Achille-François-René Leclère (29 October 1785 – 23 December 1853) was a French

architect An architect is a person who plans, designs, and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...

and teacher of architecture. Achille Leclère studied architecture under Charles Percier and Jean-Nicolas-Louis Durand. After finishing his studies, he won the 1808 Premier Grand Prix de Rome where the final round topic was, "Public baths in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

". In 1813, Leclère made a noted restoration of the Pantheon in

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

. Indeed, Achille Leclere's

architectural drawing An architectural drawing or architect's drawing is a technical drawing of a building (or building project) that falls within the definition of architecture. Architectural drawings are used by architects and others for a number of purposes: to deve ...

s of the Pantheon are regarded by many as the best ever made. In 1815, he opened a renowned architectural atelier from which many eminent architects graduated, including the French architects

Eugène Viollet-le-Duc Eugène Emmanuel Viollet-le-Duc (; 27 January 181417 September 1879) was a French architect and author, famous for his restoration of the most prominent medieval landmarks in France. His major restoration projects included Notre-Dame de Paris, ...

, Paul Abadie, Charles Isabelle and Alfred Armand and the English architect Richard Lane. He was elected a member of the

Académie des Beaux-Arts The (; ) is a French learned society based in Paris. It is one of the five academies of the . The current president of the academy (2021) is Alain-Charles Perrot, a French architect. Background The academy was created in 1816 in Paris as a me ...

of the

Institut de France The ; ) is a French learned society, grouping five , including the . It was established in 1795 at the direction of the National Convention. Located on the Quai de Conti in the 6th arrondissement of Paris, the institute manages approximately ...

in 1831.

References

1785 births 1853 deaths 19th-century French architects Prix de Rome for architecture École des Beaux-Arts alumni Members of the Académie des beaux-arts {{France-architect-stub