The Musée des Archives Nationales (), formerly known as the Musée de l'Histoire de France (), is a state museum of

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

history operated by the Archives Nationales. The museum features exhibitions drawn from the collections of the government archives and aims to provide document-based perspective on France’s history and the evolution of French society. It is housed in the

Hôtel de Soubise The Hôtel de Soubise () is a city mansion '' entre cour et jardin''. It is located at 60 Rue des Francs-Bourgeois in the 3rd arrondissement of Paris, France. History The Hôtel de Soubise was built as an ''hôtel particulier'' for the Prin ...

in the

Marais Marais (, meaning "marsh") may refer to: People * Marais (given name) * Marais (surname) Other uses * Le Marais, historic district of Paris * Théâtre du Marais, the name of several theatres and theatrical troupes in Paris, France * Marais (com ...

neighborhood in the 4th arrondissement of

Paris, France 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 ...

. It was first established under

Napoleon III Napoleon III (Charles-Louis Napoléon Bonaparte; 20 April 18089 January 1873) was President of France from 1848 to 1852 and then Emperor of the French from 1852 until his deposition in 1870. He was the first president, second emperor, and last ...

in 1867, with the direction of

Léon de Laborde Léon, Marquis de Laborde (; 1807–1869) was a French archaeologist and traveler. Biography He was born in Paris, the son of Alexandre de Laborde. Educated in Germany, he traveled extensively in Asia Minor, Syria, and Egypt, and then entered ...

History

The

was first built in 1371 as the Hôtel de Clisson and later acquired by the Ducs de Guise. In 1705, it was rebuilt by architect Pierre-Alexis Delamair (1676–1745) for François de Rohan-Soubise and

Anne de Rohan-Chabot Anne de Rohan-Chabot, Princess of Soubise (Anne Julie; 1648 – 4 February 1709) was a French noble. A member of the House of Rohan, she was wife of the Prince of Soubise. It was she who brought the lordship of Soubise into the junior line ...

, with little remaining of the original structure but its turreted medieval gateway which is now the only surviving remnant of Parisian private architecture from the 14th century (see image). The adjoining Hôtel de Rohan was built at the same time. In 1808, both buildings were acquired by the state, after which

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 ...

designated the Hôtel de Soubise for the Empire Archives and the Hôtel de Rohan as the National Printing House (which so remained until 1927).

, an archeologist and prolific author documenting artists, museum collections, and French history, served as the General Director of the Empire Archives from March 1857 to April 1868. He was chiefly responsible for setting up the museum relating to the archive collections. The museum officially opened on July 19, 1867, after de Laborde spent years collecting and selecting documents, then developing a classification and numbering system.

Operations and collections

The museum has both a permanent exhibition and rotating special exhibitions, which not only highlight the holdings of the Archives Nationales but also provide history on archival processes. The collection has objects dating back to the first century A.D. De Laborde developed the classification and numbering system for the collection, most of which are still in use: * AE I: (the

Armoire de fer L'armoire de fer (French: 'iron chest') in general refers to an iron chest used to house important papers. A notable and frequent use of the term refers to a hiding place at the apartments of Louis XVI of France at the Tuileries Palace where s ...

) This "iron chest" houses many of the most treasured documents, like Napoleon I's testament, the Journal of

Louis XVI Louis XVI (Louis-Auguste; ; 23 August 1754 – 21 January 1793) was the last king of France before the fall of the monarchy during the French Revolution. The son of Louis, Dauphin of France (1729–1765), Louis, Dauphin of France (son and heir- ...

and French constitutions. * AE II: Museum of French documents, including one of the oldest documents held in the Archives, a parchment from King Childebert III granting land to the

Abbey of Saint-Denis The Basilica of Saint-Denis (, now formally known as the ) is a large former medieval abbey church and present cathedral in the commune of Saint-Denis, a northern suburb of Paris. The building is of singular importance historically and archite ...

(see image). * AE III: Museum of foreign documents. This includes items such as correspondence between King Henry III of England and

King Louis IX Louis IX (25 April 1214 – 25 August 1270), also known as Saint Louis, was King of France from 1226 until his death in 1270. He is widely recognized as the most distinguished of the Direct Capetians. Following the death of his father, Louis ...

of France (see image). * AE V: Incriminating evidence and seized items, including case documents like that against

Robert-François Damiens Robert-François Damiens (; surname also recorded as ''Damier'', ; 9 January 1715 – 28 March 1757) was a French domestic servant whose attempted assassination of King Louis XV in 1757 culminated in his public execution. He was the last per ...

for his assassination attempt of

King Louis XV Louis XV (15 February 1710 – 10 May 1774), known as Louis the Beloved (), was King of France from 1 September 1715 until his death in 1774. He succeeded his great-grandfather Louis XIV at the age of five. Until he reached maturity (then defi ...

of France. * AE VI: Historic objects, such as ancient city keys and objects from the Hôtel de Soubise and Hôtel de Rohan from when they were residences. AE IV, which was used for

Sigillographic Sigillography, also known by its Greek-derived name, sphragistics, is the scholarly discipline that studies the Sealing wax, wax, lead, clay, and other Seal (emblem), seals used to authenticate archive, archival documents. It investigates not o ...

collections, no longer exists as it was eventually built into its own separate collection outside the Museum.

Architecture and decor

The Hôtels de Soubise and de Rohan have exterior architecture in the Baroque style, with rooms throughout in the Rococo style, including the ''Chambre du prince'', ''Salon ovale du prince'', ''Chambre d'apparat de la princesse'', an amusing ''Cabinet des singes'' (Monkey Cabinet), and the fine ''Salon ovale de la princesse'' with featuring gilt and crystal decor and ceiling frescoes by

François Boucher François Boucher ( , ; ; 29 September 1703 – 30 May 1770) was a French painter, draughtsman and etcher, who worked in the Rococo style. Boucher is known for his idyllic and voluptuous paintings on classical themes, decorative allegories ...

Charles-Joseph Natoire Charles-Joseph Natoire (3 March 1700 – 23 August 1777) was a French painter in the Rococo manner, a pupil of François Lemoyne and director of the French Academy in Rome, 1751–1775. Considered during his lifetime the equal of François Bou ...

, and

Carle Van Loo Carle or Carlé is a surname. Notable people with the name include: *Andrea Cosima Carle, whose stage name is Maggie Mae (1960–2021), German singer * Barbara Carle (born 1958), French-American poet, critic, translator and Italianist * David Ca ...

(see image). Many of the rooms were carefully restored in the early 1900s.

References

Bibliography

* Senator Catherine Dumasbr>''La maison de l'Histoire de France : Rendez-vous avec l'Histoire''
* Isabelle Backouche, Vincent Duclert, ''Quel musée d'histoire pour la France ?'', Paris, Armand Colin, 2011.

External links