Quai d'Orsay

The name Quai d Orsay refers to a specific stretch of the Left Bank of the Seine, but it has become synonymous with French diplomacy because of the grand building located at number thirty-seven. This is the headquarters of the Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs. Unlike many other government offices in Paris that moved into converted aristocratic mansions, this structure was built specifically to house a ministry. Construction began in eighteen forty-four, and the building was designed to project French prestige with opulent Second Empire interiors intended to impress visiting foreign dignitaries.