L'Hôtel de Ville

The Hôtel de Ville, a handsome neo-Renaissance building built between 1874 and 1882, is Paris's City Hall. The earlier buildings that stood here witnessed many great and dire moments. In July 1789, Louis XVI was forced to kiss the new French flag. The blue and red stood for Paris, and the white represented the monarchy. In subsequent revolutions, in 1848 and 1870, mobs occupied the building, and in 1870 the building that had been constructed by François I was burned down. The place in front was also used for executions from 1313 to 1830, when witches, Huguenots, and criminals such as Ravaillac (Henry's IV's assassin) were dispatched. As befits the city's municipal building, the facade is adorned with 146 statues representing famous Parisians.

10 - 11 March 2001