Le Louvre, « Grand Dessein » de Napoléon III
The article draws a historical parallel between the current "Nouvelle Renaissance" renovation project for the Louvre, announced in January 2025 by French President Emmanuel Macron with a budget exceeding one billion euros, and the monumental "Grand Dessein" undertaken by Napoleon III in the 19th century. It details how Napoleon III completed the centuries-old ambition of uniting the Louvre and Tuileries palaces, inaugurating the transformed Louvre on August 15, 1857, a date chosen to coincide with the Feast of the Assumption and the imperial Saint-Napoleon holiday. The article traces the long history of the Louvre's expansion from Henri IV's Grande Galerie through Louis XIV's contested colonnade, Napoleon I's interrupted plans, and finally Napoleon III's decisive completion under architect Louis Visconti.
This historical comparison matters because it contextualizes the current renovation debate within a recurring pattern of ambitious, costly, and politically symbolic Louvre projects. By linking Macron's "Nouvelle Renaissance" to Napoleon III's "Grand Dessein," the article suggests that such mega-projects are not merely architectural but deeply tied to presidential authority and national identity. The parallel also highlights persistent challenges—from expropriation difficulties in the 17th century to today's controversies over the colonnade entrance—showing that debates over the Louvre's transformation are as old as the palace itself.