Italian Foreign Minister Decries ‘Stupidity’ of France’s Strange Swipe at Its Own Not Always Glorious Past

Europe has a lot of history but erasing it rarely turns out well.

Mike Hewitt/Getty Images
The Tomb of Napoleon Bonaparte stands in front of the Hotel des Invalides on October 24, 2023, at Paris. Mike Hewitt/Getty Images

Is it possible to imagine Paris without the Eiffel Tower? Probably not, but apparently it is possible — or for some even desirable — to reimagine one of France’s most famous monuments, the Hôtel des Invalides, without its signature gold leaf cross. That symbol crowns the majestic domed chapel commissioned by King Louis XIV, and a new official poster for the Paris Olympics essentially erases it.

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