Inaugurated on August 13, 1900, Georges V station is located on the axis linking Porte Maillot to Porte de Vincennes. Located in one of the capital's most exclusive districts - the Champs-Elysées, as the avenue runs perpendicular to Avenue Georges V - the station leads to one of the most beautiful avenues in Paris.
However, this metro station was not named after the British monarch when it was inaugurated: it was originally named Alma, in reference to the eponymous avenue not far from the station. The avenue itself was named in memory of the Battle of Alma (1854 ), and later gave its name to the Alma-Marceau station, served by Paris metro line 9. It wasn't until May 1920 that the station changed its name to Georges V, the British sovereign of the time. This new name change followed that ofAvenue de l'Alma, which was renamed Avenue Georges V on July 14, 1918 (according to Wikipedia). The sovereign ruled the United Kingdom from 1910 to 1936, and was the father of the future King Edward VIII.
For the record, Georges V station is the only one in the Paris metro network to have been named after a personality during his lifetime! On September 19, 2022, in tribute to Queen Elizabeth II , who died on September 8 of the same year, half of the plaques at Georges V station were replaced by "Elizabeth II" plaques, according to an initiative by RATP.
