Museum of the French Revolution, History museum in Vizille, France
The Museum of the French Revolution occupies the Château de Vizille and presents paintings, sculptures, and objects from the late 18th century. The collection spans several halls of the castle and documents the political and social upheaval of that era.
A castle owned by Dauphin Humbert II is documented on this site in 1339; ruined in the Dauphiné religious wars, it was bought on 8 June 1593 by François de Bonne de Lesdiguières, who razed the remains and built the present château between 1599 and 1619. On 21 July 1788 its jeu de paume hall hosted the Assembly of Vizille, held under the count of Morges after the Day of the Tiles in Grenoble. A fire on 17 February 1865 destroyed the L-shaped wing containing that hall and Lesdiguières' gallery of battles, never rebuilt.
The museum's name refers to the only institution worldwide devoted entirely to the French Revolution. Its collection includes Jean-Baptiste Wicar's The French Republic, the first known depiction of the Republic, and William James Grant's La cocarde, showing Josephine de Beauharnais with her daughter Hortense. A hedge to the right of the entrance marks where the jeu de paume hall stood until the 1865 fire.
The rooms are open daily except Tuesdays, with extended hours between April and October. Entry is free, and the rooms are accessible via stairs and corridors within the castle.
A documentation center in the building holds over 27,000 books and writings on this subject. The collection serves researchers from different countries as a source for studies on the revolutionary period.
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