Napoléon, who at first wished to finish the structure as a Temple to the glory of France’s armies, imposed his choice of Pierre Vignon on his jury, which had decided on Claude-Étienne de Beaumont in 1806. Vignon tore down all that had been built, except for the Roman columns.
  

King Louis the 15th, laid the first stone of the Madeleine April 3rd, 1763. Construction of the Madeleine was stopped by the revolution in 1791, when the roman columns and a few walls had been built.

Go to the index page of pictures of the Champs-Élysées.

Take a look at the pictures I’ve taken on trips to Italy

See the pictures I’ve taken in the United States

Take a look at the photographs I’ve taken in Canada