Assemblee Nationale (National Assembly), Paris

The Palais Bourbon and the Hôtel de Lassay were built as villas for Louis XIV's daughter and were completed in 1728. Following the French Revolution, the Seine-side building became home to the French Parliament (National Assembly), with a semicircular meeting chamber added. The bold, neo-classical complex with striking Corinthian columns and an elaborate portico, added in 1806 to mirror the Madeleine church on the opposite side, is impossible to miss by the Pont de la Concorde.

The name of the old palace is a reference to the Bourbon dynasty, who were overthrown by republicans during the French Revolution. After nationalization, the edifice served as the meeting place for the Council of Five Hundred, which elected government officials, until 1799, when Napoleon Bonaparte orchestrated a coup d'état and seized power. Following Napoleon's downfall in 1814, the Bourbon monarchy was restored under Louis XVIII, who retained some democratic institutions established during the Revolution, such as the Chamber of Deputies. The chamber rented the palace until 1827, when it eventually purchased the building.

Currently, the Palais Bourbon is the seat of France's National Assembly, the lower house of the country's legislative branch. Guided tours of the palace are offered free of charge, including access to the hemicycle (the debating chamber), conference room, and other historically significant rooms. These tours are conducted in French and must be booked in advance on the National Assembly website.