Exploring Paris Exam 1

Earliest founders of Paris

The Parisii, a Celtic tribe, settled on the Île de la Cité around ~250 BCE.

Roman name for Paris

Lutetia (Lutèce), after Caesar conquered the village in 52 BCE

Roman architectural remnants: Aqueduct

Remains of the Roman aqueduct of Lutetia still exist in southern Paris.

Roman architectural remnants: Arènes de Lutèce

Roman amphitheater still visible today.

Roman architectural remnants: Thermes de Cluny

Roman baths preserved in the Cluny Museum.

Important medieval construction (12th century)

Notre‑Dame de Paris began construction in the 12th century.

15th‑century scary anecdote

A pack of man‑eating wolves entered Paris around 1450 and were killed in front of Notre‑Dame.

16th‑century architectural project (bridges)

Pont Neuf, planned late 1500s and completed in 1607, first bridge without houses and first sidewalks.

Who was Rabelais?

A humanist, physician, priest, and writer (1494–1553), author of Gargantua and Pantagruel.

Rabelais: What is Gargantua about?

A giant’s son travels to Paris for a Humanist education; satire of Parisian culture.

Rabelais: Why is Gargantua sent to Paris?

To receive a proper Humanist education in the capital of knowledge.

Rabelais: What happens when Gargantua enters Paris?

He asks about scholars and wine, then humorously pees on Paris from Notre‑Dame.

Rabelais: Overall message

Humanist education is essential; satire exposes vanity, hypocrisy, and intellectual pretension.

17th‑century Paris: major architectural additions

Expansion of the Louvre, Palais Royal, Jardin des Plantes, Place des Vosges, Place Dauphine, Pont Neuf, and new hospitals.

17th‑century king

Louis XIV, the Sun King, absolute monarch, moved the court to Versailles.

Louis XIV: Why leave Paris?

Traumatized by La Fronde civil wars; believed Paris was too dangerous.

18th‑century king (first half)

Louis XV, “le Bien‑Aimé,” weak ruler, costly wars, patronage through Madame de Pompadour.

Madame de Pompadour

Louis XV’s mistress; major patron of Enlightenment thinkers; built Petit Trianon and Hôtel d’Évreux (Elysée Palace).

Montesquieu: Who was he?

Nobleman, lawyer, scientist, philosopher; author of The Spirit of Laws and Persian Letters.

Persian Letters: Letter 22 — Impression of Paris

Huge, crowded, vertical city “built in the air.”

Letter 22 — Opinion of the King

Most powerful prince in Europe; wealth from vanity of subjects.

Letter 22 — King’s treatment of people

A “magician” who manipulates currency, belief, and public perception.

Letter 22 — Who is more powerful than the King?

The Pope, another “magician” who influences the King’s beliefs.

Letter 22 — Women’s rights

Women forbidden from reading the Christian “Quran”; critique of sexism and censorship.

Letter 26 — What Parisians do for fun

They attend theater and opera; Rica finds it amusing and superficial.

Letter 27 — Why use Muslim terms for Catholic practices?

To criticize Catholicism indirectly and avoid censorship.

Letter 28 — How Parisians look at them

They stare only when he wears Persian clothing; ignore him when dressed as European.

Letter 31 — Beverage dear to Parisians

Wine; considered dangerous yet irresistible.

Letter 34 — Type of establishment

Coffeehouse.

Letter 34 — What people do there

Drink coffee, argue, spread news, play chess, sharpen their wits.

Letter 35 — What he is really complaining about

Lack of religious freedom and absolute power of monarch and church.

18th‑century king (second half)

Louis XVI, crowned 1774, married Marie‑Antoinette, supported American Revolution, bankrupting France.

Causes of the French Revolution

Debt, inequality, absolutism, Enlightenment ideas, American Revolution influence, hatred of royal extravagance.

Important events of 1789: Bastille

July 14, 1789 — Fall of the Bastille, symbol of tyranny.

Important events of 1789: Declaration of Rights

August 26, 1789 — Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen.

Important events of 1789: Women’s March

October 5–6, 1789 — Women’s March on Versailles; royal family forced back to Paris.

Place Louis XV → Place de la Révolution

Square becomes site of guillotine and executions.

Key revolutionary figures: Sans‑culottes

Radical working‑class revolutionaries.

Key revolutionary figures: Robespierre

Leader of the Jacobins; central figure in the Terror.

Key revolutionary figures: Marat

Radical journalist; author of L’Ami du peuple; assassinated by Charlotte Corday.

Key revolutionary figures: Lafayette

French noble who fought in American Revolution; early revolutionary leader.

Dickens: Two cities

London and Paris.