Place de l'Hôtel-de-Ville – Esplanade de la Libération
rue de Rivoli | |
Construction | |
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Completion | Unknown |
Denomination | 1803 |
The public square in the 4th arrondissement of Paris that is now the Place de l'Hôtel de Ville ("City Hall Square") was, before 1802, called the Place de Grève. The French word grève refers to a flat area covered with gravel or sand situated on the shores or banks of a body of water.
The Place de Grève
Early history
The location presently occupied by the square was the point on the sandy right bank of the river
Middle Ages
Later it was used as a public meeting-place and also as a location where unemployed people gathered to seek work. This circumstance accounts for the current
Royal Execution Grounds
The principal reason why the Place de Grève is remembered is that it was the site of most of the public executions in early Paris. The gallows and the pillory stood there.
The highest-profile executions took place on the grève, including the gruesome deaths of the
The French Revolution
On September 14, 1788, anti-monarchy protests renewed, and in October 1788, protestors demanded money for fireworks; they also demanded that anyone in a carriage dismount and salute to
Later on, the Place de Grève saw the first use of the guillotine, when robber Nicolas Jacques Pelletier was decapitated on 25 April 1792. Other notable executions included Charlotte Corday, Jean-Baptiste Carrier, and Antoine Quentin Fouquier-Tinville.
Location
The southern end of the Place de l'Hôtel de Ville, the end closer to the river, is on the right-bank side of the
Metro station
The Place de l'Hôtel de Ville is served by the
.References
- ^ Peter Kropotkin (1909). "Chapter 5". The Great French Revolution, 1789-1793. Translated by N. F. Dryhurst. New York: Vanguard Printings.