Rodin * Musée Valentin Haüy * Institut d'Etudes Politiques de Paris (Sciences Po)

Art and industry

* Musée du quai Branly * Musée national de la Légion d'Honneur et des Ordres de Chevalerie *

* Musée Rodin * Musée Valentin Haüy * National Horticultural Society of France

Economy

Air Liquide Air Liquide S.A. (; ; literally " liquid air"), is a French multinational company which supplies industrial gases and services to various industries including medical, chemical and electronic manufacturers. Founded in 1902, after Linde it is ...

Alcatel-Lucent Alcatel–Lucent S.A. () was a French–American global telecommunications equipment company, headquartered in Boulogne-Billancourt, France. It was formed in 2006 by the merger of France-based Alcatel and U.S.-based Lucent, the latter being a su ...

, and

Valode & Pistre Valode & Pistre (Valode et Pistre) is a French architecture firm founded by Denis Valode and Jean Pistre. It has its head office in the 7th arrondissement of Paris, with branches operating for over ten years in Moscow and Beijing, . Based in ...

have their head offices in this arrondissement.

Education

Public and private high schools: * Lycée Victor-Duruy * Établissement La Rochefoucauld * Institut de l'Alma * Lycée-collège Paul-Claudel * Lycée d'Hulst * Lycée Sainte-Jeanne Elisabeth * Lycée Saint-Thomas-d'Aquin * Lycée Thérèse-Chappuis Istituto Statale Italiano Leonardo Da Vinci, an Italian international school, maintains two campuses in the arrondissement. The

American University of Paris The American University of Paris (AUP) is a private, independent, and accredited liberal arts university in Paris, France. Founded in 1962, the university is one of the oldest American institutions of higher education in Europe, and the fir ...

, a private liberal arts university, maintains several buildings near the Quai d'Orsay.

Government

The Ministry of Agriculture, the

Ministry of Foreign Affairs In many countries, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is the government department responsible for the state's diplomacy, bilateral, and multilateral relations affairs as well as for providing support for a country's citizens who are abroad. The enti ...

and the Ministry of National Education have their head offices in the arrondissement. Politically, the arrondissement is situated firmly on the right. The mayor of the 7th, Rachida Dati, was Minister of Justice under

Nicolas Sarkozy Nicolas Paul Stéphane Sarközy de Nagy-Bocsa (; ; born 28 January 1955) is a French politician who served as President of France from 2007 to 2012. Born in Paris, he is of Hungarian, Greek Jewish, and French origin. Mayor of Neuilly-sur-Se ...

's presidency and a member of the European Parliament for the centre-right UMP from 2009 to 2019. In the 2017 French presidential election, the 7th gave right-wing candidate François Fillon 52.7% of its votes in the first round, compared to his poor national showing of only 20%. It then went on to vote for

Emmanuel Macron Emmanuel Macron (; born 21 December 1977) is a French politician who has served as President of France since 2017. ''Ex officio'', he is also one of the two Co-Princes of Andorra. Prior to his presidency, Macron served as Minister of Econ ...

in the runoff by a landslide.

Sport

The arrondissement hosted the

equestrian The word equestrian is a reference to equestrianism, or horseback riding, derived from Latin ' and ', "horse". Horseback riding (or Riding in British English) Examples of this are: *Equestrian sports *Equestrian order, one of the upper classes in ...

events for the

1900 Summer Olympics The 1900 Summer Olympics (french: Jeux olympiques d'été de 1900, link=no), today officially known as the Games of the II Olympiad () and also known as Paris 1900, were an international multi-sport event that took place in Paris, France, from ...

.1900 Summer Olympics official report
. p. 16. Accessed 14 November 2010.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:7th Arrondissement Of Paris Venues of the 1900 Summer Olympics Olympic equestrian venues Histories of cities in France