The Musée des Plans-Reliefs () is a museum of military models located within the

Hôtel des Invalides The Hôtel des Invalides (; ), commonly called (; ), is a complex of buildings in the 7th arrondissement of Paris, France, containing museums and monuments, all relating to the military history of France, as well as a hospital and an old soldi ...

in the 7th 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 ...

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

. The construction of models dates to 1668, when François-Michel le Tellier, Marquis de Louvois and minister of war to

Louis XIV LouisXIV (Louis-Dieudonné; 5 September 16381 September 1715), also known as Louis the Great () or the Sun King (), was King of France from 1643 until his death in 1715. His verified reign of 72 years and 110 days is the List of longest-reign ...

, began a collection of three-dimensional models of fortified cities for military purposes, known as ' plans-relief'. The models gave particular attention to the city fortifications and topographic features such as hills and harbors. In 1700, Louis XIV installed the collection in the

Louvre The Louvre ( ), or the Louvre Museum ( ), is a national art museum in Paris, France, and one of the most famous museums in the world. It is located on the Rive Droite, Right Bank of the Seine in the city's 1st arrondissement of Paris, 1st arron ...

. Initially the models were constructed in the field, by

military engineer Military engineering is loosely defined as the art, science, and practice of designing and building military works and maintaining lines of military transport and military communications. Military engineers are also responsible for logistics ...

s, but in 1743, two central workshops were established for their construction in

Béthune Béthune ( ; archaic and ''Bethwyn'' historically in English) is a town in northern France, Subprefectures in France, sub-prefecture of the Pas-de-Calais Departments of France, department. Geography Béthune is located in the Provinces of Fran ...

and

Lille Lille (, ; ; ; ; ) is a city in the northern part of France, within French Flanders. Positioned along the Deûle river, near France's border with Belgium, it is the capital of the Hauts-de-France Regions of France, region, the Prefectures in F ...

. A large number of models were built during and after the

War of the Austrian Succession The War of the Austrian Succession was a European conflict fought between 1740 and 1748, primarily in Central Europe, the Austrian Netherlands, Italian Peninsula, Italy, the Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea. Related conflicts include King Ge ...

(1741–1748) to represent newly captured sites. The collection was updated in 1754, but then fell into some disuse; the final models built under the Ancien Régime were those of

Saint-Omer Saint-Omer (; ; Picard: ''Saint-Onmé'') is a commune and sub-prefecture of the Pas-de-Calais department in France. It is west-northwest of Lille on the railway to Calais, and is located in the Artois province. The town is named after Sa ...

(1758), and the fort Saint-Philippe aux Baléares (1759). In 1774, the collection was nearly destroyed when its Louvre gallery was rededicated to paintings, but was in 1777, moved to the

where it remains to this day. Under

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...

, a new set of models was built, including

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(1802),

La Spezia La Spezia (, or ; ; , in the local ) is the capital city of the province of La Spezia and is located at the head of the Gulf of La Spezia in the southern part of the Liguria region of Italy. La Spezia is the second-largest city in the Liguria ...

(1811), Brest (1811), and

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(1811–1813). In 1814, 17 models mainly of German cities were taken to

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

. Some were replaced and their production then continued until about 1870, when it drew to a close with the disappearance of ''fortifications bastionnées''. The collection was declared a historical monument in 1927, and the museum established in 1943. All told, some 260 plans-reliefs were created between 1668 and 1870, representing about 150 fortified sites. Today, 112 models are conserved by this museum, of which 15 are kept in the Musée des Beaux-Arts de Lille. Additional models among those taken by the Prussians were later given to the cities of

Strasbourg Strasbourg ( , ; ; ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est Regions of France, region of Geography of France, eastern France, in the historic region of Alsace. It is the prefecture of the Bas-Rhin Departmen ...

and Landau in der Pfalz. At present, the museum displays 28 plans-reliefs of fortifications along the

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, the

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and

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coasts, and the

Pyrenees The Pyrenees are a mountain range straddling the border of France and Spain. They extend nearly from their union with the Cantabrian Mountains to Cap de Creus on the Mediterranean coast, reaching a maximum elevation of at the peak of Aneto. ...

. It also contains presentations on construction and use of the plans-reliefs. In 2012, part of the museum's collections were presented at the Grand Palais, as part of the exhibition La France en relief: masterpieces from the collection of relief plans from Louis XIV to Napoleon III, from January 18 as of February 17, 2012. The museum is open daily except the first Monday of each month; an admission fee is charged.

References

Musée des Plans-Reliefs

Monuments nationaux entry (French)

* Isabelle Warmoes, ''Le Musée des plans-reliefs'', Editions du patrimoine, Paris, 1997. * George A. Rothrock, "The Musee des Plans-Reliefs", ''French Historical Studies'', Vol. 6, No. 2 (Autumn, 1969), pages 253-256. {{DEFAULTSORT:Musee des Plans-Reliefs Museums in Paris Military and war museums in France Maps of France Scale model collections Playscale miniaturism Buildings and structures in the 7th arrondissement of Paris Monuments of the Centre des monuments nationaux National museums of France

See also

References