Those who did not get to visitParis Fifty years ago, he didn't get to see Les Halles market, but the myth and stories are still here as if it all happened last year.
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The history of Le Havre
In 1183, King Philip Augustus of France built in Paris, on land that had been confiscated from Jews, a covered market hall where traders mainly traded in textiles, which he called the Halles. Within a few years, this market became a diverse market that also included food and became the largest market in Paris. Over the years, Paris expanded and the market, which was located at the edge of the city when it was founded, found itself located in its center. Fish, meat and vegetables took up an increasing place in the market that began as a textile and dry food market.
More and more food stalls joined the market and by the 15th century it had become the central food market of Paris, and the prices of food products in the city were determined by the prices in Le Halle.
In the 16th century, the impressive Gothic Cathedral of Saint-Eustache was built near the market. In the 18th century, a huge circular building, the Halle aux Blés, was built in the western part of the market, intended for trading in corn and grains. Later, the place became a stock exchange for trading in grains and cereals of all kinds. The building was later renovated and upgraded and became one of the icons of the city of Paris at that time.
In 1870, a significant renovation was carried out at the market and the Halles de Baltard were built by the Haussmannian architect Victor Baltard in the form of 12 huge halls designed with 81 metal and glass arches.
Each hall will be dedicated to a raw material category such as fish (Pavillon de la Maree) or poultry (Pavillon de la Valle) as well as meat, charcuterie and offal, vegetables and fruits, bread, Cheeses and butter, etc. The market itself spilled out of the halls towards the nearby streets and covered a huge complex in the city center. The vision of the establishment was that of Napoleon III and Baron Haussmann. The complex was a source of income for over five thousand people, many of whom came from all over the world. France To try their luck in the capital.
Tons of agricultural goods arrived from various regions of France to the market every day, and the market sales began every day at 20 am and continued throughout the day until 00 pm. The area was the liveliest and most vibrant neighborhood in Paris, surrounded by dozens of workers' restaurants and cafes open 24 hours a day (La poule au Pot, Le Cafe Pierre, La Cloche des Halles, Le Chien qui Fume, Au Chou Vert, Au pied de cochon), some of which offered beds and lodgings for tired merchants (a very small part of the restaurants and shops that surrounded the Le Hall market and fed its workers and visitors in those days remain intact and operating to this day).
Les Halles market was the culinary shopping center of Paris for 800 years!!
The people who made the market
the writer Emile Zola who was fascinated by the market and defined it as the Louvre of the people, wrote a book in the 19th century that defined the future nickname that would accompany the place for years as “the belly of Paris” (Le Ventre de Paris). The Greek painter Nonda used to paint paintings on canvas there using charcoal and a brush dipped in cow blood or spleen juice. The butchers of the market used to donate the raw materials to him.
So who were the market professionals of days gone by:
- The porters - the strongest and leading ones of the market - used to wear a wide hat, so they could be identified from a distance, and their services could be used. It is said that the strongest carried up to 250 kilos on their backs.
- Cart drivers – earned a few cents by transporting their carts loaded with goods through the maze of passages of the huge market from point to point (the carts can be seen in two of the attached photos)
- The loaders – earned their living by arranging pyramids of fruits and vegetables in the sales halls.
- Egg inspectors – in a position similar to police officers, counted, measured, and checked the quality of eggs sold in the market.
- The guards – in exchange for a few coins, these women would watch over goods that had already been sold and were temporarily stored in a goods storage area in the Le Carreu market center.
- The Harlequin Merchants – a society that went around the halls collecting leftovers (with the help of garbage truck drivers), they would boil the leftovers they collected and sell the boiled waste to the hard-working masses.
The end of La-Hal
Over time, with modernization and the development of the quality of modern life in a crowded city, the Le Havre market became a nuisance due to overcrowding, dirt and poor hygiene conditions, noise and odors, but the main problem that arose was the traffic congestion that resulted from the location of a market of such magnitude in the center of a modern city that is a global tourist center.
It was decided that it was no longer appropriate to operate such a huge wholesale and retail market in the city center, and so in 1969 the bulldozers came upon Les Halles market and destroyed the entire huge market complex, with all the memories and history it preserved within its walls.
Amazingly, all of this was done to the dismay of the area's own residents, who found themselves with a huge gaping hole in the ground for a decade until construction on the complex was completed. Mass protests by residents were part of this historic package.
In place of the market, a huge underground shopping mall on any scale was built in the complex called Forum des Halles. A metro station called Metro Les Halles also remained there as part of a multi-storey train complex and lines. Metro and RER The largest in the city of Châtelet, its construction was completed in 1977.
The entire site is covered in a neat garden that many people spend time in throughout the year. Elements of this garden design preserve as a memorial the arched architecture of architect Victor Baltard, with which he built the market in the 19th century version that was preserved until the last day of the historic market.
Center Pompidou Adorned with shocking plumbing (which I think is probably archaic), it was built on the ruins of the eastern part of the market, and now displays the city's fair exhibitions. The market itself was exiled by the President of the Republic, General de Gaulle, to a huge modern complex in Rungis, south of the city and near Orly Airport.
Rungis New Wholesale Market
This is a market that is completely unlike what was in Le Havre because it is the largest and most central international food market in all of Europe. It is a sprawling complex of several square kilometers in size, it opens every day at 02:00 AM and employs 16,000 people, 26,000 trucks and vehicles transporting food pass through it every day, welcome to the largest food market in the world, it is a real city!!
The Rungis market was built next to a central train station and adjacent to Orly Airport, thus enabling rapid international transportation of goods from all over the world to Rungis and from Rungis to the rest of the world within hours.
Those of us who are not professionals in the food industry are not allowed to enter this complex, only buyers and suppliers who work there are allowed to enter, private individuals are blocked from buying there or on their website. I know there is Unique culinary tours that take visitors with a guide to the RenjisSo apparently in this way the possibility of seeing the place at work exists, I can't testify firsthand, I wasn't there.
When fish and seafood are caught in Normandy, they pass through Rungis to restaurants and shops in Paris or anywhere else, and the same goes for meats, cheeses, wines, and any other food product.
So beyond interesting general knowledge, what can we still take from this story? Something interesting that teaches us about culinary culture is that Rungis is closed on Sundays, meaning that fresh goods do not reach Paris restaurants on Sundays. Therefore, a good, quality restaurant in Paris (that works on Sundays) will not serve fish and seafood on Sundays, a product whose freshness is critical. Please note.
The myth and memory of the Paris wholesale market remains
Are there any remaining structures from the original La Haul Market?
Only one of the original market halls has been preserved as it was and is today called Pavillon Baltard. It was moved in its entirety to the suburb of Nogent-sur-Marne and is preserved there as a national monument, and is used as a concert hall (ZZ Top, Bob Marley, Iron Maiden, Thin Lizzy have performed there).
The Forum des Halles mall built on the site was renovated and expanded in 2010 and renovated again for 2018, becoming the second most visited mall in the city, with 42 million visitors a year. A hysterical maze of floors, passageways, and shops, I personally get lost there.
Les Halles market remains a mythical brand in the Parisian consciousness. Many years have passed, but its memory has not faded. It is still widely spoken of. Everyone knows how to remember and say that it was there, and was important and central, even though a significant portion of those who say this were not alive at all during its time. It is difficult to think of a food market that has been preserved in the historical consciousness for fifty years after its closure. On the other hand, it is also difficult to think of a food market that has maintained its preeminence for 800 years!
Want to live in the LES HALLES area?
The Le Halle area is one of the recommended places to stay in Paris for three main reasons: