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A huge fortress in Paris,
the Bastille castele was a symbol of royal absolutism before the
French Revolution. It was originally intended to augment the city's
defenses, though by the 17th century it was being used as a prison.
Voltaire and the Marquis de Sade were among its most famous inmates.
On July 13, 1789, exhorted "to arms" by a young lawyer,
Camille Desmoulins, a mob gathered outside the Bastille, that
frowning fortress whose guns were menacingly directed on the poor
quarter of the Faubourg Saint-Antoine which surrounded it. The
frenzied crowd demanded the munitions that were stored within,
while the Governor, the Marquis de Launay, promised not to fire
unless attacked. On July 14, which marks the beginning of the
French Revolution, the agitated crowd returned and filled the
Bastille's outer courts.
The bastille Opera
In 1983, Carlos Ott's design was choosen amongst more than 700 contestants for the design of a new opera house, which would be situated in the district of La Bastille. His design was characterised by its respect for the characteristics of the district, an inviting sight for the public by it's glass façade and the use of identicalmaterials inside and outside. The Opera Bastille was designed to make new concepts in scenery and stage decor fit together and for a new public.
Day and Night Life
The rue de Lappe can still be as dodgy
a place to be at night as it was in prewar days. The bouncers
at clubs like the Chapelle des Lombards, and at Balajo
itself, the heavy drug scene and the uneasy mix of local
residents have taken the soul away from a street that
ten years ago deserved the special affection that Parisians
of all sorts gave it.
You'll find art galleries clustered
around rues Keller, Tamandiers and the adjoining stretch
of rue de Charonne. And, on rue de Lappe, a very Parisian
tradition : the "bals musettes", or dance halls
of the1930s "gai Paris", frequented between
the wars by Edith Piaf, Jean Gabin and Rita Hayworth.
Hotel near La
Bastille.
Hotel
Dechampaigne Marais Paris
- Hotel
Auberge Flora Bastille Paris
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