The Pont de l'Alma is sadly associated with the terrible accident that killed Lady Diana, in 1997, in the tunnel between the bridge and the Place de l'Alma. Nearby is the Flame of Liberty, a monument ever since associated with the Princess of Wales, transformed by her admirers into a place of meditation, like a memorial. Yet originally, this 3.5-metre gilded copper flame had nothing to do with England, but rather with the United States, markingFranco-American friendship!
You may not have known it, but this is a life-size replica of the flame of the Statue of Liberty, a gift from France to the Americans, visible in New York. The monument, a gift from the International Herald Tribune newspaper in 1987, was designed to thank France for restoring the Statue of Liberty on its centenary, as a sign of the continuing affection between the two countries.
A small monument that had almost been forgotten by Parisians, but was given a new lease of life following Diana's death. Spontaneously, it was the flame that was chosen by onlookers to lay wreaths of flowers, like an altar to her memory, and many continue to honor her there to this day. Since 2019, the square where the flame is located has been renamed in honor of the princess.
In 2008, a new Flame of Liberty was inaugurated in the gardens of theUS Embassy in France, in the presence of Nicolas Sarkozy and George W. Bush, again to symbolize the relationship between the two countries.
August 31st Paris Ephemeris: Lady Diana's fatal accident in the Pont de l'Alma tunnel
On August 31, 1997, after a frantic chase through the streets of Paris with paparazzi, Princess Lady Diana died in a tragic car accident in the Pont de l'Alma tunnel. [Read more]
August 31st Paris Ephemeris: Lady Diana's fatal accident in the Pont de l'Alma tunnel
