BEFORE THE REVOLUTION
The Palais Bourbon was built at the beginning of the eighteenth century by Louise
Françoise de Bourbon, the legitimized daughter of Louis XIV and Madame
de Montespan. The work was entrusted to the Italian architect Giardini and approved
by Hardouin Mansart; construction started in 1722. After Giardini's death in
1724 work was continued under Jacques Gabriel and finished in 1728. The palace
was enlarged and transformed in 1765 by the prince de Condé, grandson
of the duchesse de Bourbon. Soufflot, who directed the work, introduced a degree
of austerity into the original plans of Mansart and Gabriel.
The marquis de Lassay, whose support the duchess had relied upon in constructing
the Palais Bourbon, had a mansion built near the palace. The story of this Hôtel
de Lassay is closely bound up with that of the Palais Bourbon.
AFTER THE REVOLUTION
At the Revolution the palace was declared national property. It was little used
at first but in 1795 was assigned to the Council of the Five Hundred, which met
there from 1798. The chamber built for the Council was the first in France to
be used for a legislative assembly on a long-term basis. It was occupied by the
Legislative Body during the Consulate and the Empire. Fontanes, President of
the Legislative Body, had the present north front of the palace built in the
style of the church of the Madeleine. Also under the Empire, the Palais Bourbon
and the Hôtel de Lassay, originally separate buildings, were joined by
a gallery. The Hôtel de Lassay has since served as the residence of the
presidents of the assemblies; this arrangement became final after 1843, when
the mansion was bought from the duc d'Aumale.
At the time of the Restoration, the Chamber of Deputies rented a large part of
the palace from the prince de Condé upon his return to the country. The
palace was bought from his son in 1827. The Chamber of Deputies was then able
to undertake major work – reconstruction of the chamber, rearrangement of
access corridors and adjoining rooms, installation of the library in a suitable
setting. The decoration of the library and one of the salons was entrusted to
Delacroix.
While this work was going on the Chamber of Deputies met provisionally in the
Salle de Bois. This was where Louis Philippe swore to uphold the Constitutional
Charter on 9 August 1830.
Since the new chamber was inaugurated in 1832 all of France's first parliamentary
assemblies have sat there except under the Second Republic (when the members
of the Constituent Assembly were so numerous that a temporary chamber had to
be set up in the main courtyard), from 1871 to 1879 (when the Palace of Versailles
was preferred), and during the Second World War.
Other major work was done in the nineteenth century – adding another floor
to the Palais Bourbon and strengthening the gallery connecting it with the Hotel
de Lassay, for instance.
TODAY
Work done recently on the palace has been for the purpose of adapting it to the
needs of today's legislators, whose many faceted activities are not confined
to the chamber itself.
A building constructed in 1974 on the opposite side of the rue de l'Université,
linked to the palace by an underground passage, and another bought recently on
the boulevard Saint-Germain have made it possible for each deputy to have an
office of his own, thus facilitating the performance of his duties.
For more informations go to http://www.assemblee-nat.fr