Madeleine bombing

The Église de la Madeleine is instantly recognizable by the fifty-two towering Corinthian columns that wrap around its entire exterior, giving it the appearance of an ancient Greek temple rather than a traditional church. This neoclassical colossus stands at the end of Rue Royale, its heavy, imposing form dominating the square. Though its massive granite frame suggests an eternal monument, the building spent decades caught in the shifting tides of French history, moving from a royal project to a planned temple for Napoleon’s armies before finally being consecrated as a Catholic church in eighteen forty-two.