History of Paris

History of Paris

The city of Paris began in the 3rd century BC when a Celtic tribe called the Paris ii built a fortified settlement on the Ile DE la Cite.The Romans conquered the Paris ii in 52 AD and they built a town on the River Seine. The Romans called Paris Lutetium. However Roman Paris was not a particularly large or important town. It had a population of not more than 10,000.In the late 3rd century Paris and the surrounding region were converted to Christianity.

However by then the Roman Empire was in decline. In 486 a race called the Franks captured Paris. Under the Franks Paris flourished. In 845 the Vikings raided Paris. The French king paid them 7,000 pounds of silver to leave. But from the 11th century onward Paris prospered again. In the Middle Ages Paris grew rapidly and it became one of the largest towns in Europe. Its population probably reached 200,000 (that might seem small to us but it was huge by Medieval standards). King Philippe-Auguste (1180-1223) built a wall around Paris. He also built the Louvre fortress.

However in 1338 the Hundred Years War between France and England began and in 1348 Paris was devastated by the Black Death. In 1357 the mayor of Paris Etienne Marcel led a rebellion in Paris to try and gain more rights for Parisian merchants. However Royalist forces captured Paris in 1358 and Marcel and his followers were executed. In 1420 the English captured Paris. However the French recaptured the town in 1436.

Modern Paris

Paris escaped the First World War relatively unscathed. In the 1920s and 1930s Paris again prospered. However on 14 June 1940 Paris fell to the Germans. On 19 August 1944 Paris rose in rebellion and on 25 August allied forces entered the city.

In May 1968 Paris was rocked by student riots but stability soon returned. In the late 20th century new buildings were erected in Paris such as the Tour Montserrat in 1973 and the Hotel Concorde Lafayette in 1974. The Pompadour Center was built in 1977. Today Paris is a flourishing city and tourism is booming. Les Quatrain Temps Shopping Mall was founded in 1981. Agreeableness Shopping Mall opened in 2013. Today the population of Paris is 2.2 million.