The Île de la Cité on the Seine, where Notre Dame de Paris now stands, was called Lutetia in Caesar’s time and was the capital of the Celtic tribe of the Parisii. After the departure of the Romans, King Clovis 1 around 508 made Paris, which already stretched along both banks, the temporary capital of his Frankish kingdom, but a few years later it was destroyed by the Normans. By 1210, after 20 years of work, a wall with 500 towers was being built around Paris, behind which by that time more than 100 thousand people already lived in the city. Under Napoleon, Paris was already the recognized capital of Europe.
After the Franco-Prussian War of 1870-1871. Paris becomes a city of light, but most importantly – a city of artists. World Exhibitions 1855, 1867, 1878, 1889 and 1900 – milestones in the transformation of Paris into a major modern city. Since the World Exhibition of 1937 in Paris, the number of high-rise and high-rise buildings has been growing. In recent years, the business center of La Defense and the residential area of Tours de Montparnasse have emerged for about 30,000 Parisians.
One of its attractions is the most modern building of the National Center for Science and Industry, where exhibitions and fairs are held. The French capital is one of the largest cities in the world. In the actual city part, which is relatively small – 105 sq. km, live a little more than 2 million, and in greater Paris – more than 10 million people. Beyond the classic Paris – the city of the Eiffel Tower, Notre Dame Cathedral, the Louvre and the Champs Elysees, everyone can find here a lot of attractive unfamiliar corners. Not only the topographic center of the country and the second largest city in Western Europe after London , Paris is the heart of the administrative, political and cultural life of France. Virtually unscathed during the two world wars, the city center with magnificent boulevards and graceful city mansions dates back to the time of Napoleon.
According to ITYPEJOB, the streets breathe history, the monuments and museums are famous all over the world, and every pavement in Paris – theater of everyday life. Carefully preserved, the city, however, is not afraid of change and bold projects. Confirmation of this is the center of Georges Pompidou, the pyramid in front of the Louvre and the massive construction in the Défense area. It is also a city where art and love rule on equal terms. Countless experiences await those who prefer to get to know Paris and Parisians by walking the streets of the city. Although the distances between individual attractions are sometimes quite large, for example, from the Arc de Triomphe to Place de la Bastille, almost 7 km, and from the Sacré-Coeur on Montmartre to Montparnasse – more than 5 km. Paris is a compact city and it is not difficult to navigate it, you just need to keep to the flow of the Seine that divides Paris on the right and left bank. Georg Hausmann (Hausmann), Prefect of the department of the Seine during the period of the Second Empire, completely rebuilt Paris. At the same time, the now famous Grand Boulevards appeared. A dense metro network will give you the opportunity to quickly get to any place in the city…
Notre
Dame de Paris Cathedral is one of the greatest works of early Gothic 1163-1345. Worthy of attention are three portals of the cathedral, a gallery with chimeras and towers 69 m high. Inside the cathedral, you should pay attention to the amazing ensemble of stained-glass windows, 14 carved wooden chairs in the choirs, to the rich collection of treasures of the cathedral, the main of which are the relics of the Passion of the Lord.
Triumphal Arch
In 1806, Napoleon laid the first stone on the hill of Chaillot in the foundation of the arch, which was supposed to glorify the military campaigns of his army. The construction was completed only in 1836 under Louis Philippe. The height of the arch is 50 meters, the width is 45 meters, the height of the vault is 29 meters. The arch is decorated with four sculptural groups. From the side of the Champs-Elysées, these are the “Marseillaise” or “Volunteers on a campaign” by Rude (right) and the “Triumph of 1810” by Cortot, from the side of avenue de la Grande-Armé, these are the “Resistance” (right) and the “Peace” by Etex. On the walls of the arch are engraved the names of 128 battles won by the republican and imperial armies, as well as the names of 658 French commanders. The arch is surrounded by one hundred granite pedestals in honor of the “hundred days” of Napoleon’s reign, interconnected with iron chains. Visitors can get to the top of the arch, which offers a beautiful view of Paris, and to the museum located inside the arch, which describes the history of its construction.
Louvre
One of the oldest and richest museums in the world. For centuries it was a fortress, a prison, the residence of French kings and an academy. The history of the construction of this complex begins from the Merovingians and continues to this day. The seven departments of the museum give an extensive overview of the development of the arts from antiquity to the 19th century.
…and surroundings
One of the advantages of Paris – a first-class public transport system, and thanks to the RER and SNCF trains, it is quite easy to get to the suburbs. Among the most significant historical and cultural monuments in the Île-de-France region, such major sights as the cathedral in Chartres, 90 kilometers southwest of the capital, the bishop’s residence – Saint-Denis Cathedral – in the north, Monet’s house in Giverny, and one of the latest and most controversial wonders of the Parisian suburbs, Euro Disneyland. In the vicinity of the capital there are a number of famous museums: castles and churches in Chantilly, Complain and Vincennes.
Versailles
Palace of Versailles – Chateau de Versailles, which was built from 1661 to 1710. throughout almost the entire period of the reign of Louis XIV, belongs to the most significant sights France: The geometric layout of the area around the palace symbolizes the representation of the monarch as the ruler, the Sun King. Everything was designed to satisfy the whims of the king, encouraged to glorify his personality and power. So Versailles became the center of the most powerful state in Europe at that time. Three radiating streets lead past the stables to the Armory Square in front of the palace. After the swing gates, one after the other follows the Ministerial Square, surrounded by houses in which the courtiers once lived, Royal Square and Marble Square – the courtyard of the palace. In the palace itself, the ceremonial apartments are magnificent – a series of six luxuriously decorated executive rooms and the famous Hall of Mirrors. The latter has 17 windows and the same number of mirrors corresponding to them. In the Hall of Mirrors in 1919 The Treaty of Versailles was signed. The king’s bedroom is located exactly in the center of the palace. Here, in the presence of the royal entourage, the ceremony of getting up in the morning and going to bed in the evening took place. This is followed by the Gallery of military battles, the chapel and the theater.
The gardens laid out by Le Notre stretched 950 meters to the west. The most remarkable exhibits here are the Neptune Pool and the Grand Canal. In the northwestern part of the park there are two delightful country palaces: the Grand Trianon and the Petit Trianon.
Interesting:
The Aerospace Museum in Le Bourget on the territory of the airport, where civil and military aircraft are collected from 1897 to the present day. (Closed on Mondays).
Museum of National Antiquities in the castle of Saint-Germain-en-Laye – a diverse collection of antiques in the former royal palace and the richest collection of prehistoric objects in the world. (Closed on Tuesdays).
The National Museum of Ceramics at the famous Sevres Manufactory – the development of pottery and porcelain production at the royal Sevres factory founded in 1738. (Closed on Tuesdays).
Chantilly is the castle of the Condé family. (Closed on Tuesdays). Saint-Denis
Cathedral – The residence of the bishop and the tombs of the French kings xii-xvibb.
Rambouillet is a farm and castle of the son of Louis XIV, currently the residence of the President of the French Republic.
Bougival – museum-dacha of I.S. Turgenev, where documents, paintings, personal belongings of the writer are presented. (Open on Sundays from 10 am to 6 pm).
Château de Vincennes – tower of Charles V (the Great), chapel and tomb of the Duke of Enghien.
Cartier Foundation for Contemporary Art – Contemporary art in the former home of Baron Oberkampf. (Open every afternoon. Closed in December).
Claude Monet’s house in Giverny is the artist’s home with a garden and water lily lake, which inspired his owner to create a series of amazing landscapes. (Closed on Mondays).
