Place de la Grêve

From the Jardin du Luxembourg we jump back across the Seine to the Hôtel de Ville and La Place de la Grève. Originally so named because of the sandy banks of the Seine, the area was renamed in 1803 Place de l’Hôtel de Ville, and renamed again in 2013 as the Esplanade de la Libération, in tribute to the Résistants of the Second World War. While not technically much of a green space, though there is a narrow garden facing the Seine, the Place de la Grève served for more than 500 years as the prime site for capital punishment in France. The first execution was decreed by Philippe le Bel (he of Friday the 13 th infamy) in 1310, the last occurred in 1830 (though public executions would continue outside of this location for another 140 years. In 1831, Félix Barthe, Ministère de la Justice, had the executions moved to a location out of the center towards the edge the city.

The end result was never in doubt, but the means punishment varied, depending on the crime and the amount of money of the accused. For their crimes, people were beheaded, burned, and pulled apart (either by horses moving in opposing directions or by a breaking wheel). In 1792, the guillotine made its public debut here, and it would see extensive use in the succeeding years. The death penalty in France was finally abolished in 2007, and as mentioned above, executions had been removed 90 years earlier. Today this space, while occasionally still used for public demonstrations, is a busy pedestrian throughfare, and is more likely to be used to celebrate public events – for example; for the Christmas village and marché – or for publicity for upcoming events, such as next year’s Olympic Games. Today, there is no evidence easily available of its tortured past. That violence has been transformed, replaced by a lively pedestrian throughfare.