UNITED STATES CAPITOL
Read moreIt is the heart of the American legislature and at the same time the heart of the country in the federal capital. The building itself consists of a huge dome (imitation of the Rome Pantheon) and two wings, the Senate and the House of Representatives. The dome, recently renovated, consists of more than 4000 tons of cast iron.
In 1791, President George Washington, in collaboration with the French architect L'Enfant, decided that the Capitol would be built at the meeting point of the four main districts of Washington. The construction was entrusted to the German architect Henry Latrobe. However, in 1815, the English destroyed what had been erected. Architect Charles Bulfinch took over and completed the construction of a part of the building in 1824. The whole was completed only in 1867. At the top of the Capitol Throne the statue of Liberty (an eagle on the head of the woman and a leg of the animal hide her ear), emblem of the freedom of individuals and the end of slavery in Washington in 1863. The statue, inspired by Greek and Roman models, was carried out in 1855 by sculptor Thomas Crawford.
To learn more about the history of the construction of the Capitol and the training of the Congress, an exhibition recounts the life of the institution on the ground floor of the building. Attention, since it is a federal building, security checks can be drastic at the entrance.
THE WHITE HOUSE - LA MAISON-BLANCHE
Read moreIt is the oldest public building in the Columbia district. The White House is the official residence and the office of the POTUS (President of the United States) and FLOTUS (First Lady of the United States). This building in Aquia sandstone was built between 1792 and 1800. The site was chosen by George Washington, the first president of the United States who died shortly before the end of construction. Although originally white, the building was repainted following the fire that ravaged it in 1814 on the occasion of the Burning of Washington (Washington Fire) by English soldiers in the framework of the Anglo-American war of 1812. James Madison, then president, and his wife found refuge in the small town of Brookeville in Maryland.
In total, the White House has 6 floors and 132 rooms, and it has a swimming pool and a green. The administration offices are located in the west wing, and among them the president's famous oval office. After carrying the names of «President's Palace», «President's House» and «Executive Palace», she was officially named «White House» in 1901 by President Theodore Roosevelt. The last major renovation took place in 1989 and required more than two thousand liters of white paint. It was the last time that the building was fully repainted, whereas in the middle of the twentieth century, the exterior of the White House was systematically repainted every four years before each investiture ceremony. During the great renovation, the building had to be stripped of the many layers of paint that made it difficult to maintain. At the White House Information Center, you will find brochures in French describing the interior of the presidential house, since it is unfortunately impossible to visit. Since the inauguration of President Donald Trump in January 2017, it is not unusual to see groups of demonstrators waving signs in front of the White House grids.
WASHINGTON MONUMENT
Read moreInspired by the obelisk of the Place de la Concorde in Paris, it is the tallest masonry structure in the world and has become one of the emblems of the city of Washington. This memorial to George Washington was erected between 1848 and 1884 by Robert Mills. Made of marble, granite and sandstone, it is 169 metres high and overlooks Washington. It is the tallest building in the city, not because, as we sometimes hear, no building can exceed the Capitol, but because a 1910 law prohibits the construction of new buildings that exceed the width of the adjacent street by more than 6 metres. This symbol of the American capital is part of pop culture and appears in a multitude of films, series and video games.
Despite a three-year restoration following the damage caused by the earthquake of August 23, 2011, the Monument closed again in 2016 and its reopening - currently scheduled for fall 2019 - continues to be delayed. While waiting to admire the view that the Monument offers over the city and in particular over the National Mall, of which it is the central part, it can still be admired from the esplanade.
FRANKLIN DELANO ROOSEVELT MEMORIAL
Read moreThis memorial is dedicated to the 32nd American President, Franklin Delano Roosevelt (1882-1945), but above all to the historic period he had to manage: that of the great depression. 4 rooms make up this together, each representing a mandate from the President, one of the most important being of course the one dedicated to his New Deal policy intended to enable the country to recover from the crisis of 1929.
GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY
Read moreThis university, founded in 1789 by Jesuit John Carroll, is known for his law school. On sunny days, the beautiful lawns of the campus incite laziness. Bill Clinton, Pat Buchanan (Conservative politician) and the children of Donald Trump (Ivanka and Eric) were educated there. Enjoy the Healy Hall, a historic site, and its beautiful clock tower.
WATERGATE BUILDING
Read moreYou can see this famous building from the road since the famous political scandal of 1974, which led to the fall of the Nixon administration and the resignation of the president. The latter had monitored the opposing political clan, the Democrats, who had an office in the building. The journalists who had uncovered the first elements of the scandal had been informed by the mysterious informant "Deep Throat". Watergate is famous for its adaptation into a film (Les Hommes du Président with Robert Redford and Dustin Hoffman). It is now a simple office building.
LAFAYETTE SQUARE
Read moreIn the th and th centuries, it was a place for people in the city who were not there. We were told that there were ghosts of known characters who lived there, such as Dolly Madison, the wife of the first president of the United States (yellow house at the entrance to the square in H Street) and Stephen Decatur, a Navy member.
It is now a popular place for tourists who want to see the back of the White House. In the four corners of the square, the figures of characters who took part in the American war of independence, including the valuable French allies of General Lafayette and General de Rochambeau, were involved in helping the young American nation to become liberated from British tutelage. In the middle of the square is the statue of Andrew Jackson, who massacred many of the Cherokee tribe Indians. In H Street, on the side of the street opposite Dolly Madison, you can visit the St. John Church.