Arc de Triomphe in Paris (Photo by Sese Ingolstadt. Licensed under CC BY-SA 2.5 via Wikimedia Commons) 

On this date in 1836, the Arc de Triomphe in Paris was dedicated.

Here are a few things you may not have known about the monument.

First, it is a memorial to those who fought and died in the French Revolution and Napoleonic Wars. It is also the site of France’s Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.

Second, the arch is located at the intersection of 12 avenues, including the Champs-Elysses at Place Charles de Gaulle. The junction was originally known as Place De l’Etoile or square of the star for its shape. It is near the midpoint of the Axe Historique, an axis along which several historic sites lie between the Louvre museum and the Grand Arche.

Third, the Arc de Triomphe was the largest arch of its kind when it was built at 50 meters or 164 feet tall. It was surpassed in 1938 by Mexico City’s Monumento a la Revolucion at 67 meters or 220 feet tall.

Our question: An eternal flame at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier inspired what memorial in the United States?

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