Chief architects for historic monuments (architectes en chef des monuments historiques – ACMH), propose the necessary measures to the State in order to protect the buildings entrusted to them by the Minister for Culture. They oversee the proper conservation of the monuments. To this end, they conduct appraisals and diagnostic studies before proceeding with the restoration work.
It is important to distinguish between chief architects for historic monuments and architects for French buildings (architectes des bâtiments de France) who perform different functions: monitoring protected areas, advising private citizens and local authorities on architecture and urban development, and ensuring the everyday maintenance of certain monuments.
On the Notre-Dame de Paris site
Notre-Dame de Paris is a listed historic monument. A chief architect for historic monuments is therefore entrusted with its conservation. Philippe Villeneuve has performed this function since 2013.
Following the fire in 2019, an unprecedented restoration project was launched to save Notre-Dame de Paris. This project is organized around the contracting authority, which manages the implementation of the project, and the project manager, who provides architectural, technical and economic responses and oversees a works program defined with the contracting authority. The ACMH is in charge of the project management.
The scale of the Notre-Dame de Paris project requires many different types of expertise. Philippe Villeneuve is therefore accompanied by Rémi Fromont and Pascal Prunet, who are also chief architects for historic monuments. They work on a daily basis with their team of thirty persons.
How to become a chief architect for historic monuments?
Chief architects for historic monuments are recruited by competitive examination. This is open to qualified architects who have previous experience of restoring historic monuments and, in most cases, have been trained at the Ecole de Chaillot.
