Description & History

Spanning on 8.6 hectares (21 acres), Place de la Concorde is the largest square in Paris. It acts as a buffer between the Louvre and the Champs-Élysées and faces the National Assembly on the other side of the Seine.

Created in 1772, it was originally named Place Louis XV and used to have an equestrian statue of the king in its midst.

During the French Revolution, it is where the guillotine was installed and where Louis XVI, Marie Antoinette, Danton, Lavoisier, Robespierre and others were executed. It was renamed Place de la Concorde in 1795 to mark the end of the Reign of Terror.

A giant Egyptian obelisk decorated with hieroglyphics stands in the middle of the square. Known as the Luxor Obelisk, it was presented by the Egyptian government to France in 1830.

Two monumetal fountains also ornate the square. They were designed by architect Jacques Hittorff and completed in 1840, during the reign of King Louis-Philippe.

One of the two Neoclassical palaces hosts the Hôtel de Crillon, one of the oldest luxury hotels in the world.

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