Population of paris in the 13th century. Medieval paris

In 987, a descendant of Ed, Hugo Capet, was proclaimed king, and his heirs, the kings of the Capetian dynasty, began to be associated with Paris (although the first rulers of this dynasty were rarely here).

At first, the capital of France developed rather slowly, so that by 1100 its population was only about three thousand people.

However, after just a hundred years, Paris became the most big city in Christian Europe (and remained so until the 18th century, when London overtook it), as well as its most important intellectual and cultural center.

By the 1320s, the capital's population was nearly a quarter of a million. By this Paris was obliged, first of all, to its successful position on the navigable river and active trade, which, in turn, contributed to the increase in the class of merchants.

The economic growth of the city was also facilitated by successful agriculture in the vast surrounding lands. To the south of the capital, cereals and vineyards were cultivated, to the east, west and north between the city and the hill of Montmartre rich forests were located.

The development of the University of Paris also contributed to the prosperity of Paris. And all this took place under the protection of a still young, but already strong enough monarchy, which gradually took under its patronage all the surrounding lands. The kings Louis VI, Louis VII and Philip-Augustus enjoyed special confidence, whose reign in aggregate lasted almost the entire 12th century.

Trade in Paris naturally developed in those areas of the city where goods from ships reached the shore. This is, first of all, Grevskaya Square on the Right Bank, where the City Hall building is now located. Once there was a swampy area, but with the development of business activity, the soil was systematically drained.

The origins of education in Paris

The scientific and intellectual activity of the Left Bank also began in the Middle Ages, when the first schools and houses where students lived and studied appeared around the two large monasteries of Saint-Genevieve and Saint-Germain-des-Prés. Pierre Abelard, an outstanding European scientist of that time, also known for being the beloved of the young Heloise and, because of the anger of her uncle, fell victim to forced castration.

At the beginning of the XII century, Pierre Abelard taught his students in these schools, and in 1215 a papal decree allowed to establish on the Left Bank higher education institution which then turned into the famous Sorbonne University of Paris(named after Robert de Sorbon, who founded a school for poor students in 1257).

By 1300, under the auspices of the clergy rather than the city authorities, there were already 3,000 students on the Left Bank. Since the Latin language was used here both in the schools themselves and outside their walls, this student area became deservedly called the "Latin Quarter".

To protect his thriving city, King Philip Augustus (1180-1223) built the Louvre fortress, the ancient walls of which can now be seen on the lower floors. the Louvre Museum... The king also erected the famous long city wall, which once stretched north and south, flanking Mare quarter and Mount Saint Genevieve. Thus, it ran approximately along the line of the main modern Parisian districts, from the 1st to the 6th (while the Abbey of Saint-Germain des Prés remained outside the city walls).

Philippe-Augustus' contemporaries considered these structures a new wonder of the world (despite the fact that later part of the wall on the Left Bank collapsed), as well as a reliable guarantee of the city's safety and convincing evidence that the French monarchy sought to turn Paris into a truly great city.

King Philip Augustus, who was terribly impressed by the city's dirt in his youth, even began to pave the streets, but in the end, most of them remained hopelessly dirty, pitted ruts, filled with crowds of people and animals, all of which sometimes led to serious accidents. Suffice it to mention the tragic death of the heir to Louis VI, who died in 1131, falling from a horse because of a pig running down the street.

Medieval Paris, which Clovis chose as his capital in 508, still bore the imprint of a Gallo-Roman city: fortifications, baths, arenas, roads ... The Isle of Cité was very populated, here was the royal palace. The Basilica of St. Stephen's, in whose place Notre Dame Cathedral was built several centuries later. From the VI century. and in all the Middle Ages, numerous factors, both geographic and economic, as well as religious and intellectual, influenced the development of first the Left Bank, then the Right.

The area of ​​the city at that time was 438 hectares. With a population of one hundred thousand people, medieval Paris was the largest city in Europe.

Geographic and natural factors

The Parisian basin, the confluence of the Marne, Oise, Yonne, Luan and Seine rivers, was like a bowl. In Paris, Bievre and Sèvres poured into the Seine. The Seine itself, whose current was more rapid than it is now, and the swamps, which later gave the name to the whole quarter, formed a natural line of defense. Over time, the walls took over the role of defensive lines, and the swamps were drained so that the city could develop on the banks. Finally, the Seine became the main artery for the transport of goods and food.

Structure of medieval Paris

Economic forces

From the Ile de la Cité, along the roads, at the bridges, merchants displayed their goods. The economic development of the Right Bank was more dynamic than that of the Left. Trading activity was higher in places where it was convenient to dock, between Saint-Gervais and Saint-Merry. The butchers' guild, which was joined by other guilds, settled in the Châtelet area. First covered shopping arcade arose already in 1183.

Religious factors

In addition to the palace complex, the island hosts Cathedral, market, hospital, Dieu hotel and residential buildings. On the banks of the river, around the monasteries founded in the 6th century, agricultural buildings arose. On the Left Bank they were Saint-Germain-des-Prés and Saint-Genevieve, and on the Right - Saint-Martin-des-Champs.

Cultural factors

For the first time, the city expanded from the Isle of Cité to the Left Bank, where the opportunity to receive education from scholars such as Pierre Abelard attracted about ten thousand students. The colleges established for their residence became places of learning.

Roads

The Cite Island was connected to the shores by means of four bridges. The embankment, built as a flood cure, is becoming a stroll for Parisians.

Gothic architecture of Paris

An innovation in Gothic architecture was the use of a curved vault supported by an interweaving of columns and divided arches. These innovations were introduced in the center of France, in the Ile-de-France region from the first half of the 12th century. The development of the Gothic style hindered the further development of Romanesque architecture. Early Gothic (from 1125 to 1190) is traditionally distinguished; mature (up to 1250); radiant (up to 1380); then late or flaming (until the first third of the 16th century).

Saint-Martin-des-Cham

The church, built around 1130, still resembles Romanesque cathedrals in its plan. However, the double gallery of choirs, spacious open chapels and one large side chapel and choir vaults supported by protruding walls and a domed vault with intertwined columns are innovative solutions.

Saint Germain des Prés

The church, with flying buttresses and splendid chapels, dates back to the middle of the 12th century. Its appearance was repeated many times and developed in other Gothic buildings.

Cathedral of Notre Dame

The high windows of the choir have increased in volume, the 15 m high vault is supported by flying buttresses reaching the buttresses, between which the chapels are built. Brilliant Gothic combines glass and stone to give windows a new dimension, as seen in the rose of the southern portal in Notre Dame Cathedral (1258-1270).

Small capitals

Floral ornament and gilding of the elongated capitals of Sainte-Chapelle emphasize the mystical symbolism of the decor.

Bastille

The Bastille, originally a defensive structure and later a state prison, is an example of the military art of Gothic architecture.

Refectory of the monastery of Saint-Martin-des-Cham

The author of this building is Pierre de Montreuil. The refectory has a unique size (12 mx 42 m), which testifies to the excellent mastery of the builders of the technique of erecting Gothic buildings. Notable examples are the two decorated naves, the vaults of which are supported by thick columns, and thin columns separate them.

Louvre

Column of the lower hall royal palace illustrates the stylistic development that took place in the second period of the Gothic.

Tower of Jean the Fearless

A rare evidence of feudal architecture, the tower dates back to the early 15th century. It contains a spiral staircase topped with a vault with wonderful floral decorations.

Sainte-Chapelle

The spire of the cathedral was built in 1853. Its restoration, like the entire ensemble of the building, became one of the most successful construction projects of the 19th century.

The modern spire, mounted on thin cast fittings, repeats the model of Robert Fouchier, who built at the end of the 14th century. a real miracle of brilliant Gothic architecture.

Tower Saint-Jacques

The unique decor of archivolts, pin-glue and lancet pediments makes this tower a masterpiece of flaming Gothic.

Church of Sainte-Chapelle in medieval Paris

Saint Louis began the construction of Sainte-Chapelle between 1241 and 1248. The chapel, a wonderful example of Gothic architecture, was two-level: the lower chapel was for the common people, the upper chapel was for the king. The chapel was conceived by Saint Louis as a place for the storage of sacred relics taken by the crusaders from Constantinople. This is a building with a single nave abutting against a seven-sided apse. Outside, the rigor of the foundation and the strength of the buttresses oppose the lightness of the upper parts of the building topped with a spire. But the main decoration of the upper chapel is stained-glass windows.

Royal manifesto

The authorship of Sainte-Chapelle is traditionally attributed to Pierre de Montreuil, who was assisted by Thomas de Cormon and Robert de Luzarche. The church, which was part of the royal palace of the Cité, was not only a religious center, but also a political one. The king reminded in this way that he is the temporary spiritual leader of his people and leads his people to eternal life.

19th century building

During the Revolution, the Sainte-Chapelle Chapelle suffered greatly. Felix Duban, Jean-Baptiste Lassus and Viollet-le-Duc worked on its restoration. The construction was recognized as one of the most successful in the 19th century. The following were restored: the roof, the external staircase, the spire - for the fourth time in 1853 - the interior decoration and part of the stained-glass windows.

Unified ensemble

Chapelle Sainte-Chapelle is a single space of four elongated openings, ending with a seven-sided apse.

Lower church

The crypt-like lower church has two rows of columns that serve, among other things, to strengthen the structure. The columns form side aisles, connected to form a gallery in the apse.

Upper church

The interior space of the upper part of Sainte-Chapelle is characterized by simplicity and unity. The usual three-tier division of Gothic temples is here replaced by a two-tier, almost single-tier, since the tier with window openings tends to completely absorb the lower part.

Verticality

Massive protruding buttresses helped the builders to do without the construction of flying buttresses.

Center for Theology

The Chapelle of Sainte-Chapelle is a place of theological reflection on the Passion of Christ, which indulged mendicant orders such as the Franciscans. Saint Louis loved to patronize them.

Ingenious engineering solutions

To connect the openings with each other, the architect increased the amount of metal reinforcement that permeates the space of the church. He even made sure to hide these massive iron beams, weave them, where possible, into the fittings of the stained glass windows.

Working for a French company, I was given the task of writing texts walking tours around Paris for our compatriots - I talked about this in some detail in the article. At that time, the musical Notre Dame was in full swing in Moscow, and I had the idea to suggest Medieval Paris - the City of Esmeralda. In addition, the Middle Ages have always fascinated me, and on ship carnivals I have often portrayed the ladies of that time.

And my colleague and friend played Esmeralda.

There was even a French grandfather, who very naturally played the role of a goat ...
So, I went to the scene - to the Place de Grève with its Town Hall, to the Saint-Jacques tower.

Collected material, processed it on the terraces of Parisian cafes.

But most importantly, I just wandered around the medieval quarters.

Visited the Saint-Eustache Church.

Alas, in the place of the Womb of Paris is now huge shopping center and a playground - fortunately, both are underground.



The ultra-modern Pompidou Center rises nearby,

from which, however, a very medieval view opens up.

When there was the Yard of Miracles in this area, where Esmeralda lived. And even if much has survived here, all the same, in the words of Alexei Tolstoy, "Quasimodo's face looked at me from every bell tower ...".


Of course, I had to reread the once favorite novel by Victor Hugo, who lived on the Place des Vosges:


This area is located in old quarter Marais, where there are also medieval mansions.

For example, the Hotel de Sanz.

Walking, I felt with every cell what Hugo said:

“He (Paris) was in those days not only beautiful city, but also a monolithic city, a work of art and history of the Middle Ages, a stone chronicle. It was a city, the architecture of which consisted of only two layers - the Romanesque layer and the Gothic layer, for the Roman layer has long disappeared, excluding only the Baths of Julian, where it still breaks through the thick crust of the Middle Ages. "

Not all medieval monuments were included in my excursion, and, on the contrary, it included not medieval monuments at all, but those that came across along the way: a Russian tourist might not be able to pass by and return to them again.
But all this is still a saying - a fairy tale ahead.
Any tour of the city begins with its history. As you know, Paris originated from the settlement of the Parisians on the island of Cité,

conquered in the 50s BC. by the Romans and called by them Lutetia. During the period of Roman rule, the borders of Lutetia went beyond the borders of the island, and on the left bank of the Seine a city arose, spread out on the slopes of the hill of St. Genevieve.

Now on this place rises the Church of Saint-Etienne du Mont (St. Stephen on the Hill - in the photo above) and - most importantly - the Pantheon, where Hugo is buried.


But back to history: in the 3rd century AD, fleeing from the invasion of the barbarians, the population left their homes and took refuge on the island of Site. For seven centuries, Paris remained within the island. At the end of the 10th century, settlements began to appear on the right bank of the Seine.

Going to the third crusade, King Philip-Augustus decided to enclose Paris with a fortress wall, including the empty lands on the right bank and the existing settlements of Saint-Genevieve, Saint-Germain and others on the left bank.
The construction of the wall began in 1190 on the right bank and in 1200 on the left, and was completed in 1213. In 1280, there were 8 quarters and 310 streets in Paris: 36 on the Cité, 80 on the left bank and 194 on the right. In the XIV century, intensive development of the city was carried out on the right bank around the churches, abbeys, the Louvre castle. New lands were annexed to Paris, which necessitated the construction of a new fortress wall. The wall was begun under Charles V (it is customary to call it “the wall of Charles V”) in 1356 and completed under Charles VI in 1383.
Action "Cathedral Notre dame de paris"Takes place in Paris in the 15th century. About the city of this time, Hugo writes:

“In the 15th century, Paris was divided into three cities, sharply different from each other, independent, each having its own physiognomy, its own special purpose, its morals, customs, privileges, its history: Shite, University and City. Shite, located on the island, the oldest of them and the smallest in size, was the mother of two cities, reminiscent of ... a little old woman between two slender beauties daughters. "

The left bank of the Seine was called the university, the right bank was called the City.

“... Each of these three large parts of Paris was itself a city, but a city too narrow in purpose to be completely complete and do without the other two. In Site, churches prevailed, in the City - palaces, in the University - educational institutions. "

"From a bird's eye view, these three parts ... represented, each individually, a dense network of fancifully tangled streets."

Paris was surrounded by a wall that had six Philippe-Augustus gates on the left bank and six Charles V gates on the right.

“All these gates were strong and beautiful, which did not in the least interfere with their strength. The waters coming from the Seine into a wide and deep ditch, where a strong current formed during the winter flood, washed the foot of the city walls around all of Paris. At night, the gates were closed, the river at both ends of the city was blocked with thick iron chains, and Paris rested peacefully. "

The first streets of Paris appeared on the site of often winding roads and paths and, as a rule, corresponded to their direction. Only under Louis XVI did the streets begin to be cut through the quarters. The origin of street names was associated either with the place or building near which the street passed (for example, rue Saint-Germain l'Auxerrois), or with the name of a noble person, or with the name of the profession whose representatives lived on this street, with a compact location of artisan workshops , or with a sign on the building.
Street names were assigned local residents, but were not registered anywhere, which led to distortions of the original names and misunderstandings. The first guide to the streets of Paris appeared in 1489.

The street names were not written on the houses, and often people wandered for several hours around the place they wanted and could not find it. Only in 1729, a stone with its name was inserted into the walls of the first and last houses of each street. These first plaques have survived on many houses to this day, from three to five stories high in the 15th century. The first floor was built of stone; it supported a structure of wooden beams, the gaps between which were filled with quarrystone covered with Parisian plaster. Houses could be built from other materials, but they were always covered with white plaster. Thus, the city appeared white.
In relation to the street, the houses stood sideways, the roofs located close to each other with tongs resembled the teeth of a saw - the city looked very colorful, especially since the houses were very diverse. The floors of the houses hung one above the other. There were no drainpipes - water was pouring from the rooftops directly onto the street. About thirty such houses have survived to this day in Paris.

Hugo describes Paris in the 15th century “from a bird's eye view,” or rather from the towers of Notre Dame:

“A breathless spectator who climbed to the very top of the cathedral would first of all be blinded by the spectacle of roofs, pipes, streets, bridges, squares, spiers, bell towers spread below. His gaze would simultaneously be presented with: a carved gable, a gabled roof, a turret hanging at the corner of the wall, a stone pyramid of the 11th century, a slate obelisk of the 15th century, a round smooth castle tower, a rectangular patterned bell tower of a church - both large and small, and massive, and airy. ... His gaze would wander for a long time, penetrating into the various depths of this labyrinth, where everything was marked by originality, genius and beauty; everything was a product of art, starting with the smallest house with a painted and stucco facade, external wooden fixtures, with a low arch of the door, with the upper floors hanging over it, and ending with the majestic Louvre, surrounded at that time by a colonnade of towers. "

The tour starts in that part of Paris that was called the City in the Middle Ages.

"The city, although larger than the University, did not represent such a unity."

It seemed to consist of three parts: in one of them there were palaces, in the other there were houses.

"The third part of the panorama of the right bank was a long belt of abbeys, covering almost the entire city from east to west and forming behind the walls that enclosed Paris, a second inner fence of monasteries and chapels."

(All quotes, if there is no author's last name, are taken from Hugo's novel. I must say that Hugo is often repeated in his descriptions, and, nevertheless, these descriptions help to vividly imagine medieval town, recreating his distinctive style and atmosphere.)

“The accumulation of dwellings, closely molded to each other, like cells in a hive, was not devoid of a peculiar beauty ... Above the many buildings, whose tiled and slate roofs were drawn one against the background of others with fanciful links, there were carved, folded, patterned bell towers of forty-four churches on the right bank . "

We will start our walk on the right bank, on the Seine embankment at the Pont neuf metro station, which translates as New bridge.

The bridge itself is visible behind my back. In fact, it is the oldest surviving bridge in Paris. Its first stone was laid on the evening of May 31, 1578 by Henry III in the presence of Queen Mother Catherine de Medici. It was Saturday and it was raining heavily. The king, dressed in black, wept with nature, as that morning he attended a memorial service for two of his favorites, who were killed in a duel at the end of April. The Parisians, who were present at the laying and saw the king's grief, proposed to name the new bridge the Bridge of Tears.
The construction of the bridge was progressing slowly, it was hampered by numerous political events taking place at that time. It was completed only in 1605, and already Henry IV, accompanied by his retinue, solemnly rode over it on horseback.

Unlike other bridges of that time, the New Bridge was not built up with houses and had sidewalks for pedestrians. It became an event. For the first time, Parisians had the opportunity to admire it while crossing the Seine.

Paris. View of the New Bridge (Pont Neuf) The sidewalks were high and pedestrians did not have to worry about safety. The bridge immediately became a place for walks. The only buildings that could be seen on it were benches located in niches. Wandering merchants, artists, magicians, chansonniers, flower girls, zoo-dealers, as well as numerous swindlers and pickpockets gathered here. In Paris, they said that on the New Bridge at any time you can meet a monk, a white horse and a lady of easy virtue. This "proverb" is confirmed by Fonvizin: in 1778 he wrote to his sister from Paris that he specially walks across the bridge in order to check whether this is so, and each time he really meets the aforementioned characters.

At the beginning of the 17th century, a monument to Henry IV was erected by the sculptors de Bolognem and Frangueville near the bridge, on Cité, the first equestrian statue in France, installed on a city highway. Originally located on this site, a huge horse was cast in bronze by order of Ferdinand, Duke of Tuscany, who wanted to use it for his own equestrian monument. The project was not carried out due to the death of the duke. After the death of Henry IV, another duke presented the horse to Maria de Medici. In 1613, a ship with a horse left Livorno for France, but sank off the coast of Sardinia. The horse was raised from the bottom and in 1614 was installed on a marble pedestal where the monument is now. For twenty-one years he stood without a rider, he was simply called "the bronze horse". In 1635, Louis XIII ordered the installation of the figure of his father on a horse. In 1788 the head of the statue was decorated with flowers and white ribbons, in 1789 they were replaced with the national cockade.
In 1792, the monument was thrown from the pedestal and smashed, part of its fragments were melted, the other part was thrown into the Seine. The current monument was erected in 1818 by order of Louis XVIII. Here he perched on my head, as if the king and the monument are me, and he is just a dove.

For him, the statues of Napoleon were melted down on the Vendôme column (the same "column with a cast-iron doll"),

on a column in Boulogne-sur-Mer and on a column that once stood on the Place de Victoire. The foundry, who was an ardent Bonapartist, secretly placed a small figurine of Napoleon in Henry's hand, and in the horse's belly - a whole bunch of papers with various texts, including songs praising the emperor. These items are still inside the monument.

The new bridge was restored in 1848, but the supporting structures remained from 1605. Thus, its age exceeds three and a half centuries.
The largest Parisian department store "Samaritain" is located near the bridge. In 1605, Henry IV installed a hydraulic machine on the New Bridge near this place, providing water to the drinking fountains of the right bank. Next to the car was an image of a Samaritan woman offering water to Christ. The Samariten hydraulic machine operated until 1813. Already in the Middle Ages there were sixteen drinking fountains in Paris - all of them were located on the right bank. The inhabitants of the left bank used wells or took water directly from the Seine. If at the time of the Romans the water in the Seine was distinguished by its amazing purity, then by the Middle Ages it had time to be heavily polluted. In the 14th century, a decree was even issued prohibiting sweeping in the rain, so as not to further pollute the water in the river.
We will leave the embankment - not because we are afraid of dirty water, but because it is time for us to move on - to the Church of Saint-Germain-l'Auxerrois.
Continuation .

1. Symbols of Paris

Coat of arms of paris

1.1. Coat of arms of paris

Description of the coat of arms

“In a scarlet field, a Gali ship, equipped and clad in silver, sailing on silver waves, propelled by a pointed sail. The head is azure, dotted with golden heraldic lilies. "

The coat of arms of the city of Paris was officially approved in 1358 by King Charles V. The coat of arms depicts a ship that symbolizes, on the one hand, the island of the Cité on the Seine River lying in the very center of the city, which has the shape of a ship, as well as trade and trading companies, which indicates on the main component of the urban economy, and the azure field with golden lilies at the top of the coat of arms is the old emblem of the French royal dynasty of the Capetian, under whose patronage Paris was.

The ship served as the symbol of Paris, since two ancient trade routes pass through Paris - overland, from north to south, and water, along the Seine, from east to west, to the Atlantic. In the old days, the ferry across the Seine was run by a guild of boatmen, whose income was an important article of the city's welfare. The first mention of the coat of arms of Paris appeared at the beginning of 1190, when Philip Augustus designed the city before setting out on a campaign to the Holy Land. After the Great French Revolution, by a decree of June 20, 1790, both titles of nobility and emblems and emblems were abolished. The municipality of Paris complied with this directive and the city was left without its coat of arms until the period of the first French Empire, when French cities were again allowed to have their own coat of arms. In Paris, the coat of arms was restored by order of Napoleon I on January 29, 1811. In 1817, Louis XVIII approved the coat of arms of the city in its original form.

1.2. Motto

Paris flag

The city's motto is “Fluctuat nec mergitur”, which in Latin means “Floats, but does not sink”. The motto first appeared at the end of the 16th century, although it became official only after the approval of Baron Haussmann, and then Prefect of the Seine, on November 24, 1836.

1.3. Flag

On Sunday 12 July 1789, Camille Desmoulins attached a green leaf to his hat in the gardens of the Royal Palace. Camille Desmoulins urged people to do the same. This gesture meant general mobilization. They soon noticed that green is the color of Count Artois (the future Charles X), which was extremely unpopular among the people at that time. It was decided to replace the green cockade with cockades of other colors, more often blue and red. After the capture of the Bastille, red and blue cockades became the most common, as these colors were the colors of the municipal guard. From that time (French Revolution), and the city's flag originates.

1.4. Patroness of the city

The patroness of the city is considered to be Saint Genevieve, who in the 5th century turned the troops of the Huns under the leadership of Attila from the walls of the city with her prayers. The relics of St. The Genevieve is today in the Parisian church of Saint-Etienne-du-Mont.

2. Toponomics of the name

Parisian gold coins, 1st century BC NS.
National Library of France

Map of Galia at the time of Ptolemy, on which the name can be read Lutetia

The word "Paris" itself comes from the Latin Civitas Parisiorium- the city of Parisia. It was the Celtic settlement of the Lutetia of the Parisian tribe on the site of the present-day Cite Island.

Some historians, such as Rigord of Saint-Denis, associate the founding of Paris with the time of the capture of Troy, the Trojans, who then emigrated, settled on the banks of the Seine, and called new town named Paris. Word Parisia from ancient Greek it is translated as "audacity", "courage". Gilles Corroze, in La Fleur des Antiquitéz de la plus que noble et triumphante ville et cité de Paris (The Flower of Antiquity of the Noblest and Most Triumphant Cities and Towns of Paris), published in 1532, suggested that the city was named after Isis ( Par isis) - Egyptian goddess, whose statue is in the temple of Saint-Germain-des-Prés.

3. Prehistoric period

Excavations on st. Henry-Farman (June, 2008). In the background is the southern ring road.

The Ile-de-France (historical region of France and the region in the central Paris Basin) has been inhabited by humans at least 40,000 years ago. This time is evidenced by hewn stone tools discovered during various excavations and excavations along the banks of the Seine. At the time, the area now occupied by Paris was marshy, partly due to the altered riverbed of the Seine at that time, and covered with forests.

During the excavations carried out in the 12th arrondissement of Paris in September 1991, the remains of ancient human settlements became a very impressive archaeological discovery. Excavations have revealed traces of sites of people of the Neolithic period (4000 - 3800 BC), arranged on the left bank of the former branch of the Seine. During archaeological excavations, extremely valuable items were found: three large pies (which turned out to be the oldest boats found in Europe), a wooden bow, arrows, pottery, numerous tools made of bone and stone.

4. Foundation of the city

The layout of the arena in Lutetia.

The city was founded in the 3rd century BC. NS. a tribe of Celtic Gauls - parisia, as the settlement of Lutetia (from the Gaulish "swamp")

In 53 A.D. NS. Gaius Julius Caesar built a Roman fortification near Lutetia. The town was originally located on the islands formed by the Seine branches, on the site of the modern Ile de la Cité, occupying a strategic position at the crossroads of the waterway channel and the route of crossing this water barrier ford. The first written mention of Lutetia is found in the 6th book of Julius Caesar about the war with Gaul in 53 BC. NS. When in 52 BC. NS. After the first unsuccessful attempt, the Romans tried to approach the city for the second time, the parisians set fire to Lutetia and destroyed the bridges. The Romans left the island for them and built a new city on the left bank of the Seine. There they erected baths, a forum and an amphitheater. In the same year, 52 B.C. ended military clashes between the Gauls and the Romans, and the legions of Julius Caesar established control over this territory. Until the early Middle Ages, the city was a regional center under Roman rule.

In the II century A.D. NS. Christianity appeared on the territory of France, and in the V century A.D. e., after the invasion of the Franks, the rule of the Romans ended. In 508 A.D. NS. Frankish king Clovis I annexed Gaul to his kingdom and made Paris his capital.

5. Middle Ages

Plan of Paris, 1223

Paris, already being a city of Franks, for some time was only a modest residence, first of the Merovingian, and then of the Carolingian kings. It turned into a true capital in 987, when Hugh Capet founded a new dynasty and gave the city the status that it retained throughout the history of France. From that moment on, the city began to develop at an accelerated pace, and not only in terms of urban planning, but also as Cultural Center... The reign of Philip II Augustus, who ruled from 1180 to 1223, became, as it were, the starting point of one of the most beautiful periods in the history of Paris: streets were paved, many buildings were built, the city's defenses were strengthened - in 1190 the city wall was built on the right on the banks of the Seine, on the western outskirts of Paris, construction began on the Louvre, and in 1215 the University was founded. With the formation of the university, an academic quarter was formed on the left bank, and on the right - trade and craft.

At that time, medieval Paris was not yet distinguished by its special splendor. So, the daughter of Yaroslav the Wise, Anna Yaroslavna, who married the French king Henry I, came from Kiev and was disappointed with Paris.

The city's new heyday came during the reign of King Louis IX, nicknamed the Saint, which lasted from 1226 to 1270. At this time, Sainte-Chapelle was built and work on the construction of Notre Dame Cathedral was significantly advanced.

Since the XI century, Paris has become one of the centers of European education, primarily religious. In the 13th century, as a result of disagreements among teachers, a number of "independent" colleges, the forefathers of the modern Sorbonne, were opened on the left bank (modern Latin Quarter).

The development of the city slowed down significantly as a result of the plague ("black death") epidemic in 1348-49 and upheavals Hundred Years War(1337-1453), numerous uprisings.

Under the next ruling dynasty, the Valois dynasty, Paris endured one of the most difficult periods in its history: in 1358, there was an uprising led by the head of the guild of Parisian merchants, Etienne Marcel. Inspired and restless, as the Parisians were often characterized, for the first time declared themselves an independent commune under his leadership. Charles V restored order in the country. He also built the Bastille.

In the XIV century, the city is surrounded by another wall on the right bank, on the site of today's Grands Boulevards.

With the reign of Louis XII and, especially, Francis I, a cultural upsurge began. Beautiful Renaissance palaces and parks, luxury hotels are being built. Artists, musicians and the best artisans flock to France from all over Europe. In 1548, the first private theater, the Burgundy Hotel, was opened.

At the end of the Middle Ages, the city had about 200 thousand inhabitants. Starting from the reign of Francis I, during which the first pavilions of the Louvre were built, and until the French Revolution itself, the city grew relatively slowly.

Only from the 16th century the capital of France is constantly growing and developing again. The Fronda forced the kings to move their residence outside the city, but Paris continues to expand and develop.

6. XVIII-XX century

Prospectus of the Opera in a painting by Pissaro. View from the modern "Hotel du Louvre"

During the time of Louis XIV, the royal residence moved to Versailles. But Paris was still the political center of France, thanks to its growing population and the leading role of Paris in the country's economy.

In the 18th century, it became a recognized trendsetter and an entertainment center.

The capture of the Bastille in July 1789 became one of the main actions of the Parisians during the First French Revolution, and the Parisians also played far from the last roles in the subsequent Second and Third Revolutions.

Paris quickly began to develop in the era of Napoleon I. Under him, the most famous sights of the city were erected, in particular the Arc de Triomphe and the Invalides. An even greater mark was left by the reign of Napoleon III and the urban planning transformations of the Prefect of Haussmann, who significantly modernized Paris at that time. By order of the Emperor Napoleon III, the prefect of the Seine department, Baron J.-E. Haussmann carried out a radical redevelopment of Paris, cutting through the city with highways and building boulevards in the place of disorderly slums. Many buildings were built, which became the decoration of the capital. Some architectural monuments have been rebuilt, restored or moved. At the same time, the construction of a modern water supply and sewerage system began. Haussmann is rightfully considered the creator of modern Paris.

Under Haussmann, the Parisian Grands Boulevards were laid, which today form the basis of the city plan, 3 large parks and 20 squares were laid out. But the reign of Prefect Napoleon III was remembered not only for the decoration of the city: straight, wide boulevards, laid instead of crooked, narrow streets, but also the suppression of the revolutionary uprisings of the inhabitants of Paris by the army and police.

The Eiffel Tower was built to World Exhibition 1889 year

In 1844, a third fortification wall was built around the city, on the site of the current ring road around the city. In the immediate vicinity of the city, 39 km long fortifications with 16 forts were erected, at that time it was the largest protective structure in the world.

In the second half of the 19th century, Paris hosts 5 of 21 World Exhibitions (1855, 1867, 1878, 1889, 1900), which well reflects the cultural and political influence of the city. For the 1889 exhibition, the engineer G. Eiffel built a tower, which caused heated controversy, but quickly became a symbol of the city, and by the 1900 exhibition, the Alexander III bridge was opened.

During the Franco-Prussian War, the city was under siege for 4 months (130 days), during which it was bombed until France surrendered. After the withdrawal of German troops, the Parisian radicals established the Paris Commune, consisting of workers, artisans and petty bourgeois. The Paris Commune opposed the provisional conservative government of the republic.

In the 90s of the XIX century and the first decade of the XX century, also known as “ A beautiful era”, France experienced an unprecedented upsurge and economic development.

Parade of the occupying German troops (1940)

After the October Revolution, Paris was the capital of the Russian emigration.

During the First World War, the Germans did not reach Paris.

After France entered the Second world war declared an "open city", from June 14, 1940 occupied by German troops. During the Second World War, the city was occupied by the German Wehrmacht, the occupation lasted until the end of August 1944. Paris was liberated by the forces of the Resistance Movement, which prepared the uprising on August 19-25, 1944. The city suffered slightly, as the allies managed to thwart the prepared plans of explosions and arson.

The city once again witnessed violence during the student uprisings - Paris was the main center of the Student Revolution of 1968. In Paris, the mass riots of May 68 began, which ultimately led not so much to a change of government as to a radical redistribution of society, a change mentality of the French.

In the late 1960s - early. 1970s work on the reorganization of the city is expanding. New buildings with modern architectural forms are changing the traditional look of Paris. There are more and more skyscrapers in the city (architect Zerfuss and others), for example - the high-rise business center Maine-Montparnasse (1964-73) with 56 floors and a height of 250 m. The main part of factories and residential quarters Greater Paris located in the suburbs. The largest suburbs are Boulogne-Billancourt, Saint-Denis, Montreuil, Versailles. The first two are famous for their factories, while Versailles is famous for its palaces and parks.

7. Today

And today, Paris retains all its importance, triumphant grandeur and charm, despite the fact that its appearance is being changed by such construction projects as Beaubourg and the ambitious construction program "Large Projects" ( Grands projets), carried out during the presidency of François Mitterrand. In addition to the Grande Arche de la Défense and the Opéra Bastille, Mitterrand's projects included the renovation of the Louvre by the architect Pei, the La Villette complex on the northeastern outskirts of the city, and, to the southeast, the Library of France, which was equipped with state-of-the-art computers.

More than 850 thousand people come to Paris every day to work or study, and about 200 thousand Parisians work in the suburbs. The growth of Greater Paris is taking place along two axes stretched along the Seine, due to the construction of five new suburbs for 300-500 thousand each. These cities are connected to Paris by high-speed rail and road lines, but a significant proportion of their inhabitants work locally. The capital is surrounded by a high-speed automobile ring road - Peripherik Boulevard - connected to radial motorways and the entire network highways France, of which it is the core.

Panorama of Paris. View from Montmartre

Sources Great Encyclopedia of Cyril and Methodius / Paris / Historical Sketch References:

Coat of arms of the department of Paris (75). France... Geraldika.ru.

Coat of arms and flag of Paris - Paris (France). Ah Paris... Rturisto.ru.

Alfred fierro Histoire et dictionnaire de Paris. - 859-860 p.

Marcel le clère Paris de la Préhistoire à nos jours. - 21 p.

halles aux vins Bercy, découverte de 3 pirogues (fr.) INA - Video en ligne du journal de FR3 du 8.10.1991... INA (1991-08-10).

pirogues de Bercy (fr.). INA - Video en ligne du journal de FR3 du 27.02.1992... INA (1992-02-27).

History of Paris. France. Paris (2006).

Un peu d'histoire (fr.). // Mairie de Paris

History of Paris (2011).

Today in Europe there are many cities that have retained their appearance unchanged for many centuries - Siena, Bruges, upper town Bergamo and so on. However, if we go back five to eight centuries, then it will be absolutely impossible to recognize the capital of France, known to almost everyone - since the era of the High Middle Ages, Paris has changed so radically that if one of the subjects of King Philip the Fair were in it now, he would not recognize hometown and decided that he was being deceived. All that remains by the XXI century in Paris from the former glorious times is the general geography, the course of the Seine, the Montmartre hill and several dozen historical buildings. Even the Louvre, the seat of the kings of France, now looks completely different than in the Middle Ages.

View of the Louvre Castle from the south. Miniature from "The Magnificent Book of Hours of the Duke of Berry",Xvcentury

So let's walk through the streets of ancient Paris - a fortress city, a stronghold city. A city that was constantly expecting an attack and prepared as much as possible for any unpleasant surprises.

Fortress walls

Here we will not consider the most famous inner-city fortress of Paris - the Bastille - as belonging to later times. The Bastille was built after the epidemic of the Black Death in 1370-1381 and does not belong to the "classical" Middle Ages, but to the origin of the early modern times.

It must be remembered here that the ancient Lutetia Parisiorum, first mentioned by Julius Caesar in the "Notes on the Gallic War", was located on the island of Cité and, presumably, was not surrounded by a wall. The town was connected to the banks of the Seine wooden bridges, which, in the event of an attack from the outside, could be burned. The first fortifications appear in the 3rd century AD, when the Roman Empire began to decline, and Gaul was under the threat of invasion by Germanic tribes. The right bank of the river was considered unsuitable for construction due to its swampiness, which was reflected in toponymy - suffice it to mention the Marais quarter, "swamp". In turn, on the left bank in the era of late antiquity, a city began to grow, abandoned approximately after 280: due to the threat of barbarian invasions, its inhabitants preferred to settle in Site, under the natural protection of the river. Since the beginning of the 4th century, the first stone wall appears on the eastern side of the island, built of blocks without the use of mortar or cement - the material for it was taken from ancient Roman buildings, in particular the "arenas of Lutetia". According to modern estimates, the wall was about two meters high and two and a half meters thick at the base. The bridges, located on the site of modern Petit-Pont and Grand-Pont, were covered by log towers from the side of Site.

Paris plan began IX century

Over the next few centuries, Paris was repeatedly attacked and destroyed, but it was always rebuilt - it was very much comfortable spot to control navigation on the Seine. During the Viking era, the Scandinavians more than once climbed up the river to the city itself - attacks followed each other in 845, 856, 857, 866 and 876, but were repulsed. A long siege of Paris by the Vikings followed in 885–887. By this time, wooden fortifications appeared on both banks of the Seine, built under the Emperor Charles the Bald - later they would become known as the Great and Small Fortresses, Grand-Châtelet and Petit-Châtelet.

Only from 1190 a well-developed program for the construction of fortifications around the city appears - the construction of walls with numerous gate-towers, the Parisians owe to King Philip II Augustus, a prudent, economic monarch who wanted to protect his beloved Paris from a possible attack from the English Plantagenets, who then owned Normandy - erected by Richard Lionheart, the grandiose Chateau Gaillard castle was located just a hundred kilometers from Paris, that is, the British could approach the capital in a matter of days.

Philip Augustus considered the defense of the right bank a priority. The construction of the wall with a length of 2600 meters on this side was carried out from 1190 to 1209 - by this time the swamps were drained by the labors of the Knights Templar, who were presented with a significant piece of land on the right bank. The left-bank part of the wall was built from 1200 to 1215 - finally, Paris began to acquire an established look, which will remain almost unchanged for the next four hundred years. Where the walls adjoined the river, the same type of "large Parisian towers" were built - each 25 meters high and 10 meters in diameter. Among them was the Tower of Nels, known to most readers from the series of novels by Maurice Druon "The Cursed Kings". It was located on the left bank, where the Malaque embankment is now, near the current Carrusel Bridge.

Nelskaya tower. Reconstruction by the architect Viollet-le-Duc, XIX century

In the same years, the Louvre castle appears - Philip Augustus bought the land for construction outside the city walls from the Bishop of Paris. As we have already mentioned, this battle castle, capable of withstanding a long siege, had nothing to do with the modern Louvre. It was practically a square structure measuring 78 by 72 meters, with a powerful citadel in the center, ten defensive towers around the perimeter and a wide moat. At the time of Philip Augustus, the Louvre was a purely utilitarian structure - cold, uncomfortable and completely uncomfortable; the king's residence remained on the island of Cité, in the Conciergerie castle, considered one of the most beautiful palaces in Europe.

Nevertheless, in the event that the enemy penetrated the city walls and captured Paris itself, the Louvre castle could hold out for at least a year, waiting for the arrival of reinforcements. For its era, it was a masterpiece of the art of fortification, where all modern achievements in this area were applied, including the mashikuli adopted from the Saracens - hinged loopholes designed for vertical shelling of the enemy. The citadel was an exceptionally solid structure - 32 meters high, 16 meters in diameter, and the wall thickness at the base of 4.5 meters. Unfortunately, now almost nothing remains of the medieval Louvre - the castle of Philip Augustus was partially demolished in the 16th century for the construction of a Renaissance palace, the remains of the northern wall were dismantled under Louis XIII, and today you can only see the foundations of the ancient walls in the basements of the museum.

Louvre castle at the end XIV century. Later reconstruction

If a medieval Parisian walks along the banks of the Seine from the Louvre to the Ile de Cité, he will see two more inner city fortifications. When stone bridges appeared in the city, it was necessary to protect access to them with two fortresses - Grand-Chatelet from the north and Petit-Chatelet from the south. Actually from Petit-Chatelet to the island leads a stone Small bridge, the tower, as was built in 1130, and remained unchanged until demolition in 1782, the only reconstruction took place under King Charles V in 1369, when Petit-Chatelet decided to overhaul (the fortress suffered from flooding). In subsequent eras, the fortress lost its military significance and was used as a prison. In the Grand-Châtelet, on the opposite bank, since the time of Philippe Augustus, the seat of the Parisian provost, the court and the police were located. Later, the Great Chatelet was also demolished, the fortress was dismantled for ten years, from 1792 to 1802.

Temple Castle

The first House of the Order of the Temple in Paris appeared in 1139-1146, when the pious King Louis VII (who became famous mainly thanks to his wife, Duchess Alienore of Aquitaine) gave the young Order a plot on the right bank - a place not the most successful, swampy and unhealthy. Nearby (closer to the river) were the churches of Saint-Jean-en-Greve and Saint-Gervais, that is, roughly the location of the first residence of the Templars can be tied to the space now limited by the streets of Rivoli, Vieille du Temple and Archives. Not a single image of the Old Temple has survived, but according to the description of Matthew of Paris, the tower resembled Petit-Chatelet, the usual architecture of the era is a rather gloomy square box with narrow loopholes.

General panorama of the New Temple from the times of Philip the Beautiful. On the left is the Temple tower, in the center is the church, on the right is Caesar's tower. View from the south-east, in the background the Mount of the Martyrs (Montmartre) and the silhouette of the abbey church of Saint-Pierre-de-Montmartre

Templars turned out to be persistent people and for a century they drained swamps, planted gardens and built infrastructure: mills, warehouses, stables, etc. They drained and reclaimed the quarter located between the Rue Verrerie in the south, Beranger in the north, Temple in the west, and Vieille du Temple in the east. After the acquisition in 1203-1204. two censors, one of which was located east of the rue Vieille du Temple (rue Ecuff, rue Rosier, rue Pave), and the other - north of rue Verrerie (Saint-Croix-de-la-Bretonnery), the enclave of the order acquired finished look. It was surrounded by walls and protected by privileges - in particular, all the servants of the Temple were not under the jurisdiction of the royal secular power. Inside, the Templars erected a magnificent church modeled on the Church of the Holy Sepulcher (with a rotunda and a basilica) and two donjons. One of them, the donjon of Caesar, dates from the 12th century, and the second, the donjon of the Temple, dates back to the second half of the 13th century. These towers were built on the site where the square is now located, which overlooks the mayor's office of the third administrative district.

Initially, the Temple complex was located outside the walls of Philip Augustus, but Paris was expanding due to the appearance of new suburbs, their entire population would have been impossible to hide in the city in the event of a siege. With the beginning of the Hundred Years War, it became absolutely clear that the previous fortifications were completely insufficient, and under King Charles V, the construction of a new perimeter of the walls began. The city limits include the Temple and the Louvre, the area of ​​the walled area increases from the former 253 hectares to 400 hectares, Paris becomes a real metropolis with a population of about 150 thousand people.

It should be noted separately that the Temple tower was the most tall building Paris (57 meters), and the land belonging to the templars was compared in area with the island of Site. Next to Greve Square on the Seine was the Templar harbor with a colossal cargo turnover - by the beginning of the 13th century, the spiritual knightly order departed from its main functions of protecting the Holy Sepulcher and turned into an extensive commercial and banking company, quite capable of financing the construction of such grandiose structures as the Temple Tower ... When Philip IV the Handsome decided to deal with the Templars - it is still not clear, for political or financial reasons - the "police action" of the king could be thwarted: the Parisian Temple was able to defend itself for a very long time. However, the Templars did not put up any resistance, and the entire complex belonging to the templars was captured by the king's people in one night. After the defeat of the Order, the economy passed to the Hospitallers and was known in subsequent eras as the "Temple Abbey", and the tower passed into the possession of the kings of France.

The Templars were built carefully and skillfully, the Temple tower stood for 588 years, almost not undergoing reconstruction. Perhaps it would have survived to this day, but Napoleon Bonaparte in 1808 ordered the dismantling of the ancient building for ideological reasons: it was in the Temple that the former King Louis XVI, the Dauphin and Queen Marie Antoinette were kept before the execution - for the royalists the tower became a symbol. The dismantling work lasted two years, and to date, no traces of the Temple have remained in Paris, except for the names of the quarter and streets.

Probably one of the last images of the Temple. Deposed King Louis Xvi walks along the north wall. The picture of the end Xviii century

In the XII-XIV centuries, the capital of the French kingdom was not the most convenient city- dense buildings, due to the tightness inside the city walls, numerous towers, four fortresses. Everything was subordinated to one goal - defense from an external enemy. The face of the city began to change during the time of Bonaparte and became completely unrecognizable during the reign of Napoleon III, when the prefect of the Seine district, Baron Georges Eugene Haussmann, began to redevelop Paris - starting in 1854, more than 60 percent of medieval buildings were destroyed and boulevards were laid. The old network of Parisian streets is gone forever - as are the old Louvre, Grand-Châtelet, Petit-Chatelet and Temple. But that's a completely different story ...