In the island of Île de la Cité, in the Seine River in the center of Paris, France

 (in Paris, France) The history of this city often makes people think of opulent royal lifestyles, empirical conquests, or cabaret nightlife. Yet, Paris dates back further than the eras that coincide with such associations. What is now a sprawling city began with the Parisii Celtic tribe around 200 BCE. on an island in the Seine River. Today, it is called Île de la Cité (City Island), and it still features major destinations in Paris that everyone needs to see (while also being important to modern French government).

+ Depicted here, is Île de la Cité, the island in the river Seine in the center of Paris. In the 4th century, it was the site of the fortress of the area governor for the Roman Empire. In 508, Clovis I, the first King of the Franks, established his palace on the island. In the 12th century, it became an important religious center, the home of Notre-Dame cathedral, and the royal chapel of Sainte-Chapelle, as well as the city hospital, the Hôtel-Dieu (which may be the oldest continuously operating hospital in the world). It is also the site of the city's oldest surviving bridge (the Pont Neuf).

+ The tip of the Île de la Cité is fashioned into a triangular gravel-pathed park bordered by flowering bushes, with benches under the ancient trees. It is surrounded by a wide cobbled quay that is especially popular with sunbathers and lovers. Where the steps go onto the bridge from the park, there is a bronze equestrian statue of King Henry IV, who insisted on completion of the Pont Neuf. The statue is an 1818 reproduction of the 1614 original, which was the first statue to stand on a public way in Paris. Opposite is the narrow entrance to the Place Dauphine, named for Henry’s heir (le dauphin), the future Louis XIII. The place was formerly a triangle of uniform red-brick houses pointed in white stone, but the row of houses along its base was ripped out in 1871 to make room for construction of part of the Palace of Justice (Palais de Justice).The palace of the early Roman governor (now the Palace of Justice) was rebuilt on the same site by King Louis IX (St. Louis) in the 13th century and enlarged 100 years later by Philip IV (the Fair), who added the grim gray-turreted Conciergerie, with its impressive Gothic chambers. The Great Hall (Grand Chambre), which, under the kings, was the meeting place of the Parlement (the high court of justice), was known throughout Europe for its Gothic beauty. Fires in 1618 and 1871 destroyed much of the original room, however, and most of the rest of the palace was devastated by flames in 1776. The Great Hall now serves as a waiting room for the various courts of law housed in the Palace of Justice. In the adjoining first Civil Chamber, the Revolutionary Tribunal sat from 1793, condemning some 2,600 persons to the guillotine. After being sentenced, the victims were taken back down the stone stairs to the dungeons of the Conciergerie to await the tumbrels -- the carts that carried them to the place of execution.