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La Défense is a major business district for the city
Communes of France

The commune is the lowest level of administrative divisions in the France. The French word commune appeared in the 12th century, from Medieval Latin Medieval commune, meaning a small gathering of people sharing a common life, from Latin communis, things held in common....
 of Paris
Paris

Paris is the Capital of France and the country's largest city. It is situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the ?le-de-France Regions of France ....
, bordering Neuilly-sur-Seine
Neuilly-sur-Seine

Neuilly-sur-Seine is a commune in France bordering the western limit of the city of Paris, France. It is located from the Kilometre Zero. It is one of the most densely populated municipalities in Europe....
, west of the city itself. It is centered in an oval freeway loop straddling the Hauts-de-Seine
Hauts-de-Seine

Hauts-de-Seine is a Departments of France in France. It is part of the ?le-de-France region, and forms part of the western suburbs of Paris....
 département municipalities of Nanterre
Nanterre

Nanterre is a communes of France in the western suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the Kilometre Zero.Nanterre is the Prefectures in France of the Hauts-de-Seine departments of France, as well as the seat of the Arrondissement of Nanterre....
, Courbevoie
Courbevoie

Courbevoie is a commune in France in the d?partement of Hauts-de-Seine. It is located 8.2 km from the Kilometre Zero in the northwestern suburbs....
 and Puteaux
Puteaux

Puteaux is a commune in France in the western suburbs of Paris, France. It is located in the heart of the Hauts-de-Seine D?partements of France, at from the Kilometre Zero....
. The district is at the westernmost extremity of Paris' 10 km long Historical Axis
Axe historique

The Axe historique is a line of monuments, buildings and thoroughfares that extends from the centre of Paris, France, to the west. It is also known as the "Voie Triomphale" ....
, which starts at the Louvre
Louvre

The Louvre Museum , located in Paris, is a historic monument, and a national museum of France. It is a central landmark, located on the Rive Droite of the Seine in the 1st arrondissement of Paris ....
 in Central Paris and continues along the Champs-Élysées
Champs-Élysées

The Avenue des Champs-?lys?es is the most prestigious Avenue in Paris. With its movie theaters, caf?s, and luxury specialty shops, the Avenue des Champs-?lys?es is one of the most famous streets in the world, and with rents as high as $1.50 million 1000 square feet of space, it remains the most expensive strip of real estate in Europe....
, well beyond the Arc de Triomphe
Arc de Triomphe

The Arc de Triomphe is a monument in Paris, France that stands in the centre of the Place Charles de Gaulle, also known as the Place de l'?toile....
 before culminating at La Défense.

Around its -high Grande Arche
Grande Arche

The Grande Arche de la Fraternit? is a monument in the business district of La D?fense to the west of Paris. It is usually known as the Arche de la D?fense or simply as La Grande Arche....
 and esplanade ("le Parvis"), the district holds many of the Paris urban area's tallest high-rises.






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La Défense is a major business district for the city
Communes of France

The commune is the lowest level of administrative divisions in the France. The French word commune appeared in the 12th century, from Medieval Latin Medieval commune, meaning a small gathering of people sharing a common life, from Latin communis, things held in common....
 of Paris
Paris

Paris is the Capital of France and the country's largest city. It is situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the ?le-de-France Regions of France ....
, bordering Neuilly-sur-Seine
Neuilly-sur-Seine

Neuilly-sur-Seine is a commune in France bordering the western limit of the city of Paris, France. It is located from the Kilometre Zero. It is one of the most densely populated municipalities in Europe....
, west of the city itself. It is centered in an oval freeway loop straddling the Hauts-de-Seine
Hauts-de-Seine

Hauts-de-Seine is a Departments of France in France. It is part of the ?le-de-France region, and forms part of the western suburbs of Paris....
 département municipalities of Nanterre
Nanterre

Nanterre is a communes of France in the western suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the Kilometre Zero.Nanterre is the Prefectures in France of the Hauts-de-Seine departments of France, as well as the seat of the Arrondissement of Nanterre....
, Courbevoie
Courbevoie

Courbevoie is a commune in France in the d?partement of Hauts-de-Seine. It is located 8.2 km from the Kilometre Zero in the northwestern suburbs....
 and Puteaux
Puteaux

Puteaux is a commune in France in the western suburbs of Paris, France. It is located in the heart of the Hauts-de-Seine D?partements of France, at from the Kilometre Zero....
. The district is at the westernmost extremity of Paris' 10 km long Historical Axis
Axe historique

The Axe historique is a line of monuments, buildings and thoroughfares that extends from the centre of Paris, France, to the west. It is also known as the "Voie Triomphale" ....
, which starts at the Louvre
Louvre

The Louvre Museum , located in Paris, is a historic monument, and a national museum of France. It is a central landmark, located on the Rive Droite of the Seine in the 1st arrondissement of Paris ....
 in Central Paris and continues along the Champs-Élysées
Champs-Élysées

The Avenue des Champs-?lys?es is the most prestigious Avenue in Paris. With its movie theaters, caf?s, and luxury specialty shops, the Avenue des Champs-?lys?es is one of the most famous streets in the world, and with rents as high as $1.50 million 1000 square feet of space, it remains the most expensive strip of real estate in Europe....
, well beyond the Arc de Triomphe
Arc de Triomphe

The Arc de Triomphe is a monument in Paris, France that stands in the centre of the Place Charles de Gaulle, also known as the Place de l'?toile....
 before culminating at La Défense.

Around its -high Grande Arche
Grande Arche

The Grande Arche de la Fraternit? is a monument in the business district of La D?fense to the west of Paris. It is usually known as the Arche de la D?fense or simply as La Grande Arche....
 and esplanade ("le Parvis"), the district holds many of the Paris urban area's tallest high-rises. With its , its 72 glass-and-steel slick buildings including 14 high-rises above , its 150,000 daily workers and 3.5 million square metres (37.7 million sq ft) of office space, La Défense is Europe's largest business district.

History

La Défense is named after the statue, La Défense de Paris, which was built in 1884 to commemorate the soldiers who had defended Paris during the Franco-Prussian War
Franco-Prussian War

The Franco-Prussian War or Franco-German War, often referred to in France as the 1870 War was a conflict between Second French Empire and Kingdom of Prussia, while Prussia was backed by the North German Confederation, of which it was a member, and the South German states of Grand Duchy of Baden, History of W?rttemberg#The Kingdom...
. The name of the area sometimes causes confusion with visitors, who occasionally assume it is some kind of military zone or establishment.

In September 1958, The Public Establishment for Installation of La Défense (EPAD) buildings (of which the Esso Tower
Esso Tower

The Esso Tower was one of the first buildings built in La D?fense in the 1960s. It was demolished in 1993 to be replaced by the C?ur D?fense tower....
 was the very first) were built and began to slowly replace the city's factories, shanties, and even a few farms. The Center of New Industries and Technologies
Center of New Industries and Technologies

The Center of New Industries and Technologies is one of the first buildings built in La D?fense in Paris, France. It functions as convention center, though it also houses the main offices such as that of FNAC, a media and electronics retailer found throughout Paris, as well as a Hilton hotel....
 (CNIT) was built and first used in 1958. These "first generation" skyscrapers were all very similar in appearance, limited to a height of . In 1966, the Nobel Tower was the first office building built in the area.

In the early 1970s, in response to great demand, a second generation of buildings began to appear, but the economic crisis in 1973 nearly halted all construction in the area. A third generation of towers began to appear in the early 1980s. The biggest commercial center in Europe (at the time), the Quatre Temps, was created in 1981. In 1982, the EPAD launched the Tête Défense competition to find a monument to complete the Axe historique
Axe historique

The Axe historique is a line of monuments, buildings and thoroughfares that extends from the centre of Paris, France, to the west. It is also known as the "Voie Triomphale" ....
, which eventually led to the construction of Grande Arche
Grande Arche

The Grande Arche de la Fraternit? is a monument in the business district of La D?fense to the west of Paris. It is usually known as the Arche de la D?fense or simply as La Grande Arche....
 at the west end of the quarter. During the same period, hotels were constructed, the CNIT was restructured, and in 1992 Line 1 of the Paris Métro
Paris Métro

The Paris M?tro or M?tropolitain is the rapid transit system in Paris. It is a symbol of the city, notable for its station architecture, influenced by Art Nouveau....
 was extended to La Défense, which made the area readily accessible to even more of the city.

On Bastille Day
Bastille Day

Bastille Day is the France National Day, celebrated on 14 July each year . In France, it is called F?te Nationale in official parlance, or more commonly le quatorze juillet ....
 1990, French electronic composer Jean Michel Jarre
Jean Michel Jarre

Jean-Michel Andr? Jarre is a France composer, Performing arts and music producer. Since 1991 he writes his name Jean Michel Jarre, without the hyphen....
 staged an ambitious concert at the site, using the Grande Arche and three of the area's towers as projection screens, and building a pyramidal stage above the road. The free concert, titled simply Paris la Defense
Paris la Defense

Paris La Defense - Une Ville En Concert was a concert held by musician Jean Michel Jarre on the district of La D?fense in Paris on Bastille Day, July 14, 1990....
 attracted two million spectators, stretching all the way back to the Arc de Triomphe
Arc de Triomphe

The Arc de Triomphe is a monument in Paris, France that stands in the centre of the Place Charles de Gaulle, also known as the Place de l'?toile....
. This beat Jarre's own previous world record for the largest attendance for a musical concert.

After a stagnation in new development in the mid-1990s La Défense is once again expanding and is now the largest purpose-built business district in Europe.

Important corporations headquartered at La Défense include Cegetel, Société Générale
Société Générale

Soci?t? G?n?rale is one of the main European financial services companies and also maintains extensive activities in others parts of the world....
, Total
Total S.A.

Total S.A. is an oil company headquartered in Paris, France, and one of the six "Supermajor" oil companies in the world. Its businesses cover the entire oil and gas chain, from crude oil and natural gas exploration and production to power generation, transportation, refining, petroleum product marketing, and international crude oil and produ...
, Aventis
Aventis

Aventis was a pharmaceutical and lab assay testing company. It was formed in 1999 when Rh?ne-Poulenc S.A. merged with Hoechst AG. The merged company was based in Strasbourg, France....
, Areva
Areva

AREVA is a Government-owned corporation multinational industrial Conglomerate that is mainly known for nuclear power; it also has interests in other energy projects....
 and Arcelor
Arcelor

Arcelor S.A. was the world's largest steel producer in terms of turnover and the second largest in terms of steel output, with a turnover of ?30.2 billion and shipments of 45 million metric tons of steel in 2004....
. The tallest skyscraper belongs to Total, constructed in 1985. It is high, has 48 floors, and is the second highest inhabited building in the Paris area (the first being the Tour Montparnasse
Tour Montparnasse

Tour Maine-Montparnasse , also commonly named Tour Montparnasse, is a 210-meter tall office skyscraper located in Paris, France, in the area of Montparnasse....
; the tallest building in Paris is the Eiffel Tower
Eiffel Tower

The Eiffel Tower is an Puddle iron tower built on the Champ de Mars beside the Seine River in Paris. The tower has become a global Cultural icon of France and is one of the most recognizable structures in the world....
).

A new era: "La Défense 2006-2015"

Esplanade De La Defense
New high-rises of are currently under construction and planned for a 2008 opening : Tour Granite
Tour Granite

Tour Granite is an office skyscraper currently under construction in La D?fense, the high-rise Central business district situated west of Paris, France....
 and Tour T1
Tour T1

Tour T1 is an office skyscraper in La D?fense, the high-rise Central business district west of Paris, France.The tower was completed and opened in 2008....
. In December 2005, , CEO & Chairman of (La Defense Management & Development Office) announced an ambitious 9-year development plan called .This important modernisation plan has to give a new dimension to the district and focuses on four main axes: regenerate outdated skyscrapers, allow new buildings, improve the balance between offices and residential housing and make the transport of local employees from their homes to La Défense easier. There are 3 aims: building 150 000 square metres (1 600 000 sq ft) of offices within demolition/rebuilding projects, building 300 000 square metres (3 200 000 sq ft) of offices within new projects and building 100 000 square metres ( 1 100 000 sq ft) of housing. The government confirmed in July 2006 this plan which has to be carried out around 2015. It is justified by the strong estate pressure, which plays in favour of building new skyscrapers near Paris. Those constructions have also the advantage to be more economical than little buildings. But it will have to overcome some difficulties: French economy faces a short-term slowdown; the government tries to balance tertiary sector employment in the whole region again, because La Défense today concentrates a major part of those jobs; and traffic is already saturated in the district, while it would need huge investments to extend transport infrastructures. It launched high profile international competitions and/or construction greenlight of several key tall sustainable development-style skyscrapers such as Tour Signal
Tour Signal

Tour Signal is a proposed skyscraper for La D?fense, Puteaux, France.Medea and Layetana are the developers with Ateliers Jean Nouvel as architects....
, Tour Phare and Tour Generali
Tour Generali

Tour Generali is a supertall planned for construction in the business quarter of La D?fense in Courbevoie .The project was officially initiated on 18 October, 2006 and is being built for Italian insurance company Assicurazioni Generali....
. During said December 2005 Press Conference, EPAD released to the public an elaborate titled "La Défense 2015".

Area specifications

  • Divided into 12 sectors
  • of offices
  • 1,500 businesses (of which 14 from the national top 20 and 15 from the global top 50)
  • 150,000 employees
  • 20,000 residents
  • of shops (including the Quatre Temps Shopping Mall, the largest in Continental Europe)
  • 2,600 hotel rooms
  • of flagstone and sidewalk
  • of greenery
  • 60 modern art sculptures and monuments


La Défense tallest towers


Completed highrise buildings above 90 m (300 ft) (1967-2005)

Rank Name Built Use Height Levels Municipality
metres feet
1 Tour Total
Tour Total

Tour Total SA is an office skyscraper located in La D?fense, Courbevoie, the high-rise Central business district west of and adjacent to the city of Paris, France....
 		 1985 office 187 614 48 Courbevoie
Courbevoie

Courbevoie is a commune in France in the d?partement of Hauts-de-Seine. It is located 8.2 km from the Kilometre Zero in the northwestern suburbs....
2 Tour T1
Tour T1

Tour T1 is an office skyscraper in La D?fense, the high-rise Central business district west of Paris, France.The tower was completed and opened in 2008....
 		 2008 office 185 610 37 Courbevoie
Courbevoie

Courbevoie is a commune in France in the d?partement of Hauts-de-Seine. It is located 8.2 km from the Kilometre Zero in the northwestern suburbs....
3 Tour Areva
Tour Areva

Tour Areva is an office skyscraper located in La D?fense, the high-rise Central business district situated west of Paris, France.Built in 1974, the tower is 184 m tall....
 		 1974 office 184 607 44 Courbevoie
4 Tour Granite
Tour Granite

Tour Granite is an office skyscraper currently under construction in La D?fense, the high-rise Central business district situated west of Paris, France....
 		 2008 office 183 603 37 Courbevoie
Courbevoie

Courbevoie is a commune in France in the d?partement of Hauts-de-Seine. It is located 8.2 km from the Kilometre Zero in the northwestern suburbs....
5 Tour Gan
Tour Gan

Tour Gan is an office skyscraper located in La D?fense, the high-rise Central business district situated west of Paris, France. It was designed by celebrated American architect Max Abramovitz....
 		 1974 office 179 587 42 Courbevoie
6 Tour Alicante (Société Générale) 1995 office 167 548 37 Nanterre
Nanterre

Nanterre is a communes of France in the western suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the Kilometre Zero.Nanterre is the Prefectures in France of the Hauts-de-Seine departments of France, as well as the seat of the Arrondissement of Nanterre....
Tour Chassagne (Société Générale) 1995 office 167 548 37 Nanterre
8 Tour EDF
Tour EDF

Tour EDF is an office skyscraper located in La D?fense, the high-rise Central business district west of Paris, France.The tower was built for ?lectricit? de France , France's main electricity company, and hosts company's offices....
 		 2001 office 165 541 41 Puteaux
Puteaux

Puteaux is a commune in France in the western suburbs of Paris, France. It is located in the heart of the Hauts-de-Seine D?partements of France, at from the Kilometre Zero....
9 Cœur Défense
Cœur Défense

C?ur D?fense is an office skyscraper in La D?fense, the high-rise Central business district west of Paris, France. With 350,000 m? , it is the building with the most floor space in Europe along with the Palace of Parliament in Bucharest....
 		 2001 office 161 528 40 Courbevoie
10 Tour Assur (AXA) 1974 office 159 522 39 Courbevoie
11 Tour Adria
Tour Adria

Tour Adria is an office skyscraper located in La D?fense, the high-rise Central business district situated west of Paris, France.Built in 2002 by Michel Andrault and Nicolas Ayoub, architects from Conceptua, it is a twin of the nearby Tour ?g?e, which was built three years before in 1999....
 (Technip) 		2002 office 155 509 40 Courbevoie
Tour Égée
Tour Égée

Tour ?g?e is an office skyscraper located in La D?fense, the high-rise Central business district situated west of Paris, France.Tour ?g?e was built in 1999 by Michel Andrault and Nicolas Ayoub, architects from Conceptua....
 (Ernst&Young) 		1999 office 155 509 40 Courbevoie
13 Tour Ariane
Tour Ariane

Tour Ariane is an office skyscraper located in La D?fense, the high-rise Central business district situated west of Paris, France.Built in 1975, it belongs to the 2nd generation of skyscrapers in La D?fense....
 		 1975 office 152 499 36 Puteaux
14 Tour CBX
Tour CBX

Tour CBX or Tour Dexia is an office skyscraper located in Supercomplex 2 of the La D?fense Central business district situated west of Paris, France....
 		 2005 office 142 466 36 Courbevoie
15 Tour Défense 2000
Tour Défense 2000

The Tour D?fense 2000 is one of the taller dwellings in France. The tower is situated in the La D?fense section of Puteaux, a suburb of Paris....
 		 1974 residential 136 446 46 Puteaux
16 Tour Europlaza
Tour Europlaza

Tour Europlaza is an office skyscraper located in La D?fense Central business district situated west of Paris, France.Built in 1972, the tower of 135 meters of height belongs to the second generation of skyscrapers in La D?fense....
 		 1995 office 135 443 31 Courbevoie
17 Tour Descartes
Tour Descartes

Tour Descartes is an office skyscraper located in La D?fense Central business district situated west of Paris, France.Built in 1988, the tower, with a height of 130 meters, belongs to the third generation of towers in La D?fense....
 (IBM) 		1988 office 130 427 40 Courbevoie
18 Tour Les Poissons
Tour Les Poissons

Tour Les Poissons is a skyscraper of mixed use, both residential and commercial, located west of Paris, France, in Courbevoie, near La D?fense Central business district....
 		 1970 mixed 128 420 42 Courbevoie
19 Tour France
Tour France

Tour France is a residential skyscraper located in La D?fense Central business district situated west of Paris, France.Built in 1973, the tower is with a height of 126 meters one of the tallest residential towers in France....
 		 1973 residential 126 413 40 Puteaux
20 Tour Franklin
Tour Franklin

Tour Franklin is an office skyscraper located in La D?fense Central business district situated west of Paris, France.Built in 1972, the tower of 120 meters of height belongs to the second generation of skyscrapers in La D?fense....
 		 1972 office 120 394 33 Puteaux
21 Tour Sequoia
Tour Sequoia

Tour Sequoia is an office skyscraper located in La D?fense Central business district just west of Paris, France.Built in 1990, that 119 meter-tall tower represents the transition between the third and the fourth generation of buildings in La D?fense....
 (Bull, Cegetel, SFR) 		1990 office 119 390 33 Puteaux
Tour Winterthur 1973 office 119 390 33 Puteaux
23 Tour Michelet
Tour Michelet

Tour Michelet is an office skyscraper located in La D?fense Central business district just west of Paris, France.Built in 1985, the tower, with a height of 117 meters, belongs to the third generation of towers in La D?fense....
 (Total) 		1985 office 117 384 34 Puteaux
Tour CB16 2003 office 117 384 32 Courbevoie
25 Tour Neptune 1972 office 113 371 28 Courbevoie
Préfecture des Hauts-de-Seine
Préfecture des Hauts-de-Seine

The Pr?fecture des Hauts-de-Seine is an administrative building located in Nanterre, in the inner suburbs of Paris, France.Hosting specifically the administrative offices of the pr?fecture of the Hauts-de-Seine D?partement in France, the building is made of a wide basis above which is built a 113 meters tall tower....
 		 1974 office 113 371 25 Nanterre
27 Grande Arche
Grande Arche

The Grande Arche de la Fraternit? is a monument in the business district of La D?fense to the west of Paris. It is usually known as the Arche de la D?fense or simply as La Grande Arche....
 		 1989 monument, office 110 361 37 Puteaux
Tour Manhattan 1975 office 110 361 32 Courbevoie
Tour Aurore 1970 office 110 361 29 Courbevoie
30 Tour Eve 1975 mixed 109 358 30 Puteaux
Tour Initiale
Tour Initiale

Tour Initiale is an office building located in La D?fense business district just west of Paris, France. The 105 m Tour Initiale was the first office tower built in the La D?fense district with its construction being completed in 1966....
 		 1967 office 109 358 30 Puteaux
32 Tour Nuage 1, Tours Aillaud
Tours Aillaud

The Tours Aillaud is a group of residential buildings located in Nanterre, in the inner suburbs of Paris, France.Built in 1977 at the outskirts of La D?fense business district, the Tours Aillaud are named after their main architect, Emile Aillaud....
 		 1976 residential 105 344 39 Nanterre
Tour Nuage 2, Tours Aillaud
Tours Aillaud

The Tours Aillaud is a group of residential buildings located in Nanterre, in the inner suburbs of Paris, France.Built in 1977 at the outskirts of La D?fense business district, the Tours Aillaud are named after their main architect, Emile Aillaud....
 		 1976 residential 105 344 39 Nanterre
34 Tour Gambetta 1975 residential 104 341 37 Courbevoie
35 Tour Cèdre 1998 office 103 338 26 Courbevoie
36 Tour Opus12 1973 office 100 328 27 Puteaux
Tour Athéna 1984 office 100 328 25 Puteaux
38 Tour Europe 1969 office 99 325 28 Courbevoie
Tour AIG 1967 office 99 325 27 Courbevoie
40 Tour Prisma (Tour Kvaerner) 1998 office 97 318 25 Courbevoie
41 Tour Atlantique 1970 office 95 312 27 Puteaux
Tour Pascal 1983 office 95 312 27 Puteaux
43 Tour Pacific 1992 office 90 295 25 Puteaux


Upcoming highrise buildings (2008-2015)

Name Use Height Levels Municipality Status (2008) Estimated Year of Completion
meters feet
Hermitage Towers
Hermitage Towers

Hermitage Towers is a project of buildings. The project will be revealed by Norman Foster , on March 11th, 2009 at the MIPIM which will take place in Cannes, France....
 		 mix 323 1,060 - Courbevoie proposed TBD
Tour Generali
Tour Generali

Tour Generali is a supertall planned for construction in the business quarter of La D?fense in Courbevoie .The project was officially initiated on 18 October, 2006 and is being built for Italian insurance company Assicurazioni Generali....
 		 office 307.7 1,043 50 Courbevoie approved 2013
Tour Signal
Tour Signal

Tour Signal is a proposed skyscraper for La D?fense, Puteaux, France.Medea and Layetana are the developers with Ateliers Jean Nouvel as architects....
 		 office 301 988 71 Puteaux approved 2015
Tour Phare office 300 984 68 Puteaux approved 2015
Tour Assur (AXA) office 240 787 55 Courbevoie under reconstruction 2010
Tour Air² office 220 720 43 Courbevoie approved 2014
Tour Majunga office 205 591 44 Puteaux approved 2012
Tour D2 office 160 574 37 Courbevoie approved 2013
Tour Carpe Diem office 166 525 32 Courbevoie approved 2012
Tour AVA office 143 459 34 Courbevoie approved 2013
Hôtel Méridien La Défense hotel 87 285 23 Courbevoie under construction 2010


Canceled projects

  1. Tour Sans Fin (1989):


See also

  • List of tallest buildings and structures in the Paris region
  • Central business district
    Central business district

    A central business district is the commercial and often geographic heart of a city. In Australia, China , Republic of Ireland, Kenya, New Zealand, Philippines, Singapore and South Africa, the phrase is commonly used, and is often colloquially abbreviated to "CBD"....


External links