Monument sights in France
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Conciergerie
Built as a royal palace in the 14th century for the concierge of the Palais de la Cité, the Conciergerie was the main prison during the Reign of Terror (1793–94) and was used to incarcerate alleged enemies of the Revolution before they were brought before the Revolutionary Tribunal in the Palais de Justice next door. Among the 2700 prisoners held in the cachots (dungeons) here before being sent in tumbrels to the guillotine were Queen Marie-Antoinette and, as the Revolution began to turn on its own, the radicals Danton, Robespierre and, finally, the judges of the Tribunal themselves.
The Gothic 14th-century Salle des Gens d’Armes (Cavalrymen’s Hall) is a fine example…
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Flame of Liberty Memorial
This bronze sculpture, a replica of the one topping the Statue of Liberty, was placed here in 1987 on the centenary of the launch of the International Herald Tribune, as a symbol of friendship between France and the USA. On 31 August 1997 in the place d’Alma underpass, Diana, Princess of Wales, was killed in a devastating car accident along with her companion, Dodi Fayed, and their chauffeur, Henri Paul. The sculpture is located on the place de l'Alma, near the end of the Pont de l'Alma bridge.
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Panthéon
The domed landmark now known simply as the Panthéon was commissioned around 1750 as an abbey church dedicated to Ste Geneviève, but because of financial and structural problems it wasn’t completed until 1789 – not a good year for churches to open in France. Two years later, the Constituent Assembly converted it into a secular mausoleum for the grands hommes de l’époque de la liberté française (great men of the era of French liberty).
The Panthéon is a superb example of 18th-century neoclassicism, but its ornate marble interior is gloomy in the extreme. The 80-odd permanent residents of the crypt include Voltaire, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Victor Hugo, Émile Zola,…
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Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel
This triumphal arch, erected by Napoleon to celebrate his battlefield successes of 1805, sits with aplomb in the Jardin du Carrousel, the gardens immediately next to the Louvre. The arch was once crowned by the ancient Greek sculpture called The Horses of St Mark’s, ‘borrowed’ from the portico of St Mark’s Basilica in Venice by Napoleon but returned after his defeat at Waterloo in 1815.
The quadriga (the two-wheeled chariot drawn by four horses) that replaced it was added in 1828 and celebrates the return of the Bourbons to the French throne after Napoleon’s downfall. The sides of the arch are adorned with depictions of Napoleonic victories and eight pink-marble…
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Conciergerie
The Conciergerie was built as a royal palace in the 14th century, but later lost favour with the kings of France and became a prison and torture chamber. During the Reign of Terror (1793–94) it was used to incarcerate alleged enemies of the Revolution before they were brought before the Revolutionary Tribunal, next door in the Palais de Justice.
Among the almost 2800 prisoners held in the dungeons here (in various ‘classes’ of cells, no less) before being sent in tumbrels to the guillotine were Queen Marie-Antoinette (see a reproduction of her cell) and, as the Revolution began to turn on its own, the radicals Danton, Robespierre and, finally, the judges of the Tribunal…
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Sorbonne
Paris’ most renowned seat of learning, the Sorbonne was founded in 1253 by Robert de Sorbon, confessor to Louis IX, as a college for 16 impoverished theology students. Today, the Sorbonne’s main complex (bounded by rue de la Sorbonne, rue des Écoles, rue St-Jacques and rue Cujas) and other buildings in the vicinity house most of the 13 autonomous universities that were created when the University of Paris was reorganised after violent student protests in 1968. Parts of the complex are undergoing extensive renovation, scheduled to be completed in 2015.
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Mémorial des Martyrs de la Déportation
The Memorial to the Victims of the Deportation, erected in 1962, remembers the 160,000 residents of France (including 76,000 Jews, of whom 11,000 were children) deported to and murdered in Nazi concentration camps during WWII. A single barred ‘window’ separates the bleak, rough concrete courtyard from the waters of the Seine. Inside lies the Tomb of the Unknown Deportee.
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Tours de Notre Dame
The entrance to the Tours de Notre Dame, which can be climbed, is from the North Tower, to the right and around the corner as you walk out of the Cathédrale de Notre Dame de Paris’s main doorway. The 422 spiralling steps bring you to the top of the west facade, where you’ll find yourself face to face with many of the cathedral’s most frightening gargoyles, the 13-tonne bell Emmanuel (all the cathedral’s bells are named) in the South Tower, and an absolutely spectacular view over the city.
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Mémorial du Passé Bonifacien
From the marina, the atmospheric Montée St-Roch leads to the citadel via Porte de Gênes (Genoa Gate; pedestrian access only). This gate was the only way of getting into the citadel until the Porte de France was built in 1854. To the north is the Bastion de l'Étendard, a remnant of the fortifications built in the aftermath of the siege in 1553. It is home to the Mémorial du Passé Bonifacien , where various episodes in the town's history have been re-created.
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Tomb of Émile Olivier
At the northern end of Plage des Salins, on a rock jutting out to sea, is the Tomb of Émile Olivier (1825-1913), who served as first minister to Napoleon III until his exile in 1870. Olivier's 17-volume L'Empire Libéral is preserved in the library of Château La Moutte, his former home on Cap des Salins.
Olivier's sea-facing tomb looks out towards La Tête de Chien (Dog's Head), named after the legendary dog who declined to eat St Torpes' remains.
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Église St-Michel des Lions
The Église St-Michel des Lions, named for the two granite lions flanking the door, was built between the 14th and 16th centuries. It contains St-Martial’s relics (including his head) and some beautiful 15th-century stained glass, but its most notable feature is the huge copper ball perched atop its 65m-high spire.
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Bourse de Commerce
At one time the city’s grain market, the circular Trade Exchange was capped with a copper dome in 1811. The murals running along internal walls below the galleries were painted by five different artists in 1889 and restored in 1998. They represent French trade and industry through the ages.
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Bronze Sculpture
Just south of the train station is a bizarre bronze sculpture, a square column with a pile of – no, it can't be! – on top. Clues about its meaning can be found on the nearby brass plaques.
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Tour de la Grosse Horloge
The gateway to the old city, Tour de la Grosse Horloge is a steadfast Gothic-style clock tower, with a 12th-century base and an 18th-century top. For safety reasons, it’s not possible to enter.
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Colonne Louis XVIII
Colonne Louis XVIII commemorates the French king's return from exile in England after the fall of Napoleon (1814). A close inspection will reveal a Hollywood-style imprint of the royal foot.
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Bailli de Suffren Statue
Here a cast from a 19th-century cannon peers out to sea. The bailiff (1729-88) was a sailor who fought with a Tropezien crew against Britain and Prussia during the Seven Years' War.
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Galerie de la Marine
Galerie de la Marine. At the quai des États-Unis' eastern end, a war memorial hewn from the rock commemorates the 4000 Niçois who died in both world wars.
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Monument aux Repatriés d'Afrique du Nord
Sculpted in bronze by César in 1971, the enormous propeller of the Monument aux Repatriés d'Afrique du Nord honours those who returned from North Africa.
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Monument aux Morts de l'Armée d'Orient
The 1922 Monument aux Morts de l'Armée d'Orient, a WWI memorial statue.
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