Place de la Concorde

This square used to be named Place Louis XV after the king who built it, including the two magnificent buildings looking on the square, which were royal property. In the middle of the square used to stand a statue of the same king, which was of course destroyed during the French Revolution. The obelisk, a gift from Egypt, came later in 1836.

With 19 acres, this is the largest square in Paris, therefore it was used for celebrations gathering large crowds: a notable one was a banquet for the marriage of the future Louis XVI with Marie-Antoinette. During that event, fireworks ignited a fire which caused panic among the thousands of people attending and over one hundred of them died crushed by the mass movement.

During the reign of terror, one of the guillotines was placed there for executions of high profile personalities: including the king and queen, and many members of the revolutionary government like Danton and Robespierre. By the foot of the obelisk, a plaque serves as a reminder of the events.