Mont Blanc massif less than 21 hours. The main mountain passes, or cols, that connect different valleys and towns around the Mont Blanc massif are: The first ascent of Mont Blanc in 1786 by Jacques Balmat and Michel Paccard initiated the sport of alpine mountaineering, and it was during the golden age of alpinism (185465) and the silver age of alpinism (186582) that the majority of the main summits of the massif were first attained. Members of the England-based Alpine Club were instrumental in many of the first ascents, usually accompanied by guides from the towns of Chamonix or Courmayeur, such as Michel
Ange-Jacques Gabriel monumental buildings, as he did in the Place de la Concorde. Ange-Jacques Gabriel Ange-Jacques Gabriel (23 October 1698 – 4 January 1782) was the principal architect of King Louis XV of France. His major works included the Place de la Concorde, the École Militaire, and the Petit Trianon and opera theater at the Palace of Versailles. His style was a careful balance between French Baroque architecture and French neoclassicism. Ange-Jacques Gabriel was born on October 23, 1698 to a famous Parisian family of architects, and was connected by marriage with another celebrated architect of the time, François Mansart. His grandfather