Sorbonne

Founded around 1257 by Robert de Sorbon, chaplain to Louis IX, the Sorbonne became the theology faculty of the University of Paris and one of Christendom's most influential intellectual authorities, weighing in on the trial of Joan of Arc and the great religious disputes of the Middle Ages. Cardinal Richelieu rebuilt its chapel in the 17th century and is entombed there. In May 1968 the Sorbonne became the flashpoint of a student uprising: its occupation triggered street battles in the Latin Quarter and a general strike of ten million workers that nearly toppled de Gaulle's government. The university carries the weight of eight centuries of French thought.