Viollet-le-Duc was born in Paris in 1814, in the last year of the Empire of Napoleon Bonaparte. His grandfather was an architect, and his father was a high-ranking civil servant, who in 1816 became the overseer of the … See more

Viollet-le-Duc's work at Vezelay led to a series of larger projects. In 1840, in collaboration with his friend the architect Jean-Baptiste Lassus he began the restoration of See more

The restoration of Notre-Dame continued in this slow and methodical manner for twenty-five years. When not engaged in Paris, Viollet-le-Duc continued his long tours into the … See more

In 1863, Viollet-le-Duc was named a professor at the École des Beaux-Arts, the school where he had refused to become a student, and the … See more

In October 1838, with the recommendation of Achille Leclère, the architect with whom he had trained, he was named deputy inspector of the enlargement of the Hôtel Soubise, … See more

• Facade about 1841, pre-restoration
• Proposed doorway decoration
• View of the spire of Notre-Dame restored by Viollet-le-Duc See more

• The walled town of Carcassonne (restored 1853–1879)
• The keep of the Château de Vincennes (restored in the 1860s) See more