I’ve written about plenty of Paris attractions over the years, but few of them shaped the city’s character so deeply that without them, Paris as we know it couldn’t have developed. One of those attractions was the revolutionary Pont Neuf, which brought Paris its sidewalks and the whole concept of a bridge without houses on it. Today I’ll tell you the story of Place des Vosges, Paris’s oldest public square, the one that started the whole trend of public squares.
The History of Place des Vosges
The square’s story begins with a tragedy. In 1559, King Henri II of France (r. 1547-1559) announced plans for a jousting tournament as part of the celebrations for a peace treaty just signed with Spain. Since the king loved sports, he decided to take part in the tournament himself, even though his wife, Catherine de’ Medici (1519-1589), begged him not to.
Her worry came from a prophecy by Nostradamus (Michel de Nostredame, 1503-1566), who predicted the king would be killed in the tournament. Sure enough, at the end of June 1559, the jousting tournament was held at the Palais de Tournelles, on the eastern side of Paris near the Bastille. During one of the matches, the wooden lance of his opponent Montgomery shattered, and splinters pierced the king’s eye, wounding him fatally. After several days of agony, the king died on July 10, 1559. Catherine de’ Medici, grief-stricken over the death of her beloved husband, decided to tear down the palace and move to the Louvre. And so, for a few decades, the site stood abandoned, used mainly for duels.
A few decades passed, along with a brutal civil war that left Paris in ruins. The war finally ended with the Edict of Nantes in 1598, and Henri IV (r. 1589-1610) decided it was time to rebuild Paris. One of his goals was to revive the city’s economy, and since silk was one of the most expensive fabrics of the time, the king decided to encourage that industry, and along the way, to give Paris its first public square.
That might sound surprising, but until then Paris had no public square where its residents could rest or stroll (the only squares that existed were markets, church squares, or large street intersections). So in August 1603, Henri IV approached some of the wealthiest industrialists in Paris and offered them the land where the Palais de Tournelles once stood, along with noble titles and tax exemption. In return, the king asked them to set up a silk industry that would run at least until 1615.
The work moved quickly, and by 1605 a silk workshop already stood on the site, where Italian craftsmen taught the French the trade. In July 1606, the king decided to turn the buildings that housed the silk industry into a square, and even named it the “Royal Square” (Place Royale). According to the king’s decree, the square’s purpose was to beautify Paris, to provide a fitting venue for royal ceremonies (thanks to its proximity to the eastern gate of the city), and to give Parisians a place to spend their leisure hours.
It was nothing short of a revolutionary decision, because for the first time in Paris’s history, the planning took into account not just the aesthetic side but also the practical side of a public square. The square was built around the silk industry buildings on its eastern side. Three more sides (pavilions) were added, each with nine arches, and were finished in 1612.
So Who Lived in the Square?
Each resident of the square was allowed to design the inside of their house as they wished, but they had to keep a uniform facade, which gives the square its harmonious look and was likely designed by Androuet de Cerceau. Despite its name, the square had nothing royal about it at first, and its population consisted of silk industrialists and other businesspeople. But it quickly became clear that the silk industry at the square had failed. In 1615, once the concession expired, the square’s population began to change, and nobles took the place of the business owners.
Among the nobles who lived in the square was the famous woman of letters Marie de Rabutin-Chantal, marquise de Sévigné (1626-1696), who was born at number 1bis and later moved to the nearby Hôtel Carnavalet. Another interesting figure was the duc de Richelieu (Armand du Plessis, duc de Richelieu, 1696-1788), who lived at number 21. Richelieu was considered the greatest lover of the 18th century, alongside Casanova, and by his own account he managed to sleep with every woman who ever lived in this square (he was also later linked to the invention of mayonnaise, and you can read about that here).
Number 6 in the square belonged to the princes of the Rohan-Guémené family and is considered one of the grandest houses in the square. About 200 years after the house was built, Victor Hugo (1802-1885) moved in, and today you can find a small, free museum there dedicated to his memory. Several famous women also lived in the square. The first was the courtesan Marion Delorme (1613-1650), whose house at number 11 was known as one of the most important literary salons of her time.
At number 9 lived the Jewish actress Rachel Félix (1821-1858), considered the great tragic actress of her time (even though she couldn’t read or write, she could easily recite plays by Racine and others). Her funeral procession set out from there after she died of tuberculosis at age 37, a procession that ended at the Jewish section of Père Lachaise Cemetery.
At the center of the square stood Paris’s first public garden, and in 1639 a statue of Louis XIII (r. 1610-1643) was placed there. It was destroyed during the French Revolution (the current statue dates from 1829). The public garden became a favorite spot for all Parisians, who loved to stroll among the trees and lie on the grass. But at certain times, the park also witnessed less peaceful events. For example, during the Fronde uprisings (1648-1652), the garden became a parade ground for the forces of the city of Paris, who rebelled against the king and Cardinal Mazarin.
The nobles, who as mentioned had taken over the square, weren’t thrilled about having common people underfoot, and they decided to put up a fence around the garden to separate the public space from the private one. Under Louis XIV, the square gained a ceremonial role: whenever someone important entered the city, they would come in through the Bastille gate and pass through the square. One of the most famous visits to the square was that of Queen Christina of Sweden (1626-1689), who arrived in September 1656 riding a white horse and escorted by an army of soldiers dressed in magnificent uniforms.
The square was used not just for public events but sometimes also for private parties. For example, in 1659 the marquis de Montbrun (Pierre de Bellegarde, marquis de Montbrun), who lived at number 19, decided to sell his property and throw a farewell party for his friends. He lit up the square with about 2,000 candles and staged one of the most spectacular fireworks displays Paris had ever seen.
Place des Vosges Today
The square’s success drove the growth of the Marais, which a German travel guide printed in the 17th century called “the most fun place in Paris.” The result was the construction of grand urban mansions (hôtels particuliers) such as the Hôtel Carnavalet, Hôtel de Sully, Hôtel de Soubise, and others. At the end of the 18th century, the square changed its name from the Royal Square to Place des Vosges, named after the department that was the first to pay its taxes to the French Republic born out of the 1789 Revolution.
In the second half of the 20th century, the square also gained a Jewish dimension, when a synagogue opened at number 14 in 1963. Twenty-three years later, the square also earned its place on the map of French gastronomy thanks to the restaurant l’Ambroisie, a three Michelin star establishment that opened here in 1986 and is considered one of the most beautiful restaurants in Paris. And so, even some 400 years after it was created, the square keeps its vitality and charm, and remains one of the Paris attractions you shouldn’t miss.
And while you’re here, leave the square via Rue de Birague, and within five minutes you’ll reach the church of Saint-Paul-Saint-Louis, home to a painting by Delacroix (admission is free).
Some of the images in this article are courtesy of Ruti Shimoni.
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