The Concierge – the palace of the King's Chief of Staff that became a corridor to death

The Conciergerie Palace, which is located inIle de la Cita and overlooking the Seine, it is one of the most somber buildings of city ​​of LightsMost of us know it as the prison where she lived. Marie Antoinette During the last weeks of her life, however, the Conciergerie has a much longer history. It is a relic of the king's palace, the foundations of which date back to the days of Lutetia.

In this article, we will embark on a journey through more than two thousand years in time, during which we will learn not only about the Conciergerie but also about the palace where the kings of France lived until the 14th century. We will discover when the palace became a notorious prison and tell the stories of some of the most famous prisoners there. And finally, we will not forget to provide you with a glimpse of this important historical monument along with all the practical information you need to visit the place (how to get there, buying tickets, etc.).

But before we begin our journey through time, you are invited to watch the following video, which will show you what the Concierge and the surrounding area looked like in 1789, a few years before Marie Antoinette entered there. The video was made using a computer game. Assassin's Creed Unity And it's great as an appetizer that will provide you with a little historical background and get you in the right mood 🙂

I hope you enjoyed the video, and now it's time to go back about two thousand years in time to begin our historical journey within the gloomy walls of the Concierge.

The History of the Concierge Palace

Julian the Apostate is proclaimed emperor in Lotzia

Back in the happy days of Lutetia, the Île de la Cité was a center of government where the Roman ruler of the city lived (the left bank was then the commercial center, while the right bank was empty of residents). One of those rulers was Julian (or his full name was Flavius ​​Claudius Julianus), who in 361 was proclaimed by his soldiers as Augustus (a title equivalent to emperor) and known to history as the emperor “Julian the Heretic.”

Julian was a fascinating historical figure, whose many plans included building the Third Temple in Jerusalem to help Judaism counterbalance Christianity, which he hated (which is why he was nicknamed the Infidel). Emperor Julian loved Lutetia very much, partly because of the fine wines there, and he was actually the first great ruler to make the palace on the Ile de la Cite the administrative center not only of Lutetia but of the entire Roman Empire.

However, Julian's reign lasted only two days and he was killed in battle with the Persians. The Third Temple was not built and the palace on the Ile de la Cité returned to being "just" the palace of the local Roman governor. All this changed in the late fifth century, when Clovis, leader of the Franks, conquered Gaul and became king. France The first.

Clovis and his successors from the Merovingian dynasty transformed Lutetia into Paris, while the governor's palace became the king's palace. Thus, from the beginning of the sixth century to the end of the seventh century, the Merovingian kings resided in this palace.

However, in 753 the last Merovingian king was deposed by his palace chief, who became King Pepin I. Pepin's son, Charlemagne, and his descendants, the Carolingians, preferred to rule their kingdom from the city of Aix-la-Chapelle (or Aachen in German), and during their reign the royal palace on the Île de la Cité lost its importance.

The rise and fall of the Palais de la Cité

All this changed again in 987 when Hugh Capet (941-998), founder of the Capetian dynasty and holder of the title of Count of Paris, ascended to the throne. He decided to restore the crown to its former glory and the palace on the Île de la Cité became the residence of the King of France again. In order for the place to become a palace for the King, Hugh decided to renovate and expand it, a process that took about 300 years and during which a beautiful chapel was added to the government complex, namely theSainte Chapelle.

The culmination of the process came in 1298, when King Philip IV, known as the Beautiful (4-1285), decided to transform the Palais de la Cité into the most beautiful palace in the kingdom. The result was certainly spectacular and included not only the king's residence but also the treasury and the main court. From this palace, the great hall (now part of the court on the Île de la Cité) remains and can be visited for free (you just have to queue for security checks at the entrance to the court).

The most respected position in the medieval French kingdom was that of the king's concierge. Unlike the concierge of the Parisian apartment buildings, his job was not to deliver mail, keep the house clean, and obsessively spy on who came and went. The royal concierge was essentially the man who had the authority to decide who would meet the king and who would not. It is therefore not surprising that the concierge's palace (or rather, the conciergerie) was adjacent to the king's palace.

The kings of France continued to reside in the Palais de la Cité until 1357. All this changed following the rebellion of the mayor of Paris, Étienne Marcel (which you can read about in the article on theHotel de Ville) against the Dauphin Charles, who would later become King Charles V (5-1364). During the rebellion, Etienne Marcel and his men broke into the king's palace and murdered two of his advisors in front of him.

The rebellion ultimately failed, but the king concluded that the Palais de la Cité was not capable of providing him with sufficient protection, so he decided to move to the Palais Saint-Paul, which was located inMarais District, and later toLouvre PalaceAs a result, the Palais de la Cité ceased to function as a royal palace and became the seat of the Paris Parliament.

In those years, the Paris Parliament was not a place where laws were made, people ate at the buffet and debated politics. In the Middle Ages and for many years afterwards, the Parliament functioned as a court where most of the perpetrators of the most serious crimes in Paris were tried. It is therefore not surprising that the Palace of the Concierge, emptied of its inhabitants, became a prison in 1391 (your escort and bringer, the king, moved with his master to the Louvre Palace).

From Ravillac to Prosper Merima – the Concierge’s famous “guests”

As I wrote at the beginning of the article, we all know the most famous prisoner of the Conciergerie, aka Marie Antoinette, but the Conciergerie prison hosted quite a few other famous prisoners. Here are some examples of celebrities who were treated to “all-inclusive” Concierge-style accommodation (including the death penalty) even before the (former) Queen of France:

• François Ravaillac (1578-1610) – the man who murdered King Henry IV (1589-1610) and spent his last days here before being executed in a shockingly brutal manner in the Place de Grève.
• The Marquise de Brinvilliers (Marie-Madeleine-Marguerite d'Aubray, Marquise de Brinvilliers 1630-1676), who poisoned most of her family in order to gain the inheritance money (you can read about her in the article dealing withThe poison affair).
• The robber Cartouche (Louis Dominique Bourguignon dit “Cartouche” 1693-1721), who preyed on the wealthy of Paris until he was captured and executed.

During the Reign of Terror (1792-1794), the Conciergerie became not only a prison but also the seat of the Revolutionary Tribunal, where many aristocrats and former revolutionaries were tried by the moving film method. Since the chances of getting out alive after a stay in the Conciergerie were very low, it quickly acquired the name “the corridor to death.”

One of the few who somehow managed to escape the Conciergerie alive at that time was Sir William Codrington, an English subject who had the misfortune to be in Paris in 1794. From his diary we can learn about the living conditions there at the time. French Revolution:

My cellmate and I had to share two tiny beds, which left no room for our legs. I only received sheets after about three weeks of imprisonment. The ceiling was very low and the air was so bad that neither of us could sleep more than an hour a day.

For four months I lived in this “pleasant” place, and during that time most of my cellmates left me straight for the guillotine…

William Codrington was, as mentioned, lucky, he managed to survive, unlike more than 2,200 prisoners, who traveled from here toPlace de la Concorde (then known as “Place de la Révolution”) or to Place de la Nation for a brief but painful date with Madame Guillotine. Here are some of the more famous people who spent their final days at the Conciergerie:

• André Chénier (1762-1794), a famous French poet and supporter of the Revolution, who became an enemy as soon as he came out against the Terror. Unfortunately, he was executed just 3 days before Robespierre's rule fell.
• Charlotte Corday (Marie-Anne Charlotte de Corday d'Armont 1768-1793), who murdered Marat, a venomous man and one of the greatest instigators of violence between the years 1789-1793 (you can read more about both in Dr. Efi Ziv's article Death of Mara).
• Madame Roland (Marie-Jeanne 'Manon' Roland de la Platière 1754-1793), like André II, also supported the revolutionaries until the beginning of the Reign of Terror. She is known to us, among other things, for her immortal sentence, which she uttered just before she was beheaded – “Liberty, how many crimes are committed in your name”).
• Madame du Barry (Jeanne Bécu, Comtesse du Barry 1743-1793), the last royal mistress (she was the mistress of Louis XV). She made the mistake of her life when she returned to France from England, where she had fled at the outbreak of the French Revolution, and was quickly arrested for treason.
• Georges Danton (1753-1794), head of the Committee of Public Safety and one of the most radical revolutionaries. All this did not help him when he quarreled with Robespierre and was sent for honor to the Conciergerie and from there to the guillotine.
• And of course, one cannot talk about the Conciergerie without mentioning Marie Antoinette (1755-1793), who was transferred here from the Temple Fortress. Here she was tried in a show trial whose results were known in advance and from here she left on October 16th to meet the guillotine. This is also where Madame Elisabeth (1764-1794), sister of Louis XVI, was imprisoned and executed shortly after her sister-in-law.

The Reign of Terror ended in July 1794 with the execution of Robespierre, who also spent his last day here (with a bullet in his jaw). However, that doesn’t mean the Conciergerie stopped being used as a prison. In fact, it took France exactly 120 years to turn the place into a museum, and during that time quite a few people were treated to “all-inclusive” accommodation there (excluding the guillotine, in most cases).

One of the most important and surprising “guests” at the Conciergerie was the writer Prosper Mérimée (1803-1870), who is known to us for the opera “Carmen” by composer Georges Bizet (1838-1875), based on his novella.

In 1852, Mr. Merima insulted a court official during the trial of his good friend and was sent to the Conciergerie. He was not helped by the fact that he had received the Legion of Honor and that he was a member of the French Academy. He was sentenced to two weeks and spent them in one of the hot cells of the prison (unfortunately, he entered prison in July). The very fact that Prosper Merima held the position of “Superintendent of the Historical Monuments of France” at the time added quite a bit of irony to the situation.

But don't worry, Prosper Merima's imprisonment wasn't as bad as you might think. He was allowed to bring quite a bit of furniture into his cell, including pillows and even a Persian rug. He spent his time reading, writing trivia quizzes, and meeting friends who came to visit him. In the evenings, he would stroll through the "Cour des femmes," which got its name from where the female prisoners did their laundry, and there he befriended four cats (whose manners, he said, were so perfect that you could almost think they lived in the king's court).

Visit to the concierge

During the reign of Napoleon III (3-1852), who himself “lived” here when he attempted to rebel against King Louis Philippe, the Conciergerie and Palais de la Cité underwent massive renovations. As a result, although the building appears to be a medieval relic, most of it was actually built during the 1870th century.

The Conciergerie ceased to function as a prison in 1914 and has since become one of theImportant attractions of ParisYou can enter the concierge via Boulevard de Palais, but before you do so, I highly recommend that you stop for a moment and look at the beautiful clock, which is located at the very beginning of the boulevard.

This clock was built by King Jean II (2-1350) and served as the first public clock in Paris. During the 1364th century, it underwent a “facelift” by King Henri III (16-3) and has since been renovated several times. If you want to get to know it in more depth, you can read about it in the article  The ancient clock tower in Paris.

After you've finished admiring the clock, you are welcome to enter the concierge itself and begin the tour (you can find all the information about opening hours, purchasing tickets, etc. below).

Guard Room

The first room you will see, after passing the checkout, is the guard room.

This is one of the oldest and most impressive Gothic halls in Paris, where the king's guards lived and worked. Note the huge fireplace in the hall's kitchen. In the old days, you could roast a whole calf there on a rotating spit.

Later, the hall became part of the prison, and cells were installed for the unfortunates awaiting trial. A room one floor below the hall housed the Revolutionary Tribunal, where the infamous Prosecutor General Antoine Quentin Fouquier de Tinville (1746-1795) sent thousands of people to their deaths after a brief show trial.

In the guardroom you can also see the infamous “rue de Paris.” This is the corridor through which the executioner, whose nickname was “Monsieur de Paris,” would pass, and which is why it is still named after him today.

If you would like to read more about the famous dynasty of executioners of Paris, one of whose sons beheaded Louis XVI, you are welcome to read the article Sanson the Hero.

Marie Antoinette's prison cell

After you've finished strolling through the huge Gothic hall, you're invited to go up to the second floor. There you'll find a gloomy corridor and a long row of cells where the prisoners lived. The more affluent of these prisoners (such as Prosper Merima, whom we discussed earlier) were given a furnished cell and even paper and books, to help them pass the time.

Poorer prisoners were given a small cell with a bed and a table in exchange for a modest payment (cells of this type were called Pistoles, after the coin used to pay for the “right” to live in this cell). Destitute prisoners were thrown into small cells with a little straw spread on the floor. The conditions in these cells were very harsh and quite a few prisoners died from diseases they contracted while there. These cells were called Oubliettes from the verb Oublier (to forget) because the prisoners were simply forgotten there until their death.

The most famous room in the Conciergerie is of course the one where Marie Antoinette lived in the last months of her life. Louis XVIII turned this room into a kind of chapel in her memory and as you arrive you will see plaques on the wall in honor of some of the most famous people who spent their last days in the Conciergerie.

The concierge's courtyard

After you have finished visiting the various cells, you can go down to the courtyard. There, some of the prisoners could walk and breathe some fresh air. Also, here was the cart that took the prisoners to the place of their execution (initially at the Place de la Revolution or Concorde, later at the Place de la Concorde).Bastille and finally at Nation Square).

After you finish walking around the courtyard, you can return to the gift shop in the guard hall and from there go outside, happy and content that your head is still on your shoulders.

Important information for travelers

I hope this article will make you want to visit this somewhat gloomy but important place. Below you will find all the information you need to visit there.

Concierge address

The entrance to the Conciergerie is at this address: 2 Boulevard du Palais. The easiest way to get there is by metro line 4 (get off at Cité station but you can also get off at Saint Michel and walk a bit). If you want to get there by bus, you can take one of the following lines:

• 21
• 24
• 27
• 38
• 81
• 85
• 96

Opening Hours

The place is open every day from 09:00 AM to 18:30 PM.

Buying tickets

To save time waiting in line at the box office, I highly recommend buying your ticket in advance. Tickets can be purchased atMonuments page on the site. If you decide to purchase the ticket Museum Pass You can enter the concierge for free and without a queue.

Looking for more information about Paris?

This article is just a small part of my Paris guide, which includes itineraries, recommendations, information on attractions, and more. You can find it in the article Paris.

Did you like the article about the concierge? Here are two more articles that are indirectly related to the topic

• Square Montholon – a charming Parisian corner with a fascinating story: An article that deals, among other things, with the Sanson family (the executioner family I discussed in the article).
• The Migdal Nell Affair: Acts of Adultery in the Royal Court: Another fascinating article by Dr. Orna Lieberman, dealing with the affair that indirectly led to the outbreak of the Hundred Years' War and which took place in the King's Palace on the Île de la Cité.