Ever since the time of Louis XIV the French have led the world in the creation and adornment of squares and monumental centres in cities, as in the Places Vendome and de la Concorde in Paris, the Grande Place of Bor deaux, the Place Stanislas at Nancy, the Long champs at Marseilles, etc. In no other country in recent times have the arts of decorative sculpture and painting as auxiliary to archi tecture been carried to so high a development or practised with such success as in France. While tradition and the unifying influence of the national Ecole des Beaux-Arts have to some extent hampered the free development of new ideas in architecture, on the other hand they have preserved it from anarchy and extrava gance, while the sound good taste and artistic sense of the French people have been manifest through all periods of its history.
Bibliography.— The literature of French architecture, in French, is enormous; only a few titles can be given: Berry, A., 'La Renaissance monumentale en France' (Paris 1864) ; Blonde!, 'Architecture francaise' (Paris 1756) ; Chateau, L., 'Histoire et carac
teres de l'architecture en France' (Paris 1864); Du Cerceau, J. A., 'Les plus excellents basti ments de la France' (Paris 1868) ; Lechevallier Chevignard, E., 'Les styles francais' (Paris 1892) ; Palusire, L., 'La Renaissance en France' (Paris 1885) ; Revolt, H., 'Architecture romane du midi de la France' (Paris 1867) ; Ronyer and Dared, 'L'Art architectural en France' (Paris 1869) ; Sauvageot, C., 'Choix de palais, châteaux, hotels et maisons de France' (Paris 1867); Viollet-le-Duc, E., Wictionnaire raisonne de l'architecture francaise) (Paris 1876). In English: Adams, H., 'Mont Saint Michel and Chartres' (Washington 1914) ; Blomfield, R., 'History of French Architecture 1494 to 1661' (London 1911); Cram, R. A., 'The Substance of Gothic' (Boston 1917) ; Moore, C. H., 'Gothic Architecture' (New York 1899) ; Mathews, C. T., 'The Renaissance under the Valois Kings' (New York n. d.); Ward, W. H., 'French Renaissance Architec ture' (London 1911).