La Place de la Concorde is a great place for the start of a walking tour of Paris. Located at the start of the Champs Elysées, it is an easy stroll to most of the famous places, with great sight seeing and cafés with ambiance on the way.

The sqaure was designed for decoration and as a big intersection by Jacques Ange Gabriel, the architect of Louis XV.  Its shape is octagonal. 

At each corner of the octagon is a statue that represents one of the large French cities: Lille, Strasbourg, Lyon, Marseille, Bordeaux, Nantes, Brest and Rouen. Each statue has a beautiful fountain.  The statues of the horses are only copies; the real ones are now at the Louvre. 

The Place was completed in 1763, when it was called the Place Louis XV.  Originally it was meant to hold a statue of King Louis XV on his horse, surrounded by the octagonal moat.

During the Revolution, it was renamed “la Place de la Révolution”, the equestrian statue of King Louis XV was removed and replaced by the guillotine in its centre. 

This was where King Louis XVI, Queen Marie Antoinette, Robespierre and thousands of others met their deaths during the Reign of Terror between 1793 and 1795.

It is said that the smell of blood was so strong that a herd of cattle refused to cross the place. The King’s statue was never replaced after the Revolution.

After the Revolution, the square went through many name changes until eventually during the 1830’s it received its modern name, chosen to symbolise the hope of a better future. The statue of Louis XV was never replaced.  Instead, the square became a victim of the Egyptomania sweeping France.

The ruler of Egypt offered the Obelisk of Luxor from the entrance to the temple of Amon at Luxor, as a gift to the French King.  The obelisk is 3,300 years old, dates from 1300 BCE. It is in pink stone, 23 metres high and weighs 230 tons.

It was installed in 1836 after a rather challenging voyage to transport it from Egypt to France.  The story of the journey is told through images at the bottom. 

Near the Place de la Concorde:

	The River Seine -  the Place is on the rive droite(Right Bank).  this photo was taken from the rive gauche (Left Bank).
	The National Assembly is located opposite la Place de la Concorde.
	See if you can track down the Mobilisation Order for the French entry into World War I at no. 1, Rue Royale.
	The Madeleine Originally this started as a copy of a classical Greek temple and was intended to be another monument to Napoleon’s glorious conquests.

However, the Napoleon's defeat in Russia of temporarily stopped the building.  After the restoration of the monarchy in 1815, King Louis XVIII decided to continue the building but to convert the temple into a church dedicated to Saint Mary Magdalene.   

Inside, the only source of natural light comes from the domes.  Nowadays, it’s a very popular place for society weddings. 
On the east side, there is a flower market, and a wonderful Art Nouveau toilet by the metro station.  There are some wonderful delis to tempt the tastebuds of the gourmets of the group in the streets nearby.