Les Trésors de la Bibliothèque nationale de France

The National Library of France stands as the guardian of priceless treasures that narrate our history and honor the great thinkers, writers, scholars, and artists who shaped it. Telling the story of these exceptional treasures is like opening a grand history book, rich with twists and turns. It would never have come to light without the devotion of the kings of France to books and precious objects. The tale begins in the 14th century under the reign of a passionate writer, Charles V, who set up a library in his apartments in the Louvre. But it was not until the 17th century, under Louis XIV, a sovereign devoted to the arts and letters, that the royal library claimed its historic quarters in rue Vivienne in Paris, where it still occupies.