12. Palais de Justice.
Sainte Chapelle. Conciergerie. Préfecture de Police. Place Dauphine.
Pont Neuf. Morgue.
The W. half of the island in the Seine termed La Cité, at the
W. extremity of which the Pont Neuf is situated, is occupied by
an almost unbroken mass of buildings, consisting of the Palais
de Justice in the centre, the Conciergerie on the Quai de
l'Horloge to the N., and the Préfecture de Police on the
Quai des Orfèvres to the S. The island was in ancient times
the residence of the French monarchs, until their royal mansion
was ceded by Henri II. (d. 1559) to the parliament, at that
period the supreme tribunal of the kingdom.
The original edifice suffered so much by fire in 1618, and
again in 1776, that nothing of it now remains except the towers:
La Tour de l'Horloge, La Tour du Grand César, La Tour de Montgomery,
all on the N. side, and beyond them the pinnacled Tour
d'Argent. The first of these towers, situated at the N.E. corner
of the Palais, contiguous to the Pont au Change with the large
clock adorned with two figures representing Justice and Piety,
was carefully restored and decorated in 1852.
The entire Palais de Justice has undergone extensive alterations
since 1839, the numerous dark passages and nooks which
disfigured the interior having been removed.
The different courts of justice, the Cour de Cassation, the
Cour d'Appel, the Assises, the Tribunal de Première Instance and the
Tribunal de Police Municipale hold their sessions here from 11 till
3 o'clock and may be visited by those who desire to witness the
proceedings of a French tribunal. The services of a guide
(1 fr.) will prove of essential service. In the Chambre Correctionelle
very amusing scenes sometimes occur, and the pleading is
occasionally admirable; the stranger, however, who is well
acquainted with the French language should procure access to
one of the courts in which a civil suit is being tried and where
he will hear some of the most eminent advocates plead. The
eloquence of the French Barreau is held in high repute.
Several of the courts (Chambres) are entered from a lofty hall,
recently restored, supported by pillars, 216 ft. long and 84 ft.
broad, termed the Salle des Pas Perdus. Judges and advocates
in their black robes, as well as clients, are usually seen pacing
up and down in this hall. Around it sit the public writers,
whose office is to render assistance with their pens to inexperienced
litigants. This busy scene is the sole point of interest
in the Palais de Justice for those who do not desire to visit the
courts themselves.
The monument on the r. side of the hall was erected by
Louis XVIII. to the memory of the minister Malesherbes, who was
beheaded in 1794, the defender of Louis XVI. before the revolutionary
tribunal, as the relief beneath, by Cortot, indicates; the
statue is by Bosio, on the sides are figures emblematic of France
and Fidelity, with the inscription; Strenue semper fidelis regi suo,
in solio veritatem, praesidium in carcere attulit. (Ever strenuously
faithful to his king, he served him with truth on the throne and
assistance in prison).
In the S. court of the Palais de Justice rises the *Sainte
Chapelle, the ancient palace-chapel erected in 1245—48 by
Pierre de Montereau for the reception of the sacred relics (fragments
of the crown of thorns, the true cross and the garment
of the Saviour, and the head of the spear with which his side
was pierced), which are said to have been purchased by St. Louis
from Jean de Brienne, king of Jerusalem, and his son-in-law
Baldwin, emperor of Byzantium, for the sum of 2 million francs.
The chapel is a perfect gem of its kind, and the most beautiful
Gothic edifice in Paris. The height, including the modern spire
which replaces one burned down in 1630, is about 140 ft., length
120 ft., breadth 40 ft. The interior consists of two chapels, the
upper and the lower, the former having been destined for the
accommodation of the court, the latter for the attendants. The
upper chapel consists of a nave and semi-circular apse, 65 ft. in
height, the former with four windows on each side, the latter
with seven altogether. The stained glass, which represents subjects
from the Old and New Testament and scenes from the history
of St. Louis, is coeval with the foundation, with the exception of
a few portions by which missing fragments have been judiciously
replaced. The upper chapel with its clusters of columns and
rich decorations has recently been restored in a most gorgeous
manner, the lower is still in a dilapidated condition. The original
structure was erected at an expense of 800,000 fr., the restoration
has already cost considerably upwards of one million francs. From
1793 until the recent restoration it served as a receptacle for
the documents of the lawyers of the Palais de Justice. In the
lower chapel the poet Boileau (d. 1711) is interred. The Sainte
Chapelle is, strictly speaking, only accessible to those who are
furnished with a written permission from the Ministre de la Maison
de l'Empereur; admission may, however, generally be obtained
for a few francs by applying to the porter.
The Conciergerie, the gloomy walls and ancient towers of
which overlook the Seine on the N. side, is the oldest of this
mass of buildings and serves as a prison for those who are about
to undergo an examination. Most of the political prisoners mentioned
at p. 80 were here confined before they were conducted
to the guillotine. The chamber once occupied by Marie Antoinette,
who had been conveyed hither from the Temple, is now converted
into the sacristy of the chapel. Three pictures by Simon, Pajou
and Drolling represent some of the closing scenes of her life.
A black marble tablet on the wall bears the following inscription,
which is said to have been composed by Louis XVIII. himself:
"D. O. M. Hoc in loco Maria Antonia Josepha Johanna Austriaca
Ludovici XVI vidua, conjuge trucidato, liberis ereptis, in carcerem
conjecta, per dies 76 aerumnis luctu et squalore adfecta, sed propria
virtute innixa ut in solio, ila et in vinculis majorem fortuna se
praebuit. A scelestissimis denique hominibus capite damnata, morte
jam imminente, aeternum pietatis, fortitudinis, omniumque virtutum
monumentum hic scripsit, die 16. Octobris 1793. Restituto tandem
regno, carcer in sacrarium conversus dicatus est, A. D. 1816, Ludovici
XVIII regnantis anno XXII., Comite de Cazes a securitate
publica Regis ministro, praefecto aedilibusque curantibus. Quisquis
hic ades, adora, admirare, precare."
(In the name of the Almighty. In this place Marie Antoinette Josepha
Johanna of Austria, widow of Louis XVI., after her husband had been
slain and her children torn away from her, was cast into prison and tortured
by misery, grief and humiliation during 76 days; but, supported by
her own virtue as when on the throne, so even in prison she proved
herself superior to fortune. Finally condemned to death by the most
wicked men, her death being now at hand, she here wrote an everlasting
monument of piety, fortitude and all virtues, Oct. 16th, 1723. When the
kingdom was at last re-established, this prison was converted into a sacristy,
A. D. 1816, in the 22nd year of the reign of Louis XVIII. under the
superintendence of Count de Cazes, minister of police, the prefect and the
sheriffs. Whoever thou be that art here present, revere, admire, pray).
The building occupied by the Prefecture de Police, situated
on the S. side, on the Quai des Orfèvres, was erected in 1611
as an official residence for the president of the parliament. From
this point as a centre emanate all the threads which constitute
the partly visible and partly invisible network of police authority
which extends over the entire city. The prefect of the police
has an annual sum of 13 million francs at his command, for the
maintenance of 300 officials, 7000 commissaries, inspectors and
sergents de ville, 3000 men of the Garde municipale, and 800 sapeurs-pompiers
or fire-men. By this efficient staff the public
security, as well as the public health are admirably provided for.
Paris, the once notorious Lutetia (muddy city), is now one of
the cleanest towns in the world, and, notwithstanding the 60,000
malefactors which it is computed to harbour, affords greater
security to its inhabitants than the quietest provincial town.
On the W. side of the Palais is situated the triangular Place
Dauphine, constructed under Henry IV., with brick houses coeval
with those of the Place Royale (p. 35), and formerly the residence
of the parliamentary advocates and officials. In the centre
of the Place stands Desaix's Monument, a fountain surmounted by a
bust of the general, who is crowned with laurel by a figure emblematic
of France: two figures of Victory record the names of
the battles fought by the hero. The inscriptions are as follows:
"Allez dire au premier consul que je meurs avec le regret de
n'avoir pas assez fait pour la postérité" — Landau, Kehl, Weissenbourg,
Malte, Chebreis, Embabé, les Pyramides, Sediman, Samanhout,
Kane, Thèbes, Marengo furent les témoins de ses talents et
de son courage. Les ennemis l'appelaient le Juste; ses soldats,
comme ceux de Bayard, sans peur et sans reproche; il vécut, il
mourut pour sa patrie. L. Ch. Ant. Desaix, né à Ayot, départe-
ment du Puy-de-Dôme, le 17 août 1758; mort à Marengo le 25 prairial
an VIII de la république (14 juin 1800). Ce monument lui
fut élevé par des amis de sa gloire et de sa vertu, sous le consulat
de Bonaparte, l'an X de la république."
The W. issue opens on the *Pont Neuf, a bridge across both
arms fo the Seine, 350 yds. in length, on which is situated the
equestrian Statue of Henry IV., erected to replace one which had
stood here from 1635 to 1792, when it was melted down and converted
into pieces of ordnance. By way of retaliation Louis XVIII.
condemned the statue of Napoleon from the Vendôme column
and that of Desaix from the Place des Victoires to a similar fate.
The inscription in front is to the following effect:
"Henrici Magni, paterno in populum animo notissimi principis,
sacram effigiem, civiles inter tumultus, Gallia indignante, dejectam,
post optatum Ludovici XVIII reditum ex omnibus ordinibus cives
aere collato restituerunt. Nec non et elogium cum effigie simul
abolitum lapidi rursus inscribi curaverunt. D. D. die 25 mensis
Aug. 1818."
(After the longed for return of Louis XVIII. the citizens of all ranks,
having made contributions, restored the sacred image of Henry the Great,
a prince distinguished for his paternal feelings towards his people, which
to the indignation of France had been thrown down during the Civil war.
They moreover caused the inscription which had been destroyed with the
statue to be again inscribed on the monument. Aug. 25th, 1818.)
The following is the original inscription to which allusion is
made in the above:
"Enrico IV., Galliarum imperatori Navar. R. Ludovicus XIII.
filius ejus, opus inchoatum et intermissum, pro dignitate pietatis et
imperii plenius et amplius absolvit. Emin. D. C. Richelius commune
votum populi promovit. Super illustr. viri de Bouillon,
Boutillier, aerarii, faciendum curaverunt 1635."
(To Henry IV., king of France and Navarre, Louis XIII. his son, as
a worthy token of his filial love and his reign, completed this monument
in a better and superior style, after it had been commenced and interrupted.
His Eminence Cardinal Richelieu gratified the univeral wish of
the people. The counsellors of the treasury de Bouillon and Boutillier
superintended the work. 1635.)
At the sides are two reliefs in bronze: Henry IV. causing
bread to be distributed among the citizens of Paris who had
sought protection of him during the siege, and his halt at Notre
Dame, where he causes peace to be proclaimed to the inhabitants
by the Archbishop of Paris.
In front of the statue a large telescope is usually posted,
through which the stranger may inspect the planets, if he feel
disposed, for 10 c. An adjoining staircase descends to a good
swimming-bath in the Seine (p. 19).
On the opposite side, Quai de Conti 5, is a gilded inscription
to this effect; "Souvenir historique. L'empereur Napoléon Bona-
parte, officier d'artillerie sortant, en 1781, de l'école de Brienne,
demeurait au cinquième étage de cette maison."
In the 16th cent. Tabarin, a celebrated satirical poet of the
day, was in the habit of reciting his verses on this bridge, in
consequence of which circumstance popular rhymes are to this
day termed "pont-neufs".
At the extremity of the island, opposite to the Pont Neuf
and in the rear of Notre Dame, is situated La Morgue, recently
rebuilt, where corpses of unknown persons who have met their
death in the river or otherwise are exposed to view during three
days. The bodies are placed on marble slabs, kept cool by a
stream of water; their clothing is suspended above them. If not
recognized within the prescribed limit, they are removed and
buried at the public expense. On an average 240 male and
50 female corpses are thus annually exposed. This painful spectacle
daily attracts numerous visitors, especially of the lower
classes.
Notre-Dame, also situated in the Cité island, see p. 104.
