Renaissance · Monuments

Equestrian Statue of Louis XIV

Martin Desjardins Paris

The equestrian statue of Louis XIV is a bronze monumental sculpture located at the center of Place des Victoires in Paris, on the border of the 1st and 2nd arrondissements. The present statue was inaugurated on 15 August 1818 and was created by François-Joseph Bosio, with casting by Auguste-Jean-Marie Carbonneaux. It stands on a pedestal designed by architect Jean-Antoine Alavoine. The rider is shown dressed as a Roman emperor and mounted on a rearing horse. Bosio’s composition was inspired by Falconet’s Bronze Horseman in Saint Petersburg for the pose of the rider and horse. The monument was restored in 2005 and classified as a historic monument in 1992. Place des Victoires had earlier monuments on the same site, including a statue commissioned in 1678 by the duc de La Feuillade and created by Martin Desjardins, which was destroyed during the French Revolution.

Map showing the location of Equestrian statue of Louis XIV in Paris
Location of Equestrian statue of Louis XIV in Paris

Nearby Objects

Location and Heritage Status

The equestrian statue of Louis XIV is located in Paris, France, at the center of the place des Victoires. It stands on the border between the 1st and 2nd arrondissements of Paris. In 1992, the monument was classified as a historic monument, marking its recognized heritage status within the city.

The Monument at Place des Victoires

A statue raised for the glory of Louis XIV was commissioned in 1678 by the duc de La Feuillade and created by the sculptor Martin Desjardins. The monument was inaugurated in 1686 at Place des Victoires, near the basilica Notre-Dame-des-Victoires in Paris. It represented the king standing in antique style, crowned with a laurel wreath, while crushing his chained enemies on the pedestal. The monument commemorated military victories in Europe and France, including the treaties of Nimègue and the revocation of the Edict of Nantes in 1685.

The statue was destroyed during the French Revolution on the day of the storming of the Bastille and was sent to be melted down to produce cannons. In 1790, the monument's four chained captives by Desjardins were removed and are now exhibited at the Louvre museum in the Puget courtyard. The site was then replaced by a wooden pyramid listing citizens who died on Bastille Day, which was allegedly given to a guardhouse that used it for heating. In 1810, Place des Victoires received a new statue of General Desaix, shown as a nude heroic figure.

Creation and Restoration

The current statue was inaugurated on August 15, 1818, on the Catholic feast of the Assumption. It was created by François-Joseph Bosio and cast by Auguste-Jean-Marie Carbonneaux (1769-1843). Bosio drew inspiration for the pose of the rider and horse from Falconet's Bronze Horseman statue of Tsar Peter the Great in Saint Petersburg. The statue was restored in 2005. Its earlier bronze statue of General Desaix had been melted during the Restoration under Louis XVIII to recreate an equestrian statue of Henri IV from the Pont Neuf.

Design and Pedestal

The equestrian statue of Louis XIV is a bronze representation of the king of France, shown dressed as a Roman emperor and mounted on a rearing horse. It rests on a pedestal designed by architect Jean-Antoine Alavoine. The pedestal is decorated on its right and left faces with two bronze bas-reliefs by François-Joseph Bosio: Le Passage du Rhin and Institution de l'ordre royal et militaire de Saint-Louis en 1693. The monument originally included two additional bas-reliefs, La conquete de la Franche-Comte and La paix de Nimegue, as well as two medallions, Les duels abolis and L'heresie detruite. These removed elements are now displayed at the Louvre next to the Captives by Desjardins.