The Lycée Saint-Louis-de-Gonzague (Franklin), founded in 1894, is a highly selective

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

Jesuit The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...

school A school is the educational institution (and, in the case of in-person learning, the Educational architecture, building) designed to provide learning environments for the teaching of students, usually under the direction of teachers. Most co ...

in the 16th arrondissement of

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 ...

. It is regarded as the most prestigious French private school and has been ranked #1

lycée In France, secondary education is in two stages: * ''Collèges'' () cater for the first four years of secondary education from the ages of 11 to 14. * ''Lycées'' () provide a three-year course of further secondary education for students between ...

in France in the ranking of the newspaper ''

Le Figaro () is a French daily morning newspaper founded in 1826. It was named after Figaro, a character in several plays by polymath Pierre Beaumarchais, Beaumarchais (1732–1799): ''Le Barbier de Séville'', ''The Guilty Mother, La Mère coupable'', ...

''.

History

The “Petit Externat du Trocadéro” was inaugurated on September 28, 1894. The last Jesuit school established in the capital, it is the only one remaining after the closing of the colleges on Madrid and Vaugirard streets. It has enlarged little by little through real estate transactions in the immediate neighbourhood. At its inception in 1895 enrollment was 75 in classes 5 through 10. By 1898 enrollment was 220 pupils. Enrollment dropped due to the laws of 1901 but remained open without authorization. By 1920 enrollment reached 885 pupils. In 1920 an alumni association was formed. Anticlerical laws led to lawsuit payments that in 1923 almost led to the sale of Franklin. On the initiative of its director, Fr. François Berlier de Vauplane, the Franklin Street campus was rebuilt between 1933 and 1935 by the architect Henry Violet. The vault contains a fresco representing the principal episodes in the life of St.

Aloysius Gonzaga Aloysius de Gonzaga, SJ (; 9 March 156821 June 1591) was an Italian people, Italian aristocracy (class), aristocrat who became a member of the Society of Jesus. While still a student at the Roman College, he died as a result of caring for the v ...

, the work of Henri de Maistre, prominent French painter of religious art. This contributed to its registration as a historic building in 1993. There are three recreation spaces on the roofs of the buildings, and a table tennis room and gymnasium in basement. During the Second World War manpower fluctuated and classes were held in the cellars at Franklin or Cup streets. In 1942, an elementary school was opened on Louis-David street. By the end of the war in 1945, Franklin counted 1,100 students. Many new courses were added in 1950 and by 1956 the staff numbered about 100. In 1968, Miss de Follin was named director of the elementary school. In 1969, a layperson was named prefect of the college and the number of Jesuits decreased. By 1978 there were 9 Jesuits and 86 lay teachers. In 1980 Franklin began admitting girls. First Lady Designate of France,

Brigitte Macron Brigitte Marie-Claude Macron (; Trogneux , previously Auzière ; born 13 April 1953) is a French former teacher and wife of Emmanuel Macron, the incumbent president of France. Early life Brigitte Macron was born Brigitte Marie-Claude Trogne ...

, until recently, taught as a high-school teacher.

Organization

The Jesuit school includes * an

elementary school A primary school (in Ireland, India, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, South Africa, and Singapore), elementary school, or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary ...

(''école primaire'') (3 to 10 years old) * a

middle school Middle school, also known as intermediate school, junior high school, junior secondary school, or lower secondary school, is an educational stage between primary school and secondary school. Afghanistan In Afghanistan, middle school includes g ...

(''collège'') with about 600 students (10 to 15 years old) * a

high school A secondary school, high school, or senior school, is an institution that provides secondary education. Some secondary schools provide both ''lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper secondary education'' (ages 14 to 18), i.e., ...

(''lycée'') with about 500 students (15 to 18 years old) * a classes préparatoires with about 160 students (18 to 20 years old) The elementary school is at 15, rue Louis David, while the middle school, high school, and preparatory classes are at 12, rue Benjamin Franklin. Both of these locations are in the

16th arrondissement of Paris The 16th arrondissement of Paris (; ) is the westernmost of the 20 arrondissements of Paris, the capital city of France. Located on the city's Right Bank, it is adjacent to the 17th and 8th arrondissements to the northeast, as well as to the ...

Academic results

Saint-Louis-de-Gonzague School is highly selective, for the academic elite, and always ranks among the top 3 high schools in France. In 2012, the school ranked second nationwide with 64% of students receiving "Mention Très Bien" ("Highest Honors") at the Baccalaureat, the

Lycée Henri-IV The Lycée Henri-IV () is a public secondary school located in Paris. Along with the Lycée Louis-le-Grand, it is widely regarded as one of the most prestigious and demanding sixth-form colleges ('' lycées'') in France. The school educates more ...

being ranked first. In 2013, 76% of students received "Mention Très Bien" at the Baccalaureat, (compared to 59% at Lycée Henri-IV). In 2016, achieved record number of 92% of the students received the "Mention Très Bien", which placed Saint-Louis-de-Gonzague as the best school in France.

Alumni

Saint-Louis-de-Gonzague School has an impressive list of alumni including a number of French current and former Ministers, P.M., Senators, writers and Top French executives: ''Politics'' *

Bruno Le Maire Bruno Le Maire (; born 15 April 1969) is a French politician, writer, and former diplomat who served as Economy and Finance Minister from 2017 to 2024 under President Emmanuel Macron. A former member of The Republicans (LR), which he left in ...

Michel Poniatowski Michel Poniatowski (16 May 1922 – 15 January 2002) was a French politician, member of a legitimized line of Polish princely Poniatowski family. He was a founder of the Independent Republicans and a part of the administration for Presiden ...

* Luc Chatel * Louis de Guiringaud *

Jean-François Deniau Jean-François Deniau (; 31 October 1928 – 24 January 2007) was a French politician, diplomat, essayist and novelist. Until 1998, he was a member of the Union for French Democracy (UDF). Biography Minister and diplomat In 1958, he became ...

* Xavier Deniau * Henri Plagnol * Georges Tron * Xavier de La Chevalerie *

Seán MacBride Seán MacBride (26 January 1904 – 15 January 1988) was an Irish Republican activist, politician, and diplomat who served as Minister for External Affairs from 1948 to 1951, Leader of Clann na Poblachta from 1946 to 1965 and Chief of Staff o ...

''Business'' * Baudouin Prot * Charles-Édouard Bouée * Bruno Lafont * Xavier Fontanet *

Jacques-Antoine Granjon Jacques-Antoine Granjon (born 9 August 1962) in Marseille (France) is a French billionaire businessman and CEO of Veepee. As of July 2022, his net worth is estimated at US$1.5bn. Biography Education Granjon completed his education at the E ...

* François Villeroy de Galhau * Édouard Tétreau * Sindika Dokolo ''Writers and Artists'' * Michel Galabru * Antoine de Margerie * François Sureau *

Aliette de Bodard Aliette de Bodard (born November 10, 1982) is a French-American speculative fiction writer. She has received accolades including the British Fantasy Award, BSFA Award, Ignyte Award, Locus Award, and Nebula Award. Writing De Bodard published he ...

Bruno Latour Bruno Latour (; ; 22 June 1947 – 9 October 2022) was a French philosopher, anthropologist and sociologist.Wheeler, Will. ''Bruno Latour: Documenting Human and Nonhuman Associations'' Critical Theory for Library and Information Science. Librari ...

''Religion'' * Guy Thomazeau * Charles Vandame ''Sports'' * Yves du Manoir * Henry Chavancy ''Military'' *

Honoré d'Estienne d'Orves Henri Louis Honoré, comte d'Estienne d'Orves (; 5 June 1901 – 29 August 1941) was a French Navy officer and one of the major heroes of the French Resistance, said to be the "first martyr of Free France". Early life He was born in Verrières ...

Jacques Massu Jacques Émile Massu (; 5 May 1908 – 26 October 2002) was a French general who fought in World War II, the First Indochina War, the Algerian War and the Suez Crisis. He led French troops in the Battle of Algiers, first supporting and later ...

''Journalists'' *

Léa Salamé Hala Léa Salamé, known as Léa Salamé (; born 27 October 1979), is a Lebanese-born French journalist. Early life Hala Léa Salamé is the daughter of Ghassan Salamé, former Lebanese Minister of Culture and former special advisor to UN Secreta ...

The school alumni network is called the "Association des anciens élèves". and it counts more than 14.500 members.

Graduates' destinations

The majority of students choose to pursue their studies in classes préparatoires such as Lycée Sainte-Geneviève, Collège Stanislas, or

Lycée Janson-de-Sailly Lycée Janson-de-Sailly is a ''lycée'' located in the 16th arrondissement of Paris, France. The ''lycéens'' of Janson are called ''les jansoniens'' and they usually refer to their high school as Janson, or JdS. It is the biggest academic inst ...

. They then usually move on to top French Grande École such as

HEC Paris HEC Paris () is a business school and ''grande école'' located in Jouy-en-Josas, a southwestern outer suburb of Paris, France. It offers Bachelor, MiM, MSc in International Finance, MBA, EMBA, executive education, professional developm ...

, ESSEC, ESCP (for business and management studies), or

École Polytechnique (, ; also known as Polytechnique or l'X ) is a ''grande école'' located in Palaiseau, France. It specializes in science and engineering and is a founding member of the Polytechnic Institute of Paris. The school was founded in 1794 by mat ...

CentraleSupélec CentraleSupélec (, CS) is one of the most prestigious and selective grandes écoles in France and is a member of the graduate engineering school of Paris-Saclay University in Gif-sur-Yvette, France. It was established on 1 January 2015, as a ...

(for engineering and science studies). Franklin has also a high rate of admission to

Sciences Po Paris Sciences Po () or Sciences Po Paris, also known as the Paris Institute of Political Studies (), is a public research university located in Paris, France, that holds the status of ''grande école'' and the legal status of . The university's unde ...

, where students follow public policy and social science studies. Students who wish to study law are usually admitted to the Panthéon-Assas University, or for a medical degree they are admitted to the Université Paris Cité, both considered the best in France in their field. A few students also go to top international universities in Switzerland ( EPFL), Italy ( Bocconi), or England (

Imperial College Imperial College London, also known as Imperial, is a public research university in London, England. Its history began with Prince Albert, husband of Queen Victoria, who envisioned a cultural district in South Kensington that included museums ...

, UCL, KCL, LSE).

References