In the heart of Paris, on the Île de la Cité, visit the Conciergerie, this former medieval royal palace, which became Marie Antoinette's court and prison during the Revolution, and was masterfully illuminated during the opening ceremony of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.

 

 

In Gallo-Roman times, when Paris was called Lutetia, the Île de la Cité was surrounded by walls, Notre-Dame Cathedral was a temple, and the Conciergerie was a fortress.

 

At the end of the 10th century, the fortress was transformed into the Palais de la Cité under the Capetian dynasty.

From the 11th to the 14th centuries, the Palace was enlarged and embellished by successive French kings, and it was in the 13th century that Louis IX, the future Saint Louis, transformed it into a specialized institution for administrative, judicial, and financial matters, and built the Sainte-Chapelle within its walls.

 

In the 14th century, the Palace lost its residential function but retained its administrative one. A concierge, appointed by King Charles V to administer justice, converted part of the Palace into a prison.

The Conciergerie thus acquired its name.

 

 

From the 15th century until the French Revolution (1789-1799), the Conciergerie was one of the most important prisons in Paris.

Its most famous prisoner was Marie Antoinette, who, already incarcerated in the Temple prison for ten months, was transferred there on the night of August 1-2, 1793. Her trial opened on October 14, 1793, and she was executed on October 16, 1793, in the Place de la Révolution, now the Place de la Concorde.

 

After the Revolution, the Conciergerie continued to house many famous prisoners and underwent several restorations.

The Conciergerie was listed as a historical monument in 1862, part of it was opened to the public in 1914, and its function as a prison ended in 1934.

 

 

During your stay at the Hotel Jardin Le Brea, follow in the footsteps of French history and discover the Conciergerie, with its medieval and revolutionary rooms.

 

 

How to get to the Conciergerie from the Hotel Jardin Le Brea?

Conciergerie - 2, boulevard du Palais 75001 Paris

- From the Hotel Jardin Le Brea, take metro line 4 from Vavin station (1-minute walk), direction Porte de Clignancourt, get off at Cité station. The Conciergerie is about a 4-minute walk from there.

The total travel time from our hotel is 15 minutes.

 

 

Practical Information

https://www.paris-conciergerie.fr/en