Monument historique
Encyclopedia
A monument historique is a National Heritage Site
National Heritage Site
A National Heritage Site is a location/site that regards a building, monument, archeological, geographical,natural or topological feature having a large value that has been registered by a governmental agency of a particular country...

 of France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

. It also refers to a state procedure in France by which national heritage protection is extended to a building or a specific part of a building, a collection of buildings, or gardens, bridges, and other structures, because of their importance to France's architectural and historical cultural heritage
Cultural heritage
Cultural heritage is the legacy of physical artifacts and intangible attributes of a group or society that are inherited from past generations, maintained in the present and bestowed for the benefit of future generations...

. Both public and privately owned structures may be listed in this way. A movable object may also be a Monument historique.

Some buildings may be given the classification for either their exterior or interior, or both, while in other cases a building's décor, its furniture, a single room, or even a staircase may be given the designation because of its historical significance. An example is the MH classification of the décor in the café "Deux Garcons" in Aix-en-Provence
Aix-en-Provence
Aix , or Aix-en-Provence to distinguish it from other cities built over hot springs, is a city-commune in southern France, some north of Marseille. It is in the region of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, in the département of Bouches-du-Rhône, of which it is a subprefecture. The population of Aix is...

 whose patrons included the likes of Alphonse de Lamartine
Alphonse de Lamartine
Alphonse Marie Louis de Prat de Lamartine was a French writer, poet and politician who was instrumental in the foundation of the Second Republic.-Career:...

, Émile Zola
Émile Zola
Émile François Zola was a French writer, the most important exemplar of the literary school of naturalism and an important contributor to the development of theatrical naturalism...

 and Paul Cézanne
Paul Cézanne
Paul Cézanne was a French artist and Post-Impressionist painter whose work laid the foundations of the transition from the 19th century conception of artistic endeavour to a new and radically different world of art in the 20th century. Cézanne can be said to form the bridge between late 19th...

. Some buildings are designated because of their connection to a personality, such as the Auberge Ravoux in Auvers-sur-Oise
Auvers-sur-Oise
Auvers-sur-Oise is a commune in the northwestern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the centre of Paris. It is associated with several famous artists, the most prominent being Vincent van Gogh.-History:...

 which is designated a Monument historique because of its connection to the painter Vincent van Gogh
Vincent van Gogh
Vincent Willem van Gogh , and used Brabant dialect in his writing; it is therefore likely that he himself pronounced his name with a Brabant accent: , with a voiced V and palatalized G and gh. In France, where much of his work was produced, it is...

. Since the 1990s, a significant number of scientific places have been given the designation because of their historical importance.

The designation traces its roots to the French Revolution
French Revolution
The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...

 when the government appointed Alexandre Lenoir
Alexandre Lenoir
Marie Alexandre Lenoir was a French archaeologist. Self-taught and devoted to saving France's historic monuments, sculptures and tombs from the ravages of the French Revolution, notably those of Saint-Denis and Sainte-Geneviève.- Life :The ravages of the Revolution caused the birth of the Musée...

 to specify and safeguard certain structures. The first classifications were given in the 19th century by the writer Prosper Mérimée
Prosper Mérimée
Prosper Mérimée was a French dramatist, historian, archaeologist, and short story writer. He is perhaps best known for his novella Carmen, which became the basis of Bizet's opera Carmen.-Life:...

, inspector-general of historical monuments (see Roquetaillade castle
Château de Roquetaillade
The Château de Roquetaillade is a castle in Mazères , in the French département of Gironde.Charlemagne, on his way to the Pyrenees with Roland, built the first fortification there...

), by . In 1851, Mérimée organized the Missions Héliographiques
Missions Héliographiques
Prosper Mérimée established the Missions Héliographiques in 1851 to supplement Monument historique a program he had established in 1837 to classify, protect and restore French landmarks. Mérimée, noted author of Carmen, served as France's Inspector General of Historical Monuments, and he hired...

 to document France's medieval architecture
Architecture
Architecture is both the process and product of planning, designing and construction. Architectural works, in the material form of buildings, are often perceived as cultural and political symbols and as works of art...

.

A "monument historique" may be marked by the official logo of the Union REMPART, the French historical restoration association. It consists of a design representing the labyrinth that used to be in the Reims Cathedral
Reims Cathedral
Notre-Dame de Reims is the Roman Catholic cathedral of Reims, where the kings of France were once crowned. It replaces an older church, destroyed by a fire in 1211, which was built on the site of the basilica where Clovis was baptized by Saint Remi, bishop of Reims, in AD 496. That original...

, which is itself a World Heritage Site
World Heritage Site
A UNESCO World Heritage Site is a place that is listed by the UNESCO as of special cultural or physical significance...

. The logo is not compulsory for building owners.

Protection

There are two categories of protection :
  • The "classement au titre des monuments historiques" is a national level of importance for the objects or buildings ;
  • The "inscription au titre des monuments historiques" is a région
    Region
    Region is most commonly found as a term used in terrestrial and astrophysics sciences also an area, notably among the different sub-disciplines of geography, studied by regional geographers. Regions consist of subregions that contain clusters of like areas that are distinctive by their uniformity...

     level of importance for the objects or buildings, formerly called "Inventaire Supplémentaire des Monuments Historiques" (ISMH).


These two types of protection are determined after a thorough historical study, by the préfet
Préfet
A prefect in France is the State's representative in a department or region. Sub-prefects are responsible for the subdivisions of departments, arrondissements...

 for the région
Region
Region is most commonly found as a term used in terrestrial and astrophysics sciences also an area, notably among the different sub-disciplines of geography, studied by regional geographers. Regions consist of subregions that contain clusters of like areas that are distinctive by their uniformity...

 level, or by the Minister of Culture
Minister of Culture (France)
The Minister of Culture is, in the Government of France, the cabinet member in charge of national museums and monuments; promoting and protecting the arts in France and abroad; and managing the national archives and regional "maisons de culture"...

 for the national level, aided by the advice of a commission named .

Examples

Examples of buildings classified as a Monument historique include well known Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...

ian structures such as the Eiffel Tower
Eiffel Tower
The Eiffel Tower is a puddle iron lattice tower located on the Champ de Mars in Paris. Built in 1889, it has become both a global icon of France and one of the most recognizable structures in the world...

, the Louvre
Louvre
The Musée du Louvre – in English, the Louvre Museum or simply the Louvre – is one of the world's largest museums, the most visited art museum in the world and a historic monument. A central landmark of Paris, it is located on the Right Bank of the Seine in the 1st arrondissement...

, and the Palais Garnier
Palais Garnier
The Palais Garnier, , is an elegant 1,979-seat opera house, which was built from 1861 to 1875 for the Paris Opera. It was originally called the Salle des Capucines because of its location on the Boulevard des Capucines in the 9th arrondissement of Paris, but soon became known as the Palais Garnier...

 opera house, plus abbeys, churches such as Corbiac
Corbiac
Corbiac is a historic chapel and former monastery located in the French Pyrenees between the villages of Molitg-les-Bains and Mosset....

, and cathedrals such as Notre Dame de Paris
Notre Dame de Paris
Notre Dame de Paris , also known as Notre Dame Cathedral, is a Gothic, Roman Catholic cathedral on the eastern half of the Île de la Cité in the fourth arrondissement of Paris, France. It is the cathedral of the Catholic Archdiocese of Paris: that is, it is the church that contains the cathedra of...

 or hotels such as the Crillon
Hôtel de Crillon
The Hôtel de Crillon in Paris is one of the oldest luxury hotels in the world. The hotel is located at the foot of the Champs-Élysées and is one of two identical stone palaces on the Place de la Concorde. The Crillon has 103 guest rooms and 44 suites...

. Many of the Châteaux of the Loire Valley
Châteaux of the Loire Valley
The châteaux of the Loire Valley are part of the architectural heritage of the historic towns of Amboise, Angers, Blois, Chinon, Nantes, Orléans, Saumur, and Tours along the Loire River in France...

 carry the MH designation as do the renowned gardens at Château de Villandry
Château de Villandry
The Château de Villandry is a castle-palace located in Villandry, in the département of Indre-et-Loire, France.The lands where an ancient fortress once stood were known as Colombier until the 17th century...

.

See also

  • National Heritage Site
    National Heritage Site
    A National Heritage Site is a location/site that regards a building, monument, archeological, geographical,natural or topological feature having a large value that has been registered by a governmental agency of a particular country...

  • Centre des monuments nationaux
    Centre des monuments nationaux
    The Centre des monuments nationaux is a French government body which conserves, restores, and manages historic buildings and sites which are the property of the French state...

  • List of heritage registers
  • List of World Heritage Sites in France
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