Jules Hardouin Mansart

Jules Hardouin-Mansart (16 April 1646 – 11 May 1708) was a French architect whose work is generally considered to be the apex of French Baroque architecture, representing the power and grandeur of Louis XIV. Hardouin-Mansart was one of the most important European architects of the seventeenth century. Born Jules Hardouin in Paris, he studied under his renowned great-uncle François Mansart, one of the originators of the classical tradition in French architecture; Hardouin inherited Mansart's collection of plans and drawings and adopted his well-regarded name. He also learned from Libéral Bruant, architect of the royal veteran's hospital in Paris known as Les Invalides. Hardouin-Mansart served as Louis XIV's chief architect, first...