Napoleon III's Louvre expansion
Following the French Revolution of 1848, the provisional government adopted a decree on the continuation of the rue de Rivoli toward the east and the completion of the Louvre Palace's north wing, building on the steps taken to that effect under Napoleon.
[5] On Napoleon III's order, Minister François-Xavier Joseph de Casabianca commissioned Visconti to design the new Louvre's plans on 30 January 1852,[6] and the first stone was laid on 25 July 1852.
Lefuel modified Visconti's project, keeping its broad architectural outlines but opting for a considerably more exuberant decoration program that came to define the nouveau Louvre in the eyes of many observers.
In multiple parts of the project, Napoleon III emphasized his role as continuator of the great French monarchs of the past, and as the one who completed their unfinished work.
"[2]: 156 Separately, Napoleon III created a Musée des Souverains in the Louvre's Colonnade Wing to similarly emphasize the continuity of his rule with the long legacy of French monarchy and thus bolster his legitimacy.
Despite being criticized by a number of observers, e.g. by Ludovic Vitet,[9] Prosper Mérimée and Horace de Viel-Castel,[6]: 17-18 Lefuel's treatment of the square-dome-roofed pavilions became a seminal model for Second Empire architecture in France and elsewhere.
[16]: 272 On the same floor, between the Pavillon Denon and the Grande Galerie, Lefuel created a large Estates Hall (Salle des États) for state events and ceremonies.
The stables were nominally supervised by Great Equerry (grand écuyer) Émile Félix Fleury [fr],[18] whose spacious apartment was on the western side of the Cour Lefuel and adorned with a porticoed balcony.
Arguably the most salient component is the series of 86 statues of celebrated figures (hommes illustres) from French history and culture, selected by Napoleon III himself,[19] each one labelled with their name.
Among the abundant architectural sculpture of the Nouveau Louvre, the pediments of the three main pavilions stand out:[2]: 156 [20] The latter group includes the depiction of a steam locomotive, then representing cutting-edge technological progress, and the only surviving public portrayal of Napoleon III in Paris.
At the top of the ramps above the entrance to the manège, a monumental group, also by Rouillard, features three surging horses that echo Robert Le Lorrain's chevaux du soleil at the Hôtel de Rohan (Paris) [fr].
Inside, the idiosyncratic hunting-themed capitals feature heads of horses and other animals, by Emmanuel Frémiet, Pierre Louis Rouillard, Henri Alfred Jacquemart, Germain Demay [fr], and Houguenade.
The Southern façade was completely changed, as Lefuel disliked Jacques II Androuet du Cerceau's colossal order and replacing it with a replica of the earlier design attributed to Louis Métezeau further east.
Between the Pavillon de Flore and the Pavillon des Sessions, Lefuel created a monumental passageway (then called the Guichet de l'Empereur,[14]: 42 now Porte des Lions) between 1864 and 1869, adorned with two pairs of monumental lions by Antoine-Louis Barye to the south and lionesses by Auguste Cain to the north, with two additional lionesses by Cain in front of the nearby porte Jaujard.
Lefuel, together with Eugène Viollet-le-Duc, defended the option of repairing the ruins, but shortly after both died the French parliament decided to tear them down in 1882, largely for political motives associated with the termination of the monarchy.
