One of the largest and most historically significant squares in Paris, the Place de la Concorde was originally named after Louis XV (Place Louis XV) and was designated as the site for which a commemorating statue of the king would be erected. A few decades later, revolutionaries seized power, renamed the square Place de La Revolution and replaced the statue with a guillotine. The square soon became the forefront of public execution and saw many famous dignitaries, such as Louis XVI, Marie Antoinette and Danton, fall victim to the macabre enterprise. A total of 2,800 executions were committed here between 1793 and 1795. It is said the scent of blood was so strong here that a herd of cattle once refused to cross the grounds. After the revolution the Place would change names several times over, until it was officially dubbed the Place de la Concorde by the 1830 Revolution, a name chosen to symbolize the close of a turbulent era. Supplanting the guillotine is the powerful Obelisk of Luxor, a pink granite monolith that was given to the French as a gift in 1829 by the viceroy of Egypt, Mehemet Ali. Installed in 1833, the Obelisk stands in the center of the Place, dividing the Tuilerie Gardens and the Avenue de Champs Elysees. The Obelisk is flanked on both sides by two fountains constructed during the same period.

Arc de Triomphe

Napoléon, the French emperor who conquered most of Europe at the beginning of the 19th century, admired the Roman people. In 1806, following their example, he decided to build a big arch of triumph which stands at the top of the Champs Elysées. His victorious troops would march on through the arch cheered by the population of Paris. This never happened thanks to General Wellington who defeated Napoléon at Waterloo in 1815. The Arc de Triomphe was finished in 1836. It magnificently crowns the hill from where the Champs Elysées, the Avenue Foch, the Avenue de la Grande Armée and nine other avenues radiate. The Arc de Triomphe keeps the memory of all the dead killed in World War I (1914/1918) with the grave of the unknown soldier and a permanently burning flame of remembrance. At national days, a flag is stretched through the arch.
 

Place Charles de Gaulle

PLACE CHARLES DE GAULLE – L’ETOILE

Place Charles de Gaulle was for a long time called Place de l'Etoile (Star Square) because of the geometrical design of the twelve avenues fanning out from the square, which is located at the summit of the old Roule hill, and which converge on the Arc de Triomphe. The Place de l'Etoile took the name Charles de Gaulle upon General de Gaulle's death in 1970.

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